Final answer:
Controlling the supply chain is critical for maintaining performance standards, managing costs, and ensuring operational continuity during disruptions such as the COVID-19 pandemic. It involves overseeing sourcing, shipping, and warehousing to optimize efficiency and costs.
Step-by-step explanation:
It is important to control the supply chain because having oversight allows businesses to ensure performance standards are being met, as well as maintaining efficiency and predictability in the face of challenges.
During events like the COVID-19 pandemic, which severely interrupted global supply chains, companies witnessed the critical need for robust supply chain management. Supply chain control helps in mitigating impacts from disruptions and ensuring the continuity of operations, thus avoiding further business shutdowns and preventing spikes in product prices due to slowed production.
Moreover, supply chain control is vital in economic terms as it represents a major cost center. Attention to sourcing, shipping, and warehousing can lead to significant cost savings and more efficient resource allocation. Furthermore, it fosters better labor policies and can enhance international and national labor relations, which are essential for a more integrated and sustainable supply chain network.