The Survey Included 104 U.S. CEOs
U.S. chief executives would accept an average 17% increase in their third-party supplier costs to strengthen supply chain resilience, according to Proxima’s Global Supply Chain Resilience Outlook.
The global study surveyed 515 CEOs at companies generating more than $500 million in annual revenue across the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Australia and Singapore. The U.S. sample included 104 chief executives.
Seventy percent of the American respondents said they would accept an increase of at least 11%. The average acceptable premium among U.S. executives was 17%.
More Than 80% See Up to 20% of Revenue at Risk
The “more than 80%” figure does not refer to the share of CEOs willing to pay a resilience premium. It measures their estimated financial exposure to supplier disruption.
More than 80% of U.S. executives said that a two-week disruption affecting their three largest suppliers could put up to 20% of company revenue at risk. The remaining respondents estimated that between 21% and 40% of revenue could be endangered, according to Supply Chain Xchange.
The findings indicate that supply continuity is no longer treated solely as a procurement or logistics responsibility. It has become a financial issue directly connected to revenue, order fulfillment and customer retention.
Geopolitical Conflict Is the Leading Risk
Conflict and geopolitical tensions were identified as the greatest financial supply chain threat by 30% of U.S. CEOs. This was the highest percentage among all markets covered by the survey.
Emerging technologies were selected by 20% of respondents, while another 20% cited sustainability targets and regulatory requirements.
Geopolitical crises can close transport corridors, introduce new sanctions and tariffs, raise insurance costs and create shortages of freight capacity. Companies are consequently building alternative routes and distributing orders among suppliers in different regions.
Cyber Incidents Disrupted 47% of Companies
Almost 47% of U.S. respondents said their businesses had experienced a supply chain disruption caused by a cyber incident during the previous 24 months, either internally or through a supplier.
Only 39% had conducted a full cyber resilience stress test across critical suppliers during the previous year. Just 41% believed that their companies had real-time visibility into the cyber risk exposure of those suppliers.
Businesses that depend on a single carrier, software provider, warehouse operator or component manufacturer are particularly exposed. Supplier diversification is therefore becoming both a logistics strategy and a cybersecurity measure.
This approach is already visible in operational logistics. K2Cargo.News previously reported that Nespresso is diversifying its last-mile delivery network, reducing dependence on a single carrier by working with several regional operators.
Additional Costs May Be Passed to Customers
Among U.S. CEOs, 38% said they would fund resilience investments through cost-saving measures. Another 36% would pass some of the increase on to customers, while 27% were prepared to absorb the additional expense through lower margins.
The extra spending could support larger safety stocks, multisourcing, reserved transportation capacity, alternative routes, supplier cyber audits and real-time monitoring systems.
For logistics providers, this changes customer expectations. Price remains important, but shippers increasingly evaluate backup capacity, digital security, subcontractor transparency and the ability to reroute cargo during disruptions.
Formal Preparedness Is Not Enough
Around nine in ten CEOs in the global survey said their organizations had documented and tested mitigation plans. Nevertheless, 51% acknowledged that their businesses could not maintain uninterrupted operations for more than three weeks after a major supply shock.
The gap suggests that a written continuity plan does not guarantee resilience. Companies also need available alternative suppliers, reserve transportation capacity, safety stocks and tested recovery procedures.
Read also: Strait of Hormuz Empties Out: Maritime Traffic Falls to a Weekly Low Amid Hostilities
