Sergei Beliaev

In July, what is being called the “largest IT outage in history” grounded air cargo and travel and caused “substantial disruptions” to the networks of such supply chain giants as FedEx and UPS. While cybersecurity company CrowdStrike blamed the worldwide outage on a “software update” and not a cyberattack, the event illustrates the importance of taking measures to safeguard the supply chain systems we all rely on for the movement of goods and people. Cybersecurity is Paramount in Digital Supply Chain A Boston Consulting Group (BCG) report published in October 2023 said that “bad actors are using more sophisticated tools and techniques to exploit vulnerabilities in digital networks, and weak points can be difficult to detect. Companies with established cybersecurity capabilities are being compromised through less sophisticated third parties that are connected to their network.” Today’s Supply Chain Remains Vulnerable to Cyberattacks According to the Identity Theft Resource Center, the number of organizations targeted by supply chain cyberattacks skyrocketed by 2,600% between 2018 and 2023. Verizon’s 2024 Data Breach Investigations Report said there was a 68% year-over-year leap in the amount of “supply chain interconnection” involved in cyber breaches. Among high-profile cyberattacks affecting the supply chain: In December 2020, Forward…

In today’s increasingly complex global supply chain landscape, Tom Moore keeps his message refreshingly straightforward: ProvisionAI helps large companies discover hidden costs and eliminate them. Organizations such as Procter & Gamble, Nestlé, and Unilever have leveraged the company’s technology to uncover and eliminate inefficiencies—particularly in transportation and warehousing—that traditional systems fail to detect. The outcome is significant and often delivers immediate savings. But Moore believes many of these problems stem from misunderstandings about the very technologies companies rely on.   Misnamed Systems & Misaligned Expectations Before the interview officially began, Moore reflected on the surprisingly inaccurate names assigned to modern supply chain technologies. ERP systems rarely plan resources across the enterprise, despite what their name suggests. Warehouse Management Systems, while certainly used in warehouses, don’t actually “manage” much at all. People behind keyboards still make most of the critical decisions. This disconnect in terminology shapes faulty expectations. Many organizations believe their planning systems will truly plan the supply chain, yet most tools merely react to demand signals. If ABC Company orders ten cases, the system automatically replenishes—without considering warehouse capacity, transportation availability, downstream implications, or cost-to-serve. Moore characterizes this as both an old problem and a new one, and it…