Why Elon Musk Thinks Supply Chain is “Tricky”
If Elon Musk describes something as tricky, then you know that it’s something organisations should be paying close attention to.
When someone who:
- has plans to colonize Mars,
- is the founder of the second largest provider of solar power systems in the United States,
- heads the most credible manufacturer of electrical cars,
- was instrumental in the design/concept of a high speed “train” that would travel at 600 mph (970 km/h), with a top speed of 760 mph (1,200 km/h)
says something is “tricky”, it means something!
“Tricky” Supply Chain
Elon Musk, founder of a number of high profile companies, including Tesla motors, PayPal and SpaceX, was interviewed recently at Code Conference 2016.
In the interview, Musk tells a couple of stories and anecdotes about Tesla’s Supply-Chain that highlights how things can derail fast and put your production to a halt.
It helps to illustrate the role that procurement can, and must, have in anticipating and preventing such situations. Also, in minimising impacts, and if the worst happens, to react quickly, and get back to normal as fast as possible.
You can watch the whole interview below (I recommend you do). If you prefer to go directly to the part I am referring to (1 hour 10 min into the interview), it is here.