Diversifying supply chains post Covid 19 With a nationwide lockdown aimed at slo wi ng the spread of the virus, local supply chain service providers are scaling their operational capacities to reduced income; relying on dwindling cash reserves and strengthening capacity in essential services sectors such as food manufacturing and distri bu tion and pharmaceuticals. "Diversification of supply chains is probably going to be the new normal going forward," says Stephen Smith, h ead of warehousing and storage at Bidvest International Logistics (BIL). "Companies will be wary of putting all their eg gs in one basket, so we expect that products will be sourced from numerous suppliers as opposed to one or two, which is currently the no rm." The financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic on local supply chain markets is still unknown although early in di cations are that it is harrowing. BIL, which provides an end to end supply chain solution across several different industries, including essential services in the retail, healthcare and perishables sectors, is beginning to see some clients increase stock l evels in preparation for future supply constraints, while volumes for clients providing non essential services is lessening. "Were cont inually assessing the situation, and its very fluid at the moment," says Smith, noting that the most obvious overall co ncern is when normalcy will return once the "flattening of the pandemics curve" has occurred in South Africa. "This is the big question and requires us to continually reassess, remain agile and responsive, and do all we can to meet immediate challenges. challenges." BIL, across all departments including road freight and international logistics, is rotating staff where possible, operating with a s keleton complement for essential services clients, and upholding strict safety and preventive measures. The business as a whole is also looking at how we can leverage technology in these times of crisis to overcome some of the challenges we face." As part of its digitisation journey roadmap rollout, the company is increasingly using a combination of data analytics, automati on , blockchain and the internet of things (IoT) to help reduce the cost of business while at the same time curbing corruption and ameli orating the problem of non reliability of suppliers. To have meaningful in depth sight of the full chain, a move away fro m paper to digitisation is needed, along with an assurance to upstream suppliers that their data is secure and private and therefore mo re easily shareable only with parties with whom they agree to share it. Most importantly, the digitisation or technolog ic al up capacitating of supply chains needs to happen sooner rather than later, with an assumption that crises likeCovid 19 may happen a gain. Ellappan says: "We as a nation, but as an organisation too, are resilient and this should be reflected in how ou r businesses respond to an ever changing environment and crises like Covid 19 and their impact on supply chains." Not only does the si tuation encourage clients to consider diversifying source markets, who they source from in those markets and how, but it a lso provides an opportunity for supply chain service providers to adjust, strengthen and adapt how they do business. Visibility and greater transparency across the supply chain will allow clients and supply chain service providers to optimise efficienc ie s and increase agility to withstand the highs and lows of a volatile trading environment or the impact of crises. "Regardles s of how tough the operating environment may be, we will do the right thing during this crisis, legally, ethically and morally," s ay s Ellappan. Despite the enormity of the challenges we face, crises like these present us with opportunities to potentially reinvent ourselves.

QUESTIONS 1.1Advise grocery ret ail shops on the role of inventory management in planning and mitigating uncertainties. Give example s from the case study .

1.2 Discuss the customer service level strategy that grocery retail shops should follow to ensure that consumers receive the right products at the right time, at the right place, and in the right condition. Give examples from the case study to substantiate your answer.

1.3 Discuss the risk of holding inventory in line with grocery retail shops.

1.4 Explain the significance of forecasting in achieving timely results within the grocery retail shops. Provide three relevant examples to support your argument.