Second annual report finds stark optimism divide among supply chain professionals as disruptions multiply and decision fatigue grows
Blue Yonder, the world leader in end-to-end digital supply chain transformation, released its second annual Supply Chain Compass report . The report provides a comprehensive view of the key strategic priorities of nearly 700 supply chain professionals across North America and Europe. The research found that fewer supply chain leaders believe they are ready for the future now (66%) than last year (73%). Amid widespread uncertainty, leaders’ top two priorities are improving efficiency and productivity and achieving faster, better decision-making.
The report also looked at the 46% of leaders who identified as highly optimistic about the future of their supply chains to find any differences in performance or outcomes over those who were not highly optimistic. Confidence correlates strongly with expected financial performance. The most optimistic leaders are doing things differently—taking an end-to-end approach, collaborating and breaking down silos, and investing in technology, particularly in AI and unified data platforms. As a result, they’re much less concerned about disruption or the pace of technological change.
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Key findings from the 2026 Supply Chain Compass report include:
- Only 48% of less optimistic leaders believe they are ready for the future, compared to 87% of optimistic leaders.
- Improving efficiency and productivity is the No. 1 strategic priority for 2026, selected by 35% of leaders, followed by faster, better decision-making, which moved up significantly this year to claim the No. 2 spot after only ranking seventh in last year’s report.
- While supply chain leaders felt more equipped to handle technological threats or operational issues, they are slowest to be able to effectively respond to geopolitical disruptions. Only 20% of leaders can develop and deploy a response within 24 hours. Another 38% take longer than a week to develop and deploy a response to geopolitical disruptions.
- Unified data platforms are the most widely adopted new technology, already deployed by 51% of supply chain leaders.
- AI adoption is widening: 45% are using machine learning and predictive AI, 24% are using generative AI (double from 2025), and only 8% are using agentic AI.
“Supply chain leaders are being asked to make more decisions, more frequently and with less time available,” said Duncan Angove, chief executive officer, Blue Yonder. “In supply chain management, confidence is not simply a mindset. It is built on end-to-end visibility, unified data and practical AI that allows teams to make good decisions quickly and at scale. Blue Yonder enables companies to link together planning, sourcing and execution functions so they can reduce decision fatigue, rapidly respond to disruptions and manage the business with more control.”
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An emerging confidence gap
The 2026 report finds that optimism impacts important business goals. The 46% of leaders who are highly optimistic have confidence in their approaches to building resilience, managing supply chains and establishing priorities. Notably, the less optimistic group is nearly twice as likely to state they need a new approach (43% vs. 23%) than the highly optimistic group.
Operational strength first, decision speed second for 2026
“Improving Efficiency/Productivity” was the top strategic priority for 2026, selected by 35% of supply chain leaders. The report also identifies a dramatic shift in importance: faster, better decision-making has become far more important than it was in 2025.
As companies continue to invest in technology, they can make faster decisions on a more granular level, and problems will become easier to detect and solve. At the same time, disruptions and complexities will continue to multiply. Making good decisions quickly and at scale has become one of the biggest challenges that leaders face today.
Disruption response remains slowest for geopolitics
The report illustrates varying response times for different types of disruptions. Geopolitical disruptions are the slowest to be responded to. Only 20% of leaders can develop and deploy a response within 24 hours, while 38% take longer than a week to develop and deploy a response to geopolitical disruptions.
Unified data and predictive AI are separating leaders
Optimists are more likely to dedicate a technology investment budget, and those budgets are likely to be larger. Optimists are also more likely to have implemented unified data platforms.
Among all participants, unified data platforms were identified as the most utilized technology . Machine learning/predictive AI is the most prevalent form of AI in use in supply chains today. Generative AI is growing rapidly, while agentic AI is in the early stages of adoption.
