Assessing the vulnerability of supply chain using Analytic Network Process approach

ABSTRACT: In today’s business environment, harsher and more frequent natural and man-made disasters make supply chains more vulnerable. Increased number of supply chain disruptions and risks that Organization faced reduce the organizationʹs revenue and increase their costs. The importance of these cases imply that if supply chain managers were more capable of measuring and managing supply chain vulnerability, they could reduce the number of disruptions and their impact. Recognizing its drivers, perceiving its importance and the effect of each of them on the organization make possible the vulnerability management. In this research an approach based on Analytic Network Process for prioritizing vulnerabilityʹs drivers is applied. The empirical evidence is based on 136 questionnaires which were distributed among executives and experts of supply chain and logistic in the automotive industry and spare parts of the existing companies and analyzed by using Factor Analysis method. The results showed that in this industry, supply (supplier) side is the main driver of supply chain vulnerability. Also suppliersʹ dependence was identified as the main supply chain vulnerability drivers, this result found by investigating of 18 vulnerability drivers in areas of supply, demand, and structure of supply chain. Identifying the main supply chain vulnerability drivers to the managers in supply chain vulnerability assessment and utilization of appropriate strategy helps them to reduce risk.