The news is filled with stories that demonstrate just how costly a lack of supply chain intelligence can be:

• Mattel had to recall almost 1 million toys in 2007 because they contained lead-tainted paint from a supplier in China.

• Nintendo found there was nothing amusing about getting a zero on its conflict minerals report card in 2012.

• Apple’s iPhone lost some of its glitter in 2012 when unfair and unsafe labor practices by suppliers in China were exposed.

These manufacturers had one thing in common: Supply chains are only as sustainable as their worst participants, and at least one supplier in the all-too-real examples above delivered materials or engaged in practices that were deemed dangerous or otherwise unacceptable.

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