LEAFIO AI Retail Solutions is an Estonia-based company that has an office in Ukraine , as well as many clients located there .

In the first of a five-part series , LEAFIO Product Director Helen Schepanyk tells how its customers in Ukraine are adapting their operations in the face of war .

“ In everyday conditions , retail people hardly ever work on nightmare scenarios across their business functions . Mostly , it ’ s to cover liability for breach of contracts and nothing more ,” she says .

“ So it ’ s hardly surprising that , for retail supply chain managers , there are no detailed instructions headlined : ‘ How to keep your business afloat during a war ’.”

But if there were , Schepanyk says it might include the following scenarios :

• A missile flies into one of your supermarkets on the first day of the war .

• Half of your employees flee with their families from bombardment .

• Your key distribution centres are under occupation .

• Your HQ is destroyed by a bomb .

“ Sadly ,” says Schepanyk , “ all of the above has been a bitter reality for thousands of businesses across Ukraine .”

� ASIA

Asia will hold the key for many organisations looking to navigate through ongoing supply disruption , climate emergencies and geopolitical uncertainty , says McKinsey . “ Asia is set to take centre stage in this reinvention ,” it says in a report .

� ESG IN US IMPORTS

US Customs is now enforcing the Uyghur Forced Labour Protection Act ( UFLPA ), banning all imports from Xinjiang Province in China . Penalties for violation will involve civil or criminal penalties , or both .

� SMART FACTORIES

Industry 4.0 technology has made smart factories a prominent target for cyberattacks , according to a new report from multinational consulting company , Capgemini . The report found that , in 2021 , manufacturing overtook financial services as the most attacked sector .

� GERMAN PORTS Labour strikes in Germany left ports across the country paralysed as trade union Ver . di staged a “ warning strike ” over pay .

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