Global firms 'must mitigate supply chain risks'

The world's leading companies will need to take a more proactive approach to minimising supply chain risks if they wish to avoid business disruptions in 2012.

This is according to a new report from the Procurement Intelligence Unit, which forecast that global businesses could be set to lose out on €140 million (£120.48 million) on average next year due to supply chain issues, reports Procurement Leaders.

Issues affecting companies during 2011 may have included commodity volatility and adverse weather conditions, with a recent survey of 181 senior procurement executives suggesting that little targeted action has been taken to avoid a repeat.

Mark Perera, chief executive officer of the Procurement Intelligence Unit, said firms must "realise procurement's central place in risk management".

"So many companies are vulnerable to risks in the supply chain and the onus is on the purchasing function to mitigate these risks," he added.

This comes after an IMS Institute for Healthcare Informatics earlier this month revealed that supply chain issues are causing product shortages in the US healthcare sector at present.