Rethinking supply chain design for a disruptive world

By Sebastian Feldmann, Lukas Hofmann and Markus Bauer

Over the past decade, global supply chains have shifted from occasional disruptions to a landscape defined by frequent and compounding shocks. While companies once prioritized cost efficiency, this model has repeatedly shown its limits in an environment where disruptions are now interconnected. Without a strategic overhaul, businesses remain exposed.

Global supply chains are undergoing a fundamental shift. Companies are moving away from long-haul dependencies and pivoting toward regionalization to enhance resilience.

Each region faces its own specific issues, which demand localized solutions. In North America, for instance, reshoring efforts are progressing, yet widespread labor shortages and deteriorating infrastructure create fresh challenges. Europe faces rising energy costs, wage inflation, and geopolitical instability, which are driving companies to reconsider centralized supply strategies. And, despite Asia’s economic slowdown, China remains a dominant player in global trade.

In response, organizations must embrace supply chain designs that integrate regional resilience while maintaining global connectivity to ensure agility amid evolving risks.

Why the binary response must change

The traditional response to change has seen companies oscillate between supply chains optimized for cost and those built for robustness. But this switching has two disadvantages. Firstly, it leads to high transformation costs every time structures change: Both physical structures such as warehouses and distribution centers, but also IT systems and administrative processes. Secondly, every changeover is also associated with a time delay. Until the structures have been adapted, the supply chain is economically inefficient and vulnerable.

This cyclical response model is no longer sustainable. The current risk landscape is too complex, and the pace of change too fast, to rely on reactive shifts between extremes.
What’s needed is a supply chain that combines modular and flexible design.

Flexibility enables companies to rapidly adjust logistics flows, reroute transportation paths, or reallocate inventory in response to unexpected disruptions. Whether caused by border closures, extreme weather events, or supplier outages, disruptions no longer need to cascade through the entire supply chain.

Modularity reinforces this adaptability by structuring supply chains into discrete, interchangeable segments. This allows organizations to localize specific functions, isolate problems, or temporarily replace components. For instance, if a key transport hub or logistics provider in one region is compromised, modular structures allow rerouting through alternative nodes without triggering systemic failure.

How we help combine efficiency and adaptability

Roland Berger’s approach to supply chain design directly addresses the evolving complexity of today's global trade environment. Instead of toggling between cost-efficiency and resilience as separate priorities, we help organizations build networks that maintain efficiency in stable conditions yet remain adaptable to change. This ensures businesses can pivot quickly when disruptions occur without compromising operational stability.

With global supply chains at a critical inflection point, the stakes are high. To remain competitive amid emerging challenges, senior leaders must act now.

To learn more about how we can help your business build a modular, flexible supply chain, download our study.

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