Supply Chain Took Center Stage: Priorities That Topped the 2024 Executive Agenda 

The Data

1. 1

   Our analysis of 2024 earnings calls revealed that the number one most talked about topic was inventory and lead times – leaders discussed the topic in 18% of earnings calls.

2. 2

   This is followed by cost management (11%) and capacity and resource planning (10.3%).

3. 3

   The chemical industry spoke about inventory and lead time more than any other industry (50% of all discussions) while the water treatment industry spoke about capacity and resource planning the most (20%).

4. 4

   The mining industry discussed cost management the most (30%).

As 2024 draws to a close, suffice it to say it was a huge year of change for supply chain. Disruption and opportunity came in the form of AI-driven transformation, which continues to usher in a new Gilded Age; political shifts, which are creating a new world of trade; and the need for climate action, which only becomes more urgent. There was plenty for leaders to talk about and act on, but what came out as the number one priority amid the noise? We analyzed almost 1,000 earnings calls transcripts from 228 companies to find out: 

Inventory and Lead Time

We are strengthening our offering through continued investments in areas such as tech and AI... Among other things, this results in improved size availability, faster response times, and increased precision in product purchasing, giving customers access to an even broader and more relevant assortment."

Helena Helmersson, former CEO at H&M, January 2024  

Supply chain continued to see volatility and uncertainty this year, from US port strikes to shifting geopolitical landscapes. Add to this environment constantly changing consumer demand and a desire for greater supply chain responsiveness, and it’s no surprise that leaders are focused on inventory and lead times. 

H&M was investing in digital replicas of its stores, built on a backbone of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID). Not only does this address inventory optimization, it also improves product placement and the work of store associates. 

In 2025... 
Keeping costs down, inventory close, and ensuring visibility to the full network will allow leaders to optimize decision-making in real-time and in a dynamic way. Resilience will remain a core value, but we also predict knowledge graphs will become a supply chain priority, becoming an essential data infrastructure for increasingly sophisticated digital twins.   

Cost Management

[We’ve] started important work to reengineer our cost structure, including efforts such as optimizing our headcount growth, our physical footprint, improving the efficiencies of our technical infrastructure, and streamlining operations across the company through the use of AI.”

Anat Ashkenazi, CFO at Alphabet, October 2024  

Of the 850+ examples of supply chain AI in our AI Hub, 35% relate to cost reduction (or metrics associated with cost reduction, like improved efficiency). And this year, we found companies using digital tools to address cost reduction in various forms, from labor to energy consumption. 

In practice, Coca-Cola streamlined its order management processes using AI agents. These bots use RPA to automate invoice verification, payment processing, account reconciliation, and other supplier management processes. With AI agents handling these repetitive and taxing tasks, the company is saving on labor costs and seeing increased efficiency. 

In 2025... 
We’re betting on agentic AI and compound AI. Our data science team has been tracking companies’ early investments in both and found that approximately 16% of the nearly 300 companies we track are working on one of these types of AI today, while 5% of companies are developing both capabilities.  

Capacity and Resource Planning

We are in the early stages of a 15-week sprint to test and tune our demand plan for two large divisions using different analytical tools. Initial results through the new model show a lot of promise in improving forecast accuracy, which will allow us to level load our factories, reduce inventory throughout the value chain, and improve on-time delivery to customers.”

Bill Brown, CEO at 3M, October 2024 

Organizations need flexibility in physical assets and product movement as well as team capabilities, meaning a move toward a skill-based gig economy, fusion teams, and the translator persona. We found the translator skill profile grew 67% year-over-year in planning roles between August 2023 and July 2024. 

Unilever, for example, is focused on AI/ML development courses and seeing 8.5x the number of translators in planning compared to others in its industry (CPG), already leading the way forward here.  

In 2025...  
We expect to see growth in translators in supply chain and a shift to a product-centric mindset, building general skills in product management. We predict this will lead to more supply chains building fusion teams that leverage agile methodologies.  

To see a different data cut or to dig deeper into this topic, reach out to our Head of Research Analytics, Cody Stack, at Cody.Stack@zero100.com.     

Methodology 

Zero100’s proprietary data and analytics are a combined effort between our data scientists and research analysts. We provide data-first insights matched with our own research-backed points of view and bring this analysis to life via real-world case examples being led by supply chain practitioners today.      

For this study, we analyzed 936 earnings calls transcripts from 228 companies between January and December 2024.   

Further Reading

The Signal: Outlook 2025: Five Hard Realities for CSCOs in the Late Twenties

Research Report Preview: 10 For ’25 – 10 Predictions and Imperatives for a Global Operations Strategy in 2025 

Zero100 Video: Looking Back at Zero100 Predictions 2024  

Data Insight: East Asian Companies Pull Ahead on AI Planning Patents, with Trend Prediction a Clear Priority