CPABC Industry Update | Page 10

Integrated and CostEffective Supply Chains Information Replaces Inventory 2015 KPMG Canadian Manufacturing Outlook Report When effective supply chain communication and collaboration happens, information replaces inventory and manufacturers can run leaner, be more efficient, and gain advantages over competitors that have months’ or even years’ worth of inventory in reserve. When we spoke to Canadian manufacturers about their supply chains, their risk-averse nature was evident, as was the lack of top management focus on this important part of business operations in today’s global economy. Anywhere from 20 to 25 percent consistently indicate they do not know how to respond to questions covering everything from their top strategic supply chain priorities (22%) and challenges (26%) to their visibility into supply page 10 | I N D U S T R Y U P D AT E capacity information (25%) or the obstacles preventing them from adopting new technology for critical supply chain communication (25%). This clearly indicates that for a significant portion of Canadian manufacturers, supply chain management is not a key priority. Given, however, that many Canadian manufacturers are looking at entering new geographic markets and channel