Kinaxis: AI Orchestration for Resilient Supply Chains

Today’s supply chain leaders operate in a world of constant volatility.

From trade tariffs and cyber-attacks to labour shortages and a tidal wave of data from billions of connected devices, disruption has become the new normal.

The challenging environment demands a fundamental shift from reactive problem-solving towards a more resilient, predictive and agile paradigm. The solution lies in a new approach: end-to-end supply chain orchestration, enabled by Kinaxis Maestro, the industry’s only AI-powered concurrent planning platform.

At the recent Kinaxis Supply Chain Unplugged event, the new reality was brought into sharp focus. Kinaxis, framed the current landscape as a pivotal “make-or-break moment” for the industry.

He identified the key disruptions driving a projected surge in supply chain investments to US$16.2bn by 2028. Citing that a staggering 89% of Fortune 1000 companies experienced significant supply chain disruptions in 2024, Kinaxis issued a call to action for professionals to seize the opportunity to transform their operations in response to unprecedented pressures.

The strategic imperative: Embracing scenario planning

In an unpredictable world, a single, static plan is a recipe for missed opportunities. The foundation of a modern, resilient supply chain is the ability to anticipate and model multiple futures.

It is the core of scenario planning, a strategic capability that transforms organisations from reactive firefighters into proactive architects of their response.

Rozena Dendy, Global Sales and Operations Planning Manager at ExxonMobil, highlights this crucial mindset shift. She argues that resilience is built on flexibility and preparation.

“Many people think a plan is just one fixed strategy, but that’s not the case,” she says.

“Scenario planning involves preparing multiple plans – best case, worst case and most likely scenarios – and being agile enough to deploy the right one as situations evolve. Flexibility is essential to maintain resilience, no matter what challenges arise.”

Rozena provides a powerful example of the principle in action during the unforeseen shutdown of a significant third-party fuel pipeline in the US. Rather than succumbing to chaos, her team leveraged their planning capabilities to turn a potential crisis into a demonstration of strength.

“When it shut down unexpectedly, our team used a Kinaxis and ExxonMobil-developed tool to gain full inventory visibility across terminals and the network,” she continues.

“It allowed us to respond quickly, keep service stations supplied and minimise customer disruptions and lost sales. It was a phenomenal demonstration of resilience in action."

The experience illustrates a critical lesson: strategic preparation combined with the orchestration capabilities of Kinaxis Maestro provides the agility and visibility needed to navigate severe disruptions and maintain service continuity.

In fact, Kinaxis customers collectively run more than 3.5 million scenarios annually, with increased volume during tariff or policy shifts, providing clear evidence of resilience in action at scale.

From theory to practice: Orchestrating a global giant

Putting the principles into practice across a vast and complex network is the ultimate test.

ExxonMobil, with operations spanning the globe and involving more than 40,000 railcars and 800 marine vessels, is undertaking a sweeping transformation in collaboration with Kinaxis.

Anil Kathuria, who was a voice at the unplugged event, points to the practical benefits of the digital approach, especially in a post-COVID world defined by “more and more Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity (VUCA) events”.

For him, digitalisation is the key lever for building resilience and optimising performance.

Anil says: “Now, in real time, we can see if there are certain locations where we have excess inventory and where there are shortages and we can effectively do network optimisation, which helps us in saving cash and helps us in improving our customer service”.

The mindset and the machine: Technology-driven agility

Achieving an optimum level of orchestration means both a cultural shift and a technological leap.

Supply chain platforms like Maestro are engineered to provide the new foundation. They move beyond traditional planning systems by creating a three-layer architecture: a Supply Chain Data Fabric to connect all data sources; an Intelligence Engine that fuses heuristics and optimisation with AI; and a generative AI-based User Experience to make insights accessible.

It enables accurate concurrent planning, where a change in one part of the network instantly reflects across all functions.

However, technology alone is not enough.

Tarmo Raudsepp, Vice President of Business & Operations at petrochemical leader Borouge, argues that a forward-thinking mindset is the actual starting point for transformation. He sees challenges not as problems, but as opportunities.

“I would say it all starts from the mindset,” explains Tarmo. “You must have an open mindset, looking at what is really going on in the world and proactively identifying where and how you can improve your systems and solutions.

"Embrace AI without fear and focus on how to make your supply chain significantly more agile, faster and transparent to create greater value for your business.”

Tarmo notes that by investing in a robust and agile supply chain system, Borouge has been able to “take advantage of the situation” during recent trade disruptions, becoming faster and more efficient than its competitors.

Building the future-ready supply chain

The path forward is clear. The era of fragmented systems and reactive decision-making is over. The future-ready supply chain will be defined by its ability to sense, predict and adapt to disruptions in real-time.

It means building scenario planning into the very DNA of an organisation and empowering teams with intelligent orchestration platforms that provide a single, synchronised version of the truth.

As organisations envision a future where human experts work seamlessly alongside “digital employees”, the leaders who will thrive are those who, as Anil advises, “think about how we adapt our supply chain, be more agile in the continuous complex world”.

Embracing the new paradigm of digital transformation is no longer an option; it is the key to survival and success.

For supply chain leaders, this means moving beyond pilots and point solutions to platforms like Kinaxis Maestro, where AI agents augment human expertise, orchestrating people, processes and partners in real-time to turn disruption into opportunity.