Two thirds of German logistics firms financially affected by supply chain disruptions

More than 65% of all companies in the German logistics sector have suffered financial losses due to supply chain disruptions, according to a new Logistics Hall of Fame trend survey in cooperation with the Schunck Group. Supplier diversification is the most popular way of protecting against future disruptions.

While over 65% of German logistics companies have already suffered financial losses due to disruptions in the supply chain, around 65% of the German logistics directors and general managers of logistics service providers surveyed also rated the chance of it happening again in the future as ‘high to very high’. They assigned the risk between seven and ten points on a scale of one to ten.

In an assessment of all the risks that could currently be dangerous for logistics service providers, supply chain disruptions ranked third, with 39.1% of respondents regarding this as a threatening risk. Respondents rated the risks of cybercrime (69.6%) and the shortage of skilled workers (60.9%) as even more dangerous for companies. Political risks, natural disasters, business interruptions and pandemic outbreaks were among the other risks named.

Preparing for crisis scenarios

When supply chains grind to a halt, it is almost always accompanied by financial losses for companies, which is why Thomas Wicke, Managing Director of Schunck Group, advises companies to be thoroughly prepared for crisis scenarios. “Not only the COVID-19 crisis has clearly shown us how quickly existing processes in logistics can get out of sync if only one part of the complex process chain shows weaknesses,” he states.

“The fact that two-thirds of our surveyed companies have already experienced this first-hand is a clear signal to take this topic seriously and think about possible protection,” Wicke continues. “It is essential to take professional precautions against the greatest threats. Cybercrime, for example, remains a permanently high risk. Almost three quarters of managers see it that way.”

Supplier diversification

More than 78% of respondents in the Logistics Hall of Fame trend survey said they rely on supplier diversification to protect themselves against supply chain disruptions, while 52.2% also rely on good inventory management and stockpiling. A comprehensive supplier assessment, coupled with good supplier management, is seen as a way to mitigate supply chain disruptions by 47.8% of the respondents.