The Overall Mood, the Gen Z Push, Supply Chain Costs and More

SCDigest well-covered the Gartner Supply Chain Symposium 2025 in Orlando (see Trip Report: Gartner Supply Chain Symposium 2025.)

Supply Chain Digest Says... On sustainability, Gartner says that there was a notable difference between the North American and EMEA regions. What do you say? Click here to send us your comments

Just recently, Gartner itself did an interesting look at what supply chain execs were saying at the Orlando conference as well as a similar event in Europe. Below are some highlights from the Gartner blog post.

That starts with this, on the mood of the conferences, which it found is changing as a result the influx of Gen 7 managers moving into supply chain roles.

“This shift was accompanied by a change in tone. The group was stress-tested during the pandemic, and this experience has resulted in a calm and collected mood.,” Gartner says, adding that “They are approaching the current environment from a data-driven analytical method that wasn’t nearly as prominent five years ago.”

AI was not surprisingly a main topic of discussion at the conference, but interestingly Gartner says that “GenAI has not turned out to be the big productivity driver that many in the supply chain had hoped for. While it does improve individual productivity, that productivity isn’t adding up at the department or group level.”

Another Gartner insight on AI is this: Agentic AI is the next promise on the horizon.

“While the technology is only just starting to emerge, we’re already hearing of new applications where AI Agents are beginning to act autonomously in supply chains,” Gartner says.

Costs of course are always an important supply chain issue, but Gartner’s conversations with CSCOs and other supply chain execs found this kind of thinking:

“For the most part, CSCOs are still working on the continuous process of short-term efficiencies and productivity gains, but they are more focused on building networks that are more flexible, resilient, and less susceptible to supply shocks. Over the longer haul, this is less costly, supports the enterprise and unsurprisingly resonates well with the C suite.”

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On sustainability, Gartner says that there was a notable difference between the North American and EMEA regions, like this:

EMEA: We are focusing most of our efforts on compliance, including our operations and those of our suppliers.

NA: In the shorter term, it's a bonus if we can make some headway on our sustainability goals while achieving some supply chain improvements.

The blog ends with a pitch to readers to attend a symposium. We agree.

Any comments on Gartner's thoughts? Let us know your thoughts at the Feedback section below.