Supply chain leadership: Stepping into the spotlight

As pharma supply chains rise in strategic importance, its leaders must sharpen their business acumen and competencies to keep pace and gain a seat in pharma boardrooms

- Lakshmipriya Nair

The line between disorder and order lies in logistics', says Sun Tzu, the Chinese warrior, philosopher and author in his renowned war treatise. He points out that even the strongest army or best plan will fail without proper manage-ment, transportation, and re-source coordination.

Modern businesses face the same reality—even the strongest business strategy will fail without a robust supply chain.

Traditionally a cost and oper-ations management function, supply chain has evolved into a critical and strategic imperative that directly impacts customer satisfaction, revenue generation, and market differentiation. Today's business landscapes are conquered through supply chain excellence.

Industry experts reiterate these views.

"The role of supply chain has evolved from tactical indenting and purchasing to a team that drives growth by directly impacting profitability and customer metrics. The supply chain builds a bridge between demand and revenue, inculcating both agility and efficiency in the organisation to improve on customer metrics and serving them at an optimal cost. This influences success and growth of business and drives shareholder value creating long term gains for all stakeholders," notes Nihar Medh, Sr VP and Global Head of Supply Chain, Piramal Pharma.

And, in this scenario, supply chain leaders have to be strategic thinkers, risk managers, and innovation drivers. Their expert-ise directly impacts revenue, risk mitigation, innovation, and brand reputation—making them indispensable to corporate strategy and gover-nance, points out Pramod Pandit, Sr VP & Head Commercial, Ajanta Pharma.

As Deepak Khurana, VP - Procurement & Supply Chain Management, Suven Pharma, elaborates, "The role of supply chain leaders has transformed from a back-office, cost-focused function into a critical strategic position that drives business resilience, customer satisfaction, and competitive advantage."