Inside Supply Management Magazine

As was the case with its Manufacturing counterpart last week, the ISM® Services PMI® Report for September featured a headline number that revealed strong growth for the sector, but most of the attention was on a single subindex. The Services PMI® of 54.9 percent missed analysts’ expectations — barely — and was down 0.5 percentage point from the previous month.

For decades, enterprise supply chains operated in two distinct worlds. On one side stood B2B manufacturing and wholesale distribution — optimized for predictable, high-volume pallet shipments, long lead times and stable replenishment cycles. On the other side: direct-to-consumer (DTC) e-commerce and physical retail — characterized by single-unit picking, high demand volatility, and immediate fulfillment expectations. Today, that boundary has collapsed.

Wars, tariffs, sanctions, leadership changes and trade policy shifts are forcing companies to rethink how they source and manage suppliers, including through contracting. Boilerplate contract terms are no longer enough: Procurement and legal teams need risk-appropriate contracts that clearly define expectations, communication protocols and responses when disruption occurs. Supply chain risks show up in several forms, like compliance, cost, availability and quality variance risks.

Most businesses conduct annual mandatory cybersecurity training, which reinforces the notion that it is not just an IT, legal, risk, or compliance problem. Rather, it’s an organizational responsibility for every person and business unit. This is true because as technology is implemented in a company — whether, for example, for contract life-cycle management (CLM), a document management system (DMS) or finance/billing platforms — it interconnects disparate business units.

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Oh no... we really want you to have access to all of this great content! Membership does have its benefits and Inside Supply Management magazine is just one piece to help you advance your organization and your career. Learn more and join our community.

Oh no... we really want you to have access to all of this great content! Membership does have its benefits and Inside Supply Management magazine is just one piece to help you advance your organization and your career. Learn more and join our community.

During an Institute for Supply Management® (ISM®) LinkedIn Live broadcast last week, Steve Miller, CPSM, CSCP, Chair of the ISM Services Business Survey Committee, discussed how the December Services PMI® of 54.4 percent not only exceeded expectations, but also was the highest reading of 2025. ...

Oh no... we really want you to have access to all of this great content! Membership does have its benefits and Inside Supply Management magazine is just one piece to help you advance your organization and your career. Learn more and join our community.

Oh no... we really want you to have access to all of this great content! Membership does have its benefits and Inside Supply Management magazine is just one piece to help you advance your organization and your career. Learn more and join our community.