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By Stephen DeAngelis
Over the past few years, I’ve read numerous articles claiming to offer advice about how to “future-proof” or “disruption-proof” supply chains. It would be great if a company could actually make itself bullet-proof to any eventuality; however, such thinking is wishful at best and disastrous at worst. I’m much more impressed by articles that help companies successfully navigate troubled waters without making false claims that, in the future, they will be disruption free.
Most experts agree that supply chains will encounter plenty of turbulent seas in the years ahead. Journalist David H. Coburn reports, “Experts say we can expect more frequent and less predictable challenges to stability from geopolitical upheaval, wars, extreme weather, supply‑and‑demand fluctuations — and even the occasional black swan event. As disruption becomes the new normal, companies are evolving new mindsets, strategies, and tactics to help them mitigate or even avoid the next shock.”[1]
Risk Managers Should Broaden Their Perspective
Political analyst Bruce Mehlman spends most of his time trying to make sense of current events. He writes, “I’ve spent the past [two years] trying to explain the volatile period we find ourselves in — the seismic technological, geopolitical and cultural macro-trends that brought us here, define our unsettled reality and portend a dynamic future.”[2] To help others “maintain [their] perspective, objectivity & sanity in [this] age of disruption,” he suggests people focus on six areas. They are:
1. Media. According to Mehlman, humans are prone to the same “garbage in, garbage out” flaws that plaque artificial intelligence. To counter that tendency, he suggests balancing your media diet. He explains, “If an unbalanced nutritional diet undermines your athletic performance, won’t an unbalanced information diet impair your effectiveness as a leader, investor, or citizen? We’re drowning in information sources and media options, making it very easy to fall into the confirmation bias trap — only consuming things that make us feel good. But that’s not balanced. Overcoming the algorithms & media business models takes thought and intentionality … aim for diversity in viewpoint, medium, geography, time frame, subject & format.”
2. History. Another bias people are prone to, according to Mehlman, is “recency bias.” To overcome that bias, he suggests people read a little history. He explains, “Studying history reminds us that we’ve always faced challenges that felt insurmountable at the time … and consistently made progress.”
3. Curiosity. I’ve written numerous articles about the importance of curiosity. The late Albert Einstein once wrote, “The important thing is to not stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existence. One cannot help but be in awe when he contemplates the mysteries of eternity, of life, of the marvelous structure of reality. It is enough if one tries merely to comprehend a little of this mystery each day.”[3] Mehlman believes we should have the same curiosity about the people around us as we do about the world around us. He cites author Morgan Housel, who asks, “What have you experienced that I haven’t that makes you believe what you do? And would I think about the world like you do if I experienced what you have?” Mehlman writes, “I love those questions. … Too many of us presume the worst in others, convinced we understand the other side based on our own preconceived notions. We’re judgmental, not curious. And we’re frequently wrong … about who they are and what they believe.”
4. Success. Mehlman believes individuals need to reimagine what it means to be successful in life. He cites the late Clayton Christensen who discussed meeting people who were financially successful but nevertheless unhappy. Christensen wrote, “They didn’t keep the purpose of their lives front and center as they decided how to spend their time, talents, and energy.” Supply chain professionals should also take time to reimagine what success looks like for their company during turbulent times. What matters most? What hurdles stand in the way of success?
5. Long-term thinking. Many prominent business consultants have stressed the importance of playing the long game. Mehlman writes, “Success compounds over time. Shortcuts rarely do. Great businesses, investors and families play the long game … seeking slow & steady progress while avoiding big mistakes.”
6. Be there. Mehlman argues that the most successful businesses and people are the ones that show up when people need them. He cites numerous surveys that show that people have a great distrust for government, big business, the healthcare system, etc. Nevertheless, they trust their representative, their employer, their doctor, and so forth. He writes, “We trust those things we experience in real life, first hand, offline. If you want to be trusted, you need to show up … to tell your own story.”
Mehlman concludes, “I remain bullish on the future, optimistic we will make it ‘through the night with a light from above.’ America always has. Admittedly my optimism is based on hope… but it’s a hope informed by history & human nature. As Morgan Housel put it, ‘The past wasn’t as good as you remember. The present isn’t as bad as you think. The future will be better than you anticipate.’”
Navigating the Turbulence
I would love to provide a simple chart of things companies need to do to steer successfully through a turbulent future. As Ralf W. Seifert, a Professor of Operations Management at IMD, and Richard Markoff, a supply chain researcher, explain, “Each industry will adapt in different ways and at different paces.”[4] If Mehlman’s observations teach us anything, they teach that the more you know the better off you will be. Seifert and Markoff agree. They suggest supply chain professionals expand their knowledge in five different ways: 1) Take advantage of internal company networks and experts; 2) Cultivate relationships with regional experts and local partners; 3) Subscribe to expert intelligence and analysis; 4) Build geopolitical visibility from end-to-end in your supply chain; and, 5) Use this intelligence as the basis for regular dialogue across the business. The fact of the matter is, today’s supply chains are so complicated that professionals will come to realize they need artificial intelligence to help them make sense of it all.
To help clients gather and analyze information in today’s complex business environment, Enterra Solutions® has developed the Enterra System of Intelligence®. This System merges cutting-edge analytical techniques with a business’ data and knowledge to Sense, Think, Act, and Learn® on enterprise data to meet the changing needs of the market. Enterra’s System acts as central “brain” within an organization, ingesting diverse datasets, business logic and practices, and strategy, to uncover unique insights and generate autonomous recommendations across the enterprise at market speed. Insights and recommendations generated by the Enterra System of Intelligence are acted upon through deep integrations with an organization’s established systems of record and engagement, akin to how the brain (decision-making) and central nervous system (actions) interact within the human body. Enterra’s system uniquely learns the environmental reasons that recommendations are successful or not and persists that learning in its Ontologies and Generative AI knowledge bases to improve future insights and recommendations. The business application modules included in the Enterra System of Intelligence are:
• Enterra Consumer Insights Intelligence System™. This System allows clients to quantitatively uncover and logically understand the inter-relationships that lead to heightened consumer understanding, hyper-personalized product recommendations, and new product innovation.
• Enterra Revenue Growth Intelligence System™ (ERGIS™). ERGIS systemically performs holistic revenue growth optimization (including optimizing strategic and tactical pricing, trade promotion, trade architecture, price pack architecture, media mix, customer segmentation, and assortment).
• Enterra Demand and Supply Chain Intelligence System™. This System concurrently performs non-linear demand and supply planning optimization.
• Enterra Business WarGaming™. Business WarGaming enables organizations to leverage their data to make strategic decisions by anticipating the moves of their competitors and taking direct action to beat the competition, mitigate risk, navigate uncertainty, and maximize market opportunity. Part of Enterra Business WarGaming is the Enterra Global Insights and Decision Superiority System™ (EGIDS™) — powered by the Enterra Autonomous Decision Science™ platform — which can help business leaders rapidly explore a multitude of options and scenarios.
Concluding Thoughts
Chris McDivitt, the Global Lead for Autonomous Supply Chain at Accenture, insists, “In today’s world of constant supply chain shocks, autonomy is no longer just innovation, it’s a resilience strategy.”[5] Coburn adds, “The dream vision of AI — fully autonomous supply chains run by teams of digital agents — may be years away from becoming a widespread reality. However, some technology observers are convinced that autonomy will be the next frontier in building disruption‑proof supply chains.” I am not sure than any complex system can be entirely “disruption-proof”; however, I do believe that Autonomous Decision Science (ADS®) will make supply chains more resilient to future disruptive events.
Footnotes
[1] David H. Coburn, “Building Disruption-Proof Supply Chains,” MHI Solutions, 18 September 2025.
[2] Bruce Mehlman, “Six-Chart Sunday (#100) – How to Navigate an Age of Disruption,” Bruce Mehlman's Age of Disruption, 23 November 2025.
[3] Albert Einstein, “Old Man’s Advice to Youth: ‘Never Lose a Holy Curiosity.’,” Life, 2 May 1955.
[4] Ralf W. Seifert and Richard Markoff, “The geopoliticization of supply chains: How it started and where it’s going,” I by IMD, 3 November 2025.
[5] Coburn, op. cit.
