SAIC’s Mark Forman: Data Analytics, Other Digital Transformation Tools Could Help Agencies Manage Supply Chains

Mark Forman, vice president of digital government strategy at Science Applications International Corp., wrote in a Nextgov article published Tuesday that government agencies should adopt digital transformation techniques and tools to scale supply chains in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and other future crises.

“Using modern solutions like data analytics, artificial intelligence, blockchain, and other IT modernization tools, government agencies will be able to source an end-to-end supply chain that assures equipment and supplies arrive where and when needed,” Forman wrote.

He mentioned some of the tools that could be used by agencies to come up with responsive and integrated supply chains in response to the pandemic, including an integrated network of warehouses, demand planning platforms for data capture and forecasting and distribution tools for overseeing carrier selection and transportation.

The Department of Defense has adopted a “performance-based logistics digital approach” that required the integration and modernization of dozens of platforms to better manage and forecast surge needs and Forman said other agencies should do the same to better respond to the pandemic and prepare for future crises.

“Effective operations require insight into supply chains both vertically and horizontally in order to identify binding constraints, which may be in materials, production, or distribution,” Forman wrote. “Data must also be fully transparent and accessible with systems that enable metrics-driven continuous improvement.”