Supply Chain Autonomy: Closer Than You Think, But Not Where You Expect

A few years ago, I was in a leadership meeting where someone asked, “When will supply chain run itself?” Most in the room laughed. I didn’t.

Why? Because I had just seen our team make a routing decision—faster and more accurate than any human—using predictive analytics tied to real-time data. That was the first time I realized: autonomy isn’t about replacing people. It’s about elevating them.

Here are three lessons I’ve carried forward:

1. Autonomy isn’t binary – It doesn’t arrive one day like a light switch. It grows in layers—first visibility, then prediction, then limited decision-making.

2. Digital maturity ≠ fancy tools – True maturity happens when data is clean, connected, and trusted enough that leaders act on it without second-guessing.

3. The human role evolves, not disappears – As autonomy grows, supply chain professionals shift from firefighting to strategy—shaping supplier ecosystems, risk management, and innovation.

   
   

Counterintuitively, autonomy doesn’t free us from supply chain—it frees us for supply chain: the higher-value work that drives growth.

👉 My question for you: When do you think supply chain will cross the threshold where autonomy is the norm, not the experiment?

#SupplyChain #DigitalTransformation #Leadership #Manufacturing