James A. Cooke, Supply Chain Quarterly--In most companies, the person at the top of the supply chain hierarchy calls the shots. But in light of the volatility of today's business world, perhaps it's time to consider empowering subordinates to quickly make decisions and address unfolding developments.

Professor Yossi Sheffi of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) made that argument in his keynote address on the characteristics of resilient supply chains at the Supply Chain and Logistics Summit last month in Dallas. One of those characteristics, Dr. Sheffi said, is "distributed power"—sharing decision making with personnel at different levels of the organization. Read more!