Supply chain visibility has been a topic of discussion for decades. That’s because, as important as it is, achieving end-to-end visibility is hard. A few years ago, the staff at EdgeVerve observed, “Most supply chains still lack adequate visibility on the downstream demand side at the point of sale (POS), upstream in supplier sourcing and production, and in transit during shipment.”[1] They added, “Demand signals, more than any other single influence, drive the supply chain. They dictate what to produce, in what quantities, and where to ship — in short, everything from sourcing to asset and resource allocation to workflow. It seems counter-intuitive, then, that most conventional hierarchical supply chain models still don’t connect factories and suppliers directly to retailers and customers in a virtuous feedback loop.” The EdgeVerve staff insisted that supply chain visibility is an imperative; however, the implication of their analysis is much more profound: Seeing your supply chain is only meaningful when it leads to actionable decisions. That’s the imperative.

Expanding the Definition of Supply Chain Visibility

As supply chain complexity increases, many supply chain professionals have questioned what supply chain visibility actually entails. The staff at SAP writes, “Visibility plays a crucial role in modern connected supply chains, where companies are interdependent and reliant on one another to move goods across borders in a cost-effective and efficient manner. Managing the hundreds or even thousands of stakeholders participating in this operation requires a unified platform that provides multi-tier visibility and collaboration across all business partners — not just the Tier 1 suppliers.”[2] All true; however, companies need to understand what they need to “see” when pursuing better supply chain visibility. Adrian Gonzalez, President of Adelante SCM, has argued for years “that the scope of end-to-end supply chain visibility must go beyond the tracking of orders, shipments, inventory, and assets in motion.”[3] He points out, for example, that international laws regulating greenhouse gases and criminalizing forced labor can impact supply chain operations. Steve Banker, Vice President for Supply Chain Services at ARC Advisory Group, agrees with Gonzalez that supply chain visibility is more complex than most definitions cover. As he puts it, “The message is now much bigger.”[4] He adds, “Achieving … granular visibility requires deeper integration into a wide variety of customer business applications.”

Kevin Williamson, CEO at RJW Logistics Group, explains, “Without end-to-end visibility, [companies] lose control, agility and the ability to adapt when disruptions hit. In today’s unpredictable landscape, transparency across the entire supply chain isn’t optional — it’s a competitive necessity.”[5] His main point is, “You can’t control what you can’t see.” Whenever the complexity of supply chains is being discussed, the narrative invariably turns to how artificial intelligence (AI) solutions can help address that complexity. Discussions about supply chain visibility are no exception. Duncan Curtis, a Senior Vice President at Sama, insists, “AI can see what your supply chain can’t.”[6] He explains, “Supply chains today stretch across continents, industries, and regulatory systems. They carry more risk than ever, from unstable geopolitics to shifting customer expectations. Static dashboards and manual reporting are no longer enough to keep pace. A new generation of AI-driven tools is emerging that can combine multiple data streams, identify risks before they escalate, and support [supply chain professionals] with more confident choices.”

From Visibility to Action

As I noted at the beginning of this article, seeing your supply chain is only meaningful when it leads to actionable decisions. Visibility alone isn’t all that helpful. The staff at ProvisionAI puts it this way, “Visibility is closing the stable door after the horse has bolted.”[7] They add, “Good companies make good plans. Great companies execute.” AI can help with both decision-making and execution. Banker explains, “AI is moving beyond isolated copilots and into coordinated, operational decision systems.” Nevertheless, Curtis reports that many companies have yet to adopt AI systems. He explains, “Most supply chain leaders see the potential of AI, but only 23% have a formal strategy in place.” He believes this “gap between ambition and execution” needs to be closed if companies want to advance from good to great.

Mark Talens, Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy and Solutions Officer at ParkourSC, reports that nearly half of all large companies rank supply chain visibility as their top priority. He adds, “While it is a prime concern, it is time to face an uncomfortable truth: visibility is not enough. The truth is, visibility has become the supply chain's favorite buzzword. … The ability to passively see what's happening across your supply chain is about as useful as installing a high-definition security camera in a burning building. But all that crystal-clear visibility won't extinguish a single flame.”[8] He insists, “The answer isn't visibility — it's actionability.” I couldn’t agree more.

As I wrote elsewhere, “[Today’s chaotic environment has] created a perfect storm of complexity at a time when value chain optimization and decision-making have never been more vital to enterprise health. … This has created space for a new solution architecture called systems of intelligence (SOI), a fit-for-purpose tool that can fundamentally understand the environment in which a business operates and then autonomously implement and adapt value chain optimization and decision-making strategies to align with evolving conditions.”[9] A system of intelligence helps turn visibility into better decisions and competitively beneficial actions.

The Enterra System of Intelligence™ is a cutting-edge approach that combines the power of a human-like reasoning and trusted generative AI with glass-box machine learning and real-world optimization to drive intelligent decision-making and fuel business growth. The Enterra System of Intelligence includes a set of integrated cross-enterprise business applications that break down traditional organizational siloes between marketing, sales, supply chain and planning functions. This unique System of Intelligence acts as an autonomous “brain” within an organization, enabling real-world optimization and decision-making across the value chain at market speed, with the subtle judgment and expertise of an organization’s best subject matter expert or data scientist. The system persists the accumulated business logic, ways of working and practices of an organization in a proprietary-for-the-client Generative AI that allows for leverage across business functions, geographies, and lines of business.

Concluding Thoughts

According to Talens, “Organizations are hemorrhaging millions on fancy analytics that do nothing but paint pretty pictures of their problems, while their teams run around like firefighters with empty hoses, desperately seeking solutions. It's time to call this out for what it is: a costly exercise in digital window dressing.” Talens believes, “Modern supply chains aren't suffering from poor visibility — they're being suffocated by it.” What he is seeing are organizations awash in data that doesn’t lead to actionable intelligence. That’s why I suggest companies adopt a system of intelligence that turns data into actionable decisions. Organizations that embrace a system of intelligence will be positioned to not only navigate emerging challenges but also unlock new levels of customer visibility, operational agility, and sustainable growth for years to come. Talens concludes, “This isn't just about efficiency — it's about survival. In an environment where supply chains face constant and inevitable disruption, the ability to move from insight to action at speed becomes a strategic competitive advantage.”

Footnotes

[1] EdgeVerve staff, “Supply Chain Visibility Isn’t Just a Catchphrase; It’s an Imperative,” SupplyChainBrain, 3 February 2023.

[2] SAP staff, “The expanding role of visibility in the connected supply chain,” Supply Chain Dive, 5 August 2024.

[3] Adrian Gonzalez, “Another Reason to Expand Definition of Supply Chain Visibility,” Talking Logistics, 17 January 2024.

[4] Steve Banker, “What Do You Mean By Supply Chain Visibility?” Logistics Viewpoints, 2 October 2023.

[5] Kevin Williamson, “Enhancing Supply Chain Visibility: You Can’t Control What You Can’t See,” Supply & Demand Chain Executive, 10 October 2025.

[6] Duncan Curtis, “AI Can See What Your Supply Chain Can’t,” Supply & Demand Chain Executive, 24 October 2025.

[7] Staff, “Supply chain visibility — So what?” ProvisionAi, 6 February 2024.

[8] Mark Talens, “Your Supply Chain Dashboard Is Lying to You: The False Promise of Visibility,” Supply & Demand Chain Executive, 23 December 2024.

[9] Stephen DeAngelis, “Systems Of Intelligence: The Next Era Of CPG Value Chain Optimization And Decision-Making,” Forbes, 13 May 2024.