Unraveling the resilience strategies for supply chain network designs

Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate how these networks associate with supply chain resilience. The need for robust strategies to ensure the resilience of supply chains has emerged critically in today’s increasingly volatile and globally interconnected economy. Resilience imposes a significant impact on the strategic long-term decision-making of organizations, including the configuration of their supply chain network. Design/methodology/approach This study examines the resilience measures for supply chain network designs (SCND) structures: centralized, decentralized, and distributed. Using a global survey of over 900 supply chain professionals, quantitative methods are employed to analyze associations between the SCND structures and eight resilience strategies along with 18 capabilities. Findings Findings reveal that distributed supply chains exhibit higher associations with 14 of the resilience measures. Distributed networks offer greater responsiveness and robustness in response to disruptions by more effectively enabling anticipation, sustainability, visibility, flexibility, adaptability, strategic alignment, and supply chain collaboration, compared to centralized networks. The survey responses also confirm two distinct factor classifications for resilience capabilities, which are consistent with the proactive and reactive measures commonly reported in the literature. Practical implications Understanding the role of different SCNDs in fostering resilience is indispensable for organizations to enhance their risk mitigation practices, ensure the long-term continuity of their performance, and leverage the flexibility of the composable enterprise to quickly adapt to disruptions. Originality/value This research addresses a critical gap in the existing literature by providing empirical, data-driven insights into how different SCNDs are associated with supply chain resilience.