Supply chain resilience and business adaptability

Rasheed Mohamad

March 26, 2024

Strategic supply chain resilience and business adaptability to thrive in the face of adversity

As the Global Revenue and Operations Officer of Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise, I constantly strive to ensure that our organisation remains resilient in the face of disruptions. ALE works in the enterprise connectivity space, providing solutions for data and voice, on-premises, in the cloud, or with hybrid deployments, and our portfolio includes a range of hardware products. In 2020, at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, we made strategic investments in stocks to compensate for the component shortages the world began to experience. The visibility we provided to our partners and customers of our ongoing efforts to mitigate the supply chain disruption - through data transparency, automation, and streamlined communication - played a pivotal role in ensuring we did not have to cancel a single order during those challenging times.

Operational and strategic resilience are critical components of our business. Following the disruptions of the pandemic and taking our experience and learnings, ALE made a significant shift from a lean supply chain to a resilient and predictive one. We transitioned from our lean approach, which emphasized just-in-time delivery and cost-effectiveness, to reactive and proactive methods that would anticipate supply chain disruptions, particularly in procurement, where lead times for critical components had doubled or even tripled. We redesigned our sales operation planning to prioritise logistics and predictive analysis, emphasizing sustainability, reliability, and the ability to anticipate future trends and challenges with cost consciousness at each stage.

At ALE, we understand that resilience is not just about weathering the storm, but about thriving in the face of adversity. Our commitment to building a resilient and predictive supply chain has enabled us to not only overcome challenges but also to emerge stronger and better equipped for the future.
Every company, including ours, is cost-conscious, making it essential to identify low-hanging fruits in which to invest. We allocated resources where they yielded the greatest impact. By eliminating non-prioritised initiatives and focusing on those with immediate potential, we ensured that our investments remained aligned with our strategic goals.

Our journey to strategic resilience began with actions to mitigate supply chain shortages, but continued with a focus on increasing data accuracy and improving operational efficiency. It was essential to recognise our pain points and extend the visibility of our operations to our partner ecosystem as we addressed them. Through the use of technology and with a strong focus on aligning people inside and outside our organisation, we were able to find solutions that secured business continuity for customers who depended on ALE. We realised the cleanliness and accuracy of data would become a fundamental aspect of our strategy, as it forms the foundation for informed decision-making and efficient operations.

Adaptability became another cornerstone of our approach. The ability to refine processes, learn from experience and mistakes, and apply those lessons to enhance our operations was crucial.

Strategic resilience and business adaptability are not one-time goals but rather a continuous journey of refinement and careful investment. We remain steadfast in the pursuit of our journey’s goal, knowing that it is the key to our long-term success in the face of uncertainty.