Market Overview: Supply Chain Sustainability

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Executive Summary

Achieving sustainable supply chains is still the main challenge for firms seeking to meet ESG and sustainability goals and ensure business resilience. With climate, economic and socio-political disruptions impacting supply chains, businesses need to understand the difficulties of advancing supply chain sustainability – and appreciate the pace of innovation in this space. This report informs organizations about the varied software types supporting supply chain sustainability data collection, reporting, risk management and supplier engagement, considering how vendor heritage strengthens certain capabilities. Additionally, the report provides software vendors with insights into corporate priorities and a deep understanding of the different players navigating the supply chain sustainability software market. 

Table of contents

Regulatory pressure and risk exposure push firms to integrate ESG and sustainability goals in the supply chain
Upcoming regulations hold firms accountable for their ESG and sustainability impact across the value chain
Firms increasingly recognize ESG and sustainability issues as risk factors in their supply chains
Blind spots and cost considerations hinder the formation of ESG-aligned supply chains
Effective supply chain sustainability strategies merge accountability, adaptability and resilience
Diverse ESG supply chain goals span a spectrum of passive to active strategies
Supply chain sustainability priorities shape buyers’ demand for software and services
Digital strategies must match firms’ sustainability priorities for the supply chain

Supply chain sustainability software enables three key use cases for buyers
Vendors offer diverse solutions with varying applicability to supply chain sustainability needs
Supply chain sustainability will test and boost business resilience
AI, supplier engagement and industry collaboration drive innovation in supply chain sustainability

Table of figures

Figure 1. Comparison of passive and active supply chain sustainability strategies 
Figure 2. Priorities of buyers of supply chain sustainability software and services
Figure 3. Supply chain sustainability software use cases and sub-segments
Figure 4. Additional software vendors with offerings for supply chain sustainability

About the authors

Elisa Molero

Industry Analyst
Elisa Molero is an Industry Analyst in the Verdantix ESG & Sustainability practice. Her current research agenda focuses on emerging solutions and global market trends around supply chain sustainability. Her background is in Economics, Leadership and Governance (BSc, University of Navarra). Prior to joining Verdantix, Elisa worked as a research analyst at the Centre For Economic Performance at the London School of Economics, where she completed a Master’s degree in Global Politics, with Distinction.

Guy Lewis

Industry Analyst
Guy is an Industry Analyst in the Verdantix ESG & Sustainability practice. He currently leads research on circular economy software and services and supports research across several other ESG and sustainability themes. Prior to joining Verdantix, Guy was an energy specialist helping to optimize member experience, through which he gained knowledge of both operations and smart technologies. Guy holds a BA in Geography from the University of Manchester, with a placement year at the University of Queensland.

Kim Knickle

Research Director, ESG & Sustainability
Kimberly Knickle is Research Director of the ESG & Sustainability practice at Verdantix. Her research areas encompass ESG regulations and reporting, ESG risk, supply chain sustainability, circular economy, social impact, and sustainable finance. Kim has worked for more than 20 years in the IT industry, providing research and analysis to help companies invest wisely in new technologies. Before joining the analyst industry, she held various roles in IT services, engineering and product safety testing, beginning her career at Underwriters Laboratories, Inc. Kim holds an MBA from Boston University and a BS in Electrical Engineering from Cornell.

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