Investigation of Supply Chain Risk in the Indian Pharmaceutical Industry: A Case Study

The pharmaceutical industry is faced with the challenge of surviving and succeeding in an environment that has become more complicated and uncertain, and one that is characterized by rapid developments in science and technology, and organizational change. The pharmaceutical industry faces relentless change and fluctuating demand which creates immense challenges in anticipating best sellers and predicting volume. Like the high-technology industry, pharmaceutical industry also suffers from many supply chain ailments including raw material shortages, short product life, quality of the product, and seasonal demand. Though India is growing with Information technology, Communication systems, infrastructure, the industry is facing various supply chain risk and uncertainty and hence Supply Chain Risk Management (SCRM) has become a vital part of this industry. We propose to investigate the types and management of risks faced within the supply chain functions of an Indian pharmaceutical company. The research was done through a case study approach. The results presented in the paper would be the outcome of a research study that was conducted in the operations of a medium scale pharmaceutical company. The paper highlights the risks faced in the pharmaceutical company and also identifies the critical point in each section of the supply chain and also investigates mitigation strategies for dealing with these risks. The critical points at different stages of the supply chain have been identified through a survey and the main reason for the risk has also been investigated.