New research from Accenture has found that companies with the most mature supply chains are 23 percent more profitable than their competition.
The analysis into more than 1,000 companies across 15 countries and 10 industries found that companies that use generative AI, advanced machine learning and other autonomous decision-making technologies are more likely to be more profitable than those that do not. The capabilities of next-generation supply chains help companies be more prepared to adapt to changes and to adopt other new technologies as they emerge.
The report found that “leaders” – the 10 percent of companies scoring highest on the maturity scale – achieved 23 percent higher margins than their peers, and that they were able to deliver 15 percent better returns to their shareholders.
“Leaders are investing heavily in increasingly sophisticated technologies—especially AI and generative AI—to build the next generation of supply chain capabilities,” Max Blanchet, Accenture’s global strategy lead for supply chains and operations, said. “These capabilities are essential to reinvent supply chains for efficiency, agility, sustainability and resilience. They enable leaders to move beyond traditional supply chain drivers consisting of cost, quality and delivery, which is causing many supply chain vulnerabilities and inefficiencies today and in the future.”
The analysis also found that more leading companies use AI and generative AI compared to their peers. Thirty-seven percent of leaders use AI technology, while only 6 percent of their peers do. Overall, only 9 percent of all companies use artificial intelligence technologies. Additionally, the report said, leaders are eight times as likely to develop eco-friendly products, and six times as likely to improve the efficiency of engineering resources by 30 percent.