This book is a gem. To me. Where Helen Peck in her article Reconciling supply chain vulnerability, risk and supply chain management takes a holistic academic perspective on supply chain risk and business continuity, the late David Kaye in his book Managing Risk and Resilience in the Supply Chain takes on a holistic business perspective to explain the concept of the extended supply chain. Seldom have I read a book that captured my attention from the beginning to the end. It is not a textbook for the academic, nor is it a handbook for the manager, but it is an easy read.
Hands-on
The book is written with the manager and practitioner in mind. It is clear and concise, to the point, and constantly switching between risk management in general, supply chain risk, and business continuity, always seeing the whole picture, never forgetting that supply chains are essential to a company’s well-being, as is risk management, as is business continuity.
Succinct
Short chapters, with short sub-sections highlighting various issues, interspersed with examples of catastrophes and not-so-catastrophes, anecdotes and quotes makes this a very enjoyable read, and it doesn’t take long for the message to sink in.
The message
Slightly rephrased, what Kaye is trying to convey is that
No truly effective risk management is achievable if it is simply bolted onto management structures, control procedures and cultures; it cannot work when designed only to enable ticks in internal or external auditor’s checkboxes. First when risks are understood and truly dealt with can effective management be achieved (p.75).
To the point
This book shows you how to deal with supply chain risks. It is not a book in self-assessment, it is not a workbook, nor a guideline, but it highlights many if not all issues surrounding supply chains, risks, and business continuity. I for one did not see any ground left uncovered. This book makes you think, and want to act, and I guess that is the whole purpose of the book in the first place.
More information
More information on the book can be found on on the publisher’s website: British Standards Institution: Managing Risk and Resilience in the Supply Chain, where you can even download the introduction and a sample chapter. Last, not least, the November 2008 edition of Risk UK’s magazine (p. 6, see image left) reviewed the book, stating that it was “an essential read for the modern risk manager who respects the need to manage the risks that any contract can pose”. I can only agree to that.
In memoriam David Kaye
Sadly, David Kaye passed away on 1 September 2009, and never got around to get to know him that much. I wish I had found this book much earlier, because it taught me risk management in a way no other book has.
Buy this book
Related
- husdal.com: In memoriam David Kaye
- husdal.com: Supply Chain Risk Management – as seen from Space
