May 28, 2025
The Simple Guide to Supply Chain Mapping + Practical Tips
Map your supply chain to reduce risk and build resilience fast.
The Business Continuity Institute (BCI) found in its Supply Chain Resilience Report 2024 that 80% of businesses had experienced supply chain disruption during the previous 12 months. With 43.6% of these disturbances coming as a result of third party failures, it is easy to see why gaining visibility on your value chain is essential.
By carrying out supply chain mapping, organizations can gain granular insights on the activities of all entities within their chain, helping them spot potential problems before they manifest into major disruptions. And this can prove to be a major competitive advantage. McKinsey found that 45% of supply chain professionals questioned admitting to having either no visibility into their upstream supply chain or that they could only see as far as the first tier of suppliers. The better you map your supply chain, the more agile you can be, reducing your risk exposure to common issues.
This article explains what supply chain mapping is, why it is important and how you can implement it into your operations today.
Key takeaways
Mapping your supply chain reveals hidden vulnerabilities, such as geopolitical risks, unethical practices, or costly inefficiencies, enabling smarter decisions.
Visualizing both physical and information flows gives you a 360° view, helping you build a supply chain that’s resilient, sustainable, and agile.
With cybersecurity, geopolitical, and sustainability risks affecting the majority of businesses, mapping how your materials reach you is essential.
Your map should include more entities than simply your direct, tier-1 suppliers.
Create a visual map to allow for a better and more clear overview of the chain.
What is supply chain mapping?
Supply chain mapping involves creating a visual representation of all of the entities involved in your supply chain, showing where the raw materials come from and all of the steps they go through to reach the end user.
This should involve collecting and documenting information about each of these suppliers, partners, vendors, logistics providers, and other stakeholders, so that you can understand how they work, where the vulnerabilities are, and whether your chain meets the necessary ethical, industry, and regulatory requirements.
By understanding who supplies what, where, and how, you can respond more effectively to disruptions and make informed decisions about supplier relationships and strategic sourcing.
Why does supply chain mapping matter more than ever?
There are currently a wide range of pressures on global supply chains that can lead to disruptions and damage to businesses that rely on sourcing materials to create products. They include:
Ethical concerns over the treatment of supply chain workers, the environmental impact of moving goods around the world, and the use of proceeds from sourcing being used to fund armed combat (for example, in the case of conflict mineral mining) mean it is essential to have visibility on the entire supply chain. Investors and customers want reassurance that companies source their materials in a responsible manner while regulators are also imposing legislation regarding sustainable sourcing.
Geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and the imposition of trade tariffs by countries such as the US and China can cause disruption, greater costs, and other potential issues with your supply chain.
Cybersecurity risks when sharing data and access to systems with supply chain entities with whom you might not have a close relationship, and may not be able to verify the security of their processes. Half of all businesses reported experiencing a cyber breach or attack in the year between 2023 and 2024.
Thorough supply chain mapping helps businesses anticipate, understand, and manage risks, mitigating shocks with faster and better-informed responses. This allows you to maintain continuity, reduce your costs, and build a more resilient supply chain.
Key components of a supply chain map
Your supply chain map should include the following:
Component | Explanation |
Suppliers | Include your tier-1 suppliers – those who supply directly to you – as well as their suppliers too; tier-2, tier-3, and beyond. Understand who they are, how they operate, and whether they meet the appropriate standards. |
Manufacturing sites | The production facilities either owned and run by your company or those sites that provide an outsourced service to your supply chain. Focusing on safety as well as performance. |
Distribution centres | The actions and activities of warehouses and fulfilment hubs, including their efficiency, effectiveness, and treatment of employees. |
Transportation routes | Include the paths of your logistics flow, as well as those companies that physically move your items. Do you have the ability to adjust your plans quickly and cost effectively, if needed? |
Information flows | How does data travel across the chain in either direction? Consider whether everyone that needs access to real-time information has that access and how secure the data is in transit. |
Financial flows | The payment terms you implement for your suppliers as well as those that entities along the chain receive. Are they fair or do they cause a cash flow issue that could cause a disruption with supply? Consider the costs incurred too and how they impact on your operations. |
Customers | Think about the end users for the product, the retailers who stock it and your business partners. How easy is it for them to access the product and are you meeting demand without overstocking your inventory? |
How to start mapping your supply chain
Step 1: Define scope and objectives
You need to understand what information about your suppliers will be most valuable to you in order to assess and mitigate potential risks and ensure compliance. Think about the purpose of mapping your supply chain. You need it to gain a deeper understanding of where your raw materials come from and how they travel through the chain, so make sure you start with strong objectives and aims, as this will guide your information gathering.
This value-first approach will inform the scope of the mapping. Think about who is pertinent to engage and what you need from them. You do not want to burden suppliers with too many requests, but the information you receive should allow for better understanding and insight into the operations of your supply chain.
Step 2: Collect data on suppliers and flows
Having ascertained the objectives and scope of your supply chain mapping, you now need to identify the components that you want to map. This means engaging with your suppliers and their suppliers, as well as the vendors and operators who play a role in the journey of the materials you use.
Use the procurement data you already have to approach your tier-1 suppliers. Ask them for the information you require and to disclose their suppliers and subcontractors, so you can begin to flesh out the map. Ask how they procure their materials, the routes it takes, and the carriers who perform the logistics. Use a collaborative communication tool to keep all information within a centralized space, allowing you to share data effectively and securely in both directions.
Step 3: Visualize the supply chain
Use this data to create a visual representation of your supply chain. Whether you use a flow chart to show how all the entities are linked or design it on an actual geographical map to give you a better perspective on the journey, find a method that helps you and your team get a handle on the scale of the chain and the challenges and opportunities within it. This helps you see how the moving parts work together to get materials where they need to be.
Step 4: Analyze and identify issues
Once you can see how your supply chain fits together, you can also spot more easily where the potential problems might be. It could be that:
You realise that a component is sourced down the supply chain from a country that is now subject to significant tariff, which could impact the potential to sell the product to the country imposing that tariff at a competitive price.
You find that a tier-4 supplier has subcontracted a manufacturing facility that is known for failing to uphold the human rights of employees, which can impact your sustainability and ethical efforts.
A supplier in your upstream supply chain uses a route that passes through a country that is rumored to be on the verge of civil war. This could cause disruption in the future, if war breaks out.
By analyzing your map, you can identify supply chain risks, understand which entities are underperforming and which are most effective, whether there are any steps or partners you can remove from the chain to increase efficiency, and which areas of the chain are the most costly to run currently. From this, you can make adjustments to create a more productive, cost-effective and sustainable supply chain.
Step 5: Monitor and iterate
Supply chain mapping is an ongoing process, as new entities come into and out of the chain. This requires careful monitoring and is made much easier if you have a good working relationship with your supply chain partners. Keep communication lines open and check in regularly to ensure you have the most current data in order to keep making well-informed decisions about your sourcing strategy.
Practical tips for supply chain mapping
Start with your tier-1 suppliers for quick visibility. You are most likely to already have a reasonably close working relationship with them and should have paperwork regarding your transactions. This helps you get the map up and running easily.
Define clear objectives before mapping begins so that you know what you are going to ask of your supply chain components. It helps you keep your requests reasonable whilst ensuring you are thorough on the data points that matter most.
Use visual tools like flowcharts or digital platforms to help you see the flow of goods more easily and spot potential bottlenecks and risks that might get lost amongst masses of text.
Collect accurate, up-to-date data from all partners and check in periodically to keep your records current.
Prioritise high-risk or high-impact areas first as these are the parts of the supply chain that require the most attention to adjust to meet your business goals.
Map both physical and information flows, as risks can affect your digital standing as much as your physical operations. The security of data in your supply chain is essential.
Include sustainability metrics like emissions or labor practices to help you meet your obligations to ESG-minded investors and customers, as well as regulators.
Share insights with key stakeholders to drive collaboration. If there is an issue with the supplier of a tier-1 supplier, it is also important that they know about it for their own supply chain analysis, and so you can develop a solution together.
FAQ
What’s the difference between supply chain mapping and supply chain transparency?
Supply chain mapping identifies and visualizes all suppliers and processes across tiers, while transparency involves openly sharing that information with stakeholders.
What is the difference between supply chain mapping and supply chain management?
Supply chain mapping is the process of documenting and visualizing the supply network, whereas supply chain management involves the ongoing coordination of production, logistics, and sourcing activities.
How often should a supply chain map be updated?
A supply chain map should be reviewed and updated at least annually or whenever significant changes occur, such as onboarding new suppliers or entering new markets.
How do I convince suppliers to share data for mapping?
Emphasize the mutual benefits of the supply chain mapping process, such as improved risk management and compliance, and offer assurances around data privacy, limited use, and alignment with shared sustainability goals.
Conclusion
With the amount of risk surrounding supply chains, it is important that businesses understand exactly where their materials come from and how they travel the world before they get to you. Supply chain mapping is the process of visualizing this information in a clear manner that allows for analysis that helps businesses get ahead of risks and opportunities to create an effective and efficient supply chain. Beebolt’s collaborative platform allows supply chain partners to work more closely together and communicate effectively, sharing documentation in a secure manner. It also uses predictive analytics to warn about potential disruptions and keep your supply chain moving. Want to start the mapping process? Register for free with Beebolt today.