Logistics and Supply Chain Technology Report 2021

中国电信（欧洲）有限公司 C h i n a T e l e c o m ( E u r o p e ) L t d .

With visibility in mind, risk management also emerged as a strong area of investment (30%). Besides the supplier diversification and China Plus One strategies we have previously outlined, other risk-management strategies might involve mapping the supply chain structure and delving into indirect partners to identify vulnerabilities and exposure to risk, allowing for a more targeted form of investment to nip problems in the bud before they emerge. Critical supplier dependencies along the chain must be assessed in order to fully weigh up potential planning solutions and to calculate the impact upon operations. To this extent, cybersecurity practices of vendors must also be taken into account when thinking about risk, and our respondents emphasised this, with 26% stating direct investment into their cybersecurity strategies to assuage customer fears and to strengthen their systems against the growing onslaught of cyber-attacks on supply chain businesses.

Are you increasing or decreasing your IT spend?

25%

50%

75%

100%

Increasing

59%

Staying the same

37%

Decreasing

Given this trend it comes as no surprise that IT departments are seeing a boost in funding across the industry, with over half of all survey respondents informing us that they were increasing their IT spend over the coming year (59%). A further 37% told us that they were maintaining their level of investment for the time being, finding that increased funding over the past year had led to significant improvements in their operations, or required further investment levels to maintain service levels and see through prior investment. However, a minority of business are scaling back their spending after a heavy year of spending (4%). As we have seen, whilst COVID-19 prompted many to take an unplanned look at their technology infrastructure, some were better prepared for the transition to remote working and a digital-first office and, having spent the past 18 months moving quickly to scale existing infrastructure, are now up to speed and looking to cut back on IT spending. Our solutions providers echoed these results, telling us that 85% of their customers were looking to expand their technology spend, with 13% maintaining current spending levels and just 2% cutting back.