Supply chain immunity: a methodology for risk management

Abstract

Supply chain risk management is an important area that has both tremendous practical significance and research potential. Risks can range from very frequent low impact variations to disruptive effects. Biological systems are also similarly under constant attacks and their immune systems have evolved to protect them very effectively. Building on this immune system metaphor, this paper describes a methodology for supply chain risk management in manufacturing and services. The methodology leverages the supply-chain operations reference (SCOR) sub-processes to create distributed solutions for supply chain risks. Two key features that cater to the needs of current supply chain risk management are the ability to uncover the impact of the risk over the entire supply chain and rapid reconfiguration of the supply chain.