The Supply Chain Revolution

The Supply Chain Revolution
By Suman Sarkar
Published in June 2017
256 Pages
Thibault’s Score: 2/5

The Supply Chain Revolution is a cookbook-style second person explanation as to why supply chains matter for businesses. This book’s core thesis can be summed up like this: supply chains are extremely important. Businesses that ignore them do so at their own peril - they are something that the top management of companies should consider first and foremost, not something to be outsourced to a small company.

One aspect of the book that I really liked was that it was rife with specific examples and case studies. The most memorable case study was that of Apple. Apple put its supply chain first and foremost, in order to ensure quality products. By using vertical integration, Apple was able to ensure that the quality remained consistent at every level of the chain. Steve Jobs would be replaced by Apple’s former head of supply chain, Tim Cook.

The thing I disliked the most about The Supply Chain Revolution is that the book is written in the second person. It reads like this “the most important thing for your business.” Second person books always feel slightly condescending. There is also something slightly scammy / salesy about them. That alone made this book hard for me to engage with.

Overall, I don’t really recommend this book. It is too complicated for a novice, too irrelevant for most business owners, and too simple for a professional. It uncomfortably lies across several niches without satisfying any.

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