Supply chain concerns a huge risk factor

It’s a risky business world out there, but how much of that risk can be directly credited to an unsteady global supply chain?

According to a study by BDO USA, of the 100 largest publicly traded technology companies analyzed, 86 percent mentioned supply chain concerns. That mark placed supply chain concerns as the sixth biggest risk factor in 2011 for U.S. technology companies.

Included in those supply chain concerns in the BDO report are supplier relations and distribution and material costs. Possibly of greater concern, supply chain issues are up more than 10 percent from last year, meaning supply chain problems might not be going away anytime soon.

That growth still pales in comparison to the fastest-growing risk among U.S. technology companies, as 93 percent of the companies stressed a failure to properly execute corporate strategy as one of the biggest risks today. That mark is a sharp increase from 2009, where only 27 percent of U.S. technology companies expressed those concerns.

Labor concerns (up to 61 percent, from 22 percent in 2009) and financial risk of customers, vendors or suppliers (also up to 61 percent, from 33 percent in 2009) are two of the other fastest growing risk factors.

Competition and consolidation and pricing pressures, U.S. general economic concerns, federal, state and local regulations, failure to develop or market new products or services and legal proceedings rounded out the top seven risk factors, as cited by the 100 largest U.S. Technological companies.

For more information, check out the complete list by clicking here.