The Mess We're In (not ft. Thom Yorke)

As a lifelong supply chainer, /january brought news of Covid-19 and we all scrambled to identify what we were buying from China and determining what alternative sources existed. Quaint times, those.

As we move through the work-from-home phase (for those of us still allowed to "work"), the challenges seem insurmountable:

• As supply chain staffs have been slashed, the need for eliminating risk, containing costs and dealing with suppliers going bankrupt will never have been higher
• Traditional analytical methods won't work: How do you determine the financial viability of a supplier when one or two quarters are immeasurably bad across an entire economy? How do you negotiate pricing when future volumes and needs are one outbreak away from falling off the table?
• To eliminate risk, many will be tempted to raise inventory levels as protection, but who is going to approve that giant check? 

The challenges for procurement teams are more soul-crushing than ever - like, Lakers get LeBron and then there's no playoffs - soul-crushing (I'm OK with one of these). With short staffs and executive eyes on immediate needs, teams will need to prioritize work and how long they spend on any given activity. People used to working 7 steps end to end will need to adjust to thrive. 

Sadly, I've got no good advice. Just nose to the grindstone, fail fast, come up for air and stay healthy. Its all we can do to get by.