At the European Parliament this week, we highlighted Europe’s need for real-time supply-chain intelligence to strengthen competitiveness and resilience.
Supply chains are the metabolism of an economy. But how do we keep this metabolism healthy and resilient — especially in a world where geopolitical actors increasingly leverage dependencies in our production networks?
For this, it is important to understand that supply chains are not linear chains at all. They are highly interconnected, dynamic networks. Efficiency, innovation, competitiveness, and resilience do not emerge at the level of individual firms — they arise from the structure of the network as a whole.
A UNIFIED EUROPEAN DATA SPACE?
Technically, we can map these networks today — for example through VAT transaction data. While major global powers (USA, China, UK) and private actors such as Bloomberg and J.P. Morgan are already building supply-chain intelligence systems, Europe still lacks a comparable real-time view of its own economic networks.
This means Europe risks relying on external insights about its own economy — a strategic vulnerability that must be addressed.
Strategic dependencies – who depends on whom, even across multiple tiers
Systemic risk – which firms represent critical nodes for the entire economy
Resilience patterns – how shocks propagate and which sectors are most exposed
Ex-ante simulations – testing policy options in digital models before implementation
This week, we discussed these crucial questions – and many more – in Brussels:
- At a panel hosted by CSH together with the the Supply Chain Intelligence Institute Austria (ASCII) together with the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber (WKO), with insights from Georg Konetzky (Federal Ministry of Economy, Energy and Tourism), Outi Slotboom (DG GROW, European Commission), and Stefan Thurner (CSH & ASCII), followed by a panel discussion with Lukas Mandl (Member of the European Parliament), Peter Klimek (ASCII & CSH), Thomas Eibl (WKO), and William Connell Garcia (DG GROW, European Commission).
- At a presentation in the European Parliament, discussing the strategy paper by Stefan Thurner and Peter Klimek for the EP: Strategic dependencies, resilience and competitiveness in EU supply chains at the firm level
- On a podcast with EPM Lukas Mandl, which wil be available here soon.
WHAT'S NEXT?
At the Complexity Science Hub, we look forward to continuing this essential conversation. Few topics are as central to Europe’s future competitiveness, sustainability, and strategic autonomy as the ability to understand and strengthen the resilience of our supply networks.
