China no longer competes on cost alone. It's out-innovating the West, delivering comparable-or-better quality at 40-50% lower prices and bringing products to market in half the time. For Nordic companies, shaving 2-3% off costs is no longer enough. Applied Value helps firms strengthen the entire value chain: cutting complexity, turning procurement into a true technology partner, and building resilient, parallel supply chains to compete on cost, speed, and innovation at once.

In the face of rapid technology development and shifting consumer demand, a focus on strategically prioritizing the best R&D projects is imperative for long-term sustainability and competitiveness.

Thanks to a combination of factors including geopolitical tensions, trade wars, environmental factors, and supply chain disruptions, many multi-national corporations started to nearshore their footprint away from China to countries in LATAM and EMEA in recent years.

A new round of manufacturing relocation and global value chain renovation has been initiated. Following historical trends, the decade to come will witness an increasing number of manufacturers leaving China for other emerging markets.Pressured from shrinking labor arbitrage, pollution control, punitive tariffs, and intensified competition,

Cheap money fueling debt levels and highly inflated market valuations have been considered high probability causes for the next global downcycle. The COVID-19 pandemic has now triggered a short-term downturn, with global widespread uncertainty in terms of the severity and longevity of this economic crisis.

Supplier financial risk has long been on the agenda for purchasing organizations, but many firms lack the ability to proactively manage their supply base to mitigate disruption risks. Shutdowns or disruptions in manufacturing operations can result in significant cost increases, both in terms of direct operative costs and alternative costs.