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The race to get global supply chains connected, in sync and operating from a common playbook is on. Using a mix of people, technology, automation and artificial intelligence (AI), companies are continually optimizing their networks in new ways that weren’t even possible just a few years ago. Credit the uptick in AI usage with driving some of that momentum, but the threat of new disruption is also playing a role in the movement.
For example, new geopolitical issues, rising business costs, labor shortages and evolving buyer preferences are all putting pressure on supply chain operations this year. According to the latest GEP Global Supply Chain Volatility Index, global supply chain pressures remained elevated in June despite falling oil prices and lower transportation costs, reflecting uncertainty surrounding the U.S.-Iran ceasefire in the Strait of Hormuz.
“Reports from manufacturers of backlogs rising due to shortages of critical inputs were their highest since late 2022,” GEP says. “The data suggests supply-chain bottlenecks are likely to persist into at least the third quarter as businesses wait for materials needed to complete customer orders.” To offset the uncertainty, many companies are “safety stockpiling” at a rate not seen since January 2023. “…businesses still don’t trust the global trading environment to remain stable," GEP notes in its report.
These conditions may be unprecedented in modern times, but companies also now have more tools and solutions to help them manage the complexity. According to the 2026 Thomson Reuters Global Trade Report, 58% of the executives and managers surveyed use trade and supply chain data analytics. And more than half use supply chain management and visibility technology to monitor conditions and respond to changes.
Connecting More Than Just Tech
Technology may help create a connected supply chain, but software alone won’t get the job done. In its State of Supply Chain Report 2026, Inspectorio says companies also need to connect product data, supplier records, compliance requirements and operating systems across the production chain.
“Global supply chains in 2026 are operating under a new mandate: move faster, absorb more volatility, and produce stronger proof with fewer disconnected processes,” the company points out. “Retailers, brands, and manufacturers understand that regulation, tariff volatility, sustainability expectations, and AI are reshaping how products move from design to delivery. The gap is in the systems, data, workflows, and supplier engagement models required to execute consistently.”
6 Steps Toward a Connected Supply Chain
Inspectorio says organizations that want to respond faster when conditions change can take these six steps:
1. Connect the data to the product. Companies need product-level information that connects materials, suppliers, purchase orders, inspections, testing, documentation and shipping records. Inspectorio says AI depends on “structured, credible, product-linked information” that can be traced to the right product, order and supplier.
2. Address compliance before production begins. Compliance problems can start with material selection, supplier approval, testing, packaging or labeling, long before a product reaches final inspection. Connecting those requirements earlier can keep problems from reaching production, shipment release or customs review.
3. Get separate systems talking to one another. Quality, sourcing, compliance, sustainability and trade teams often keep their information in different systems. Inspectorio calls data fragmentation a major obstacle, noting that critical information frequently “lives in separate systems that do not communicate.”
4. Keep product-specific proof in one place. Companies increasingly need evidence covering product origin, materials, chain of custody and environmental impact. Facility-level records may not provide enough detail when regulators, customers or business partners ask for documentation tied to a specific product, shipment or order.
5. Get suppliers involved in the process. Suppliers often receive overlapping requests from multiple customers, departments and platforms. Common requirements, shared processes and ongoing performance records can reduce duplication and give buyers a fuller picture of supplier performance and potential problems.
6. Give AI the data it needs. AI use in supply chain operations rose from 24% in 2024 to 40% in 2026, according to Inspectorio. Companies are using it for quality inspection, supplier risk monitoring, supplier performance and compliance screening. But as the report cautions, “AI is only as effective as the data it operates on.”
