2023 Supply Chain Outlook

The past three years have been a fascinating, challenging, and historical era for global supply chains. And while evidence points towards normalcy in 2023, the industry continues to evolve and grow. Our team of experts shared their predictions for what supply chain leaders and enterprises can expect this year and beyond.

Supply Chain Cost Optimization

As talks of inflation and recession consume daily conversations, cost optimization remains a top area of concern for our customers for the upcoming year, as padding the bottom line is always a key concern. Other major considerations for shippers in 2023 include cost visibility, inventory management, and carrier capacity.

This year, supply chain leaders (particularly procurement) will be laser-focused on defining the actual cost to meet their and their customers’ needs. For example, how much will it cost to increase service levels or introduce new products and services? How are challenges with suppliers or trade policies affecting the bottom line?

Procurement professionals need support to pull this off. Specifically, they need training and data – lots of data. This starts with information about vendors, so purchasers can recognize which ones are prioritizing their unique needs.

Trax looks forward to more involvement with training procurement professionals on matters like these, in addition to creating tools to ensure they know how to assess what they are buying, provide a better understanding of which products and customers are profitable and which are not, and how current priorities affect performance across the supply chain.

Measuring, Tracking & Reporting Carbon Emissions

By now you have heard that measuring ESG (environmental, social, governance) will be top of mind for supply chain leaders going forward. In fact, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will soon vote on a proposal mandating that by 2025 companies will have to sign off on “greenhouse gas emissions and climate-related disclosures in quarterly public reporting,” putting a spotlight on the role companies are playing in climate protection both now and in the future.

Ensuring your business is equipped and ready to report on updated SEC climate disclosures by 2025 is a major challenge for CEOs. For this reason, Trax created Carbon Emissions Manager—the only tool offering comprehensive carbon and greenhouse gas emissions reporting and trending for all modes and all regions. New SEC reporting for 2025 requires that many data-obtaining tools and processes must first be established and implemented so companies can record data from 2024 to have information to report. Each CEO will have to determine what each lane, mode, and carrier will cost from an emissions standpoint.

It takes good, reliable data to help a transportation company minimize scope 3 emissions due to the high number of vendors associated with a supply chain. So, questions regarding credible data and whether the supply chain data truly reflects scope 3 emissions must be thoroughly answered. The data-collection process must be organized, standardized, and reliable so that goals may be set for emissions reduction implementation.

According to the SEC, this data is often requested from many of the world’s investors who want access to invest in companies that are making environmentally friendly decisions that could also improve the companies’ bottom line due to more efficient work.

Bottom Line—Technology is Crucial

Many of the upcoming trends in supply chain management center around momentous changes, from carbon emissions reporting to better technology. But implementing changes in your supply chain can be tricky—you’ll want to ensure your company has the right technology in place to accommodate these changes.

Coupled with transportation spend management solutions, Trax’s freight audit and payment technology helps companies reduce costs and increase efficiencies. Contact us to get started.