As the sluggish economy continues to take a heavy toll on manufacturing, global corporations are stepping up scrutiny of the integrity and resiliency of their complex supply chains.

“Supply chain risk and supply chain risk management are becoming increasingly important in today’s market,” Brian Bilsback, a director at PricewaterhouseCoopers, said during a March 17 Webcast on the subject. “We’re really seeing this area emerging across the globe.”

Jaclyn Jaeger is a freelance contributor to Compliance Week after working for the company for 15 years. She writes on a wide variety of topics, including ethics and compliance, risk management, legal,...