Black Swan Events

As a CIPS member, you should be making the most of your branches, local or international.  They put on a huge array of events, from in-person to virtual.  

We at the Birmingham & Coventry Branch are having an in-person event:

📅 Thu, 2nd July 2026
⏰ 17:30
📍 Gleeson, Edmund House, 12-22 Newhall Street, Birmingham, B3 3AS Birmingham.

From Shock to Strategy: Leading Procurement Through Black Swan Events

This session will explore how Procurement and Supply Chain functions can effectively manage risk and resilience in the face of “black swan events” — high-impact, low-probability disruptions that are inherently difficult to predict but have significant operational/financial and potential Procurement consequences.

Through a structured discussion, the session will:

• Clarify what constitutes a “black swan” event in a business context, supported by real-world examples from recent years (e.g. geopolitical shocks, major supplier failures, infrastructure disruptions)
•  Examine how such events typically impact end-to-end supply chains, including sourcing, Logistics, and supplier ecosystems
•  Explore the practical implications for Procurement, including contract robustness, supplier diversification, inventory strategies, and risk-sharing mechanisms

The session will also focus on capability building and readiness, addressing:

• How organisations can anticipate and monitor emerging risks despite inherent uncertainty
• The role of data, scenario planning, and market intelligence in improving early warning and decision-making
• How Procurement can partner with Supply Chain and broader business stakeholders to enable faster, more coordinated responses

A key component will be an interactive discussion on response strategies, including:

• How to react and stabilise operations when disruption occurs
• How to pivot sourcing and logistics strategies under time pressure
• Trade-offs between cost, service, resilience, and cash during crisis situations

Finally, the session will challenge participants to reflect on their current operating models by considering:

• Whether their organisations are sufficiently agile and resilient

Register here