Supply chain practitioners make countless decisions every day without really understanding the mental processes that underpin their choices. Recent studies on these cerebral interactions have shed light on the psychology of risk, an emerging factor in risk management decision making. Operations leaders can help their teams—and themselves—to make more informed decisions and avoid common errors of judgment by being aware of these psychological influences.
The implications were discussed at a symposium titled Advancing Supply Chain Risk Management: Emerging Challenges and Strategies, which took place on the MIT campus in Cambridge, Mass., on October 10, 2012. More than 30 organizations attended the event, which was co-organized by the MIT Center for Transportation & Logistics and the Supply Chain Risk Leadership Council (SCRLC).