In 2010 a spate of suicides at factories in southern China owned by Foxconn, a contract manufacturer for some of the world's leading electronics brands, highlighted poor conditions faced by its assembly workers. Foxconn promised to improve working conditions, but reports of further suicides or attempted suicides have continued to dog the company.

Diversifying your supply chain brings innovation and improves business credentials, according to the head of procurement at pharmaceutical firm Roche.

In 1967, the British Transport Docks Board (BTDB) commissioned McKinsey to assess a recent development from America: container boxes. The first ships built expressly for this new way of shipping goods had recently been launched, and a few U.S. lines carried them on their regular service. Our report advised the BTDB to rethink everything in light of this new disruption.

As the leadership team at a consumer products company debated its digital strategy, two opposing views emerged. To stay competitive, some argued, the company needed to invest several hundred million dollars to automate its existing network of large regional plants.

Europe's air-safety regulator recommended that companies using material from Kobe Steel Ltd. review their supply chains and - if alternative suppliers are available - suspend purchases from the Japanese company that admitted to faking data about product strength.