
Resilience and Sustainability in Global Supply Chains: Case Study of Apple’s Response to the COVID-19
- 1 World Bridge College Shanghai, China, 200030
* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
This study analyzes the impact of COVID-19 on global supply chains, with a particular focus on the manufacturing industry, and explores how manufacturing firms can improve supply chain resilience and sustainability. Using Apple as a case study, this study examined its response strategies in the face of disruptions, production stoppages, and logistics bottlenecks. Apple has mitigated the impact of the pandemic through measures such as diversifying its supply chain, strengthening supplier cooperation, and technological innovation. This study points out that despite the challenges Apple faced during the pandemic, it has achieved sustainable development of its supply chain through effective resource reuse and green innovation while ensuring production and bringing long-term benefits to the ecological environment and society. The study suggests that future research should expand the sample scope, conduct an in-depth analysis of the long-term impact of supply chain resilience, and strengthen research on the application of digital technology in supply chains to provide more accurate supply chain management recommendations.
Keywords
Supply Chain Resilience, COVID-19, Sustainable, Digital Transformation
[1]. Yang, M., Fu, M., & Zhang, Z. (2021). The adoption of digital technologies in supply chains: Drivers, process and impact. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 169, 120795.
[2]. Sheel, A., & Nath, V. (2019). Effect of blockchain technology adoption on supply chain adaptability, agility, alignment and performance. Management Research Review, 42(12), 1353-1374.
[3]. Paul, S. K., & Chowdhury, P. (2021). A production recovery plan in manufacturing supply chains for a high-demand item during COVID-19. International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management, 51(2), 104-125.
[4]. Cai, M., & Luo, J. (2020). Influence of COVID-19 on manufacturing industry and corresponding countermeasures from supply chain perspective. Journal of Shanghai Jiaotong University (Science), 25, 409-416.
[5]. Nikolopoulos, Konstantinos, et al. "Forecasting and planning during a pandemic: COVID-19 growth rates, supply chain disruptions, and governmental decisions." European journal of operational research 290.1 (2021): 99-115.
[6]. Bode, C., & Macdonald, J. R. (2017). Stages of supply chain disruption response: Direct, constraining, and mediating factors for impact mitigation. Decision Sciences, 48(5), 836-874.
[7]. Tang, C. S. (2006). Perspectives in supply chain risk management. International journal of production economics, 103(2), 451-488.
[8]. Chowdhury, P., Paul, S. K., Kaisar, S., & Moktadir, M. A. (2021). COVID-19 pandemic related supply chain studies: A systematic review. Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, 148, 102271.
[9]. Gereffi, G., Lim, H. C., & Lee, J. (2021). Trade policies, firm strategies, and adaptive reconfigurations of global value chains. Journal of International Business Policy, 4(4), 506.
[10]. Kalubanga, M., & Gudergan, S. (2022). The impact of dynamic capabilities in disrupted supply chains-The role of turbulence and dependence. Industrial Marketing Management, 103, 154-169.
Cite this article
Xu,T. (2025). Resilience and Sustainability in Global Supply Chains: Case Study of Apple’s Response to the COVID-19. Advances in Economics, Management and Political Sciences,158,55-60.
Data availability
The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study will be available from the authors upon reasonable request.
Disclaimer/Publisher's Note
The statements, opinions and data contained in all publications are solely those of the individual author(s) and contributor(s) and not of EWA Publishing and/or the editor(s). EWA Publishing and/or the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to people or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions or products referred to in the content.
About volume
Volume title: Proceedings of CONF-BPS 2025 Workshop: Sustainable Business and Policy Innovations
© 2024 by the author(s). Licensee EWA Publishing, Oxford, UK. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and
conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license. Authors who
publish this series agree to the following terms:
1. Authors retain copyright and grant the series right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons
Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this
series.
2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the series's published
version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial
publication in this series.
3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and
during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See
Open access policy for details).