Chief Supply Chain Officers Overestimate Their Effectiveness When Compared With C-Suite Perceptions

Many chief supply chain officers (CSCOs) overestimate their effectiveness compared to C-suite perceptions, according to a survey by Gartner, Inc., a business and technology insights company.

Gartner surveyed 201 executives, including CSCOs and C-suite executives, in March, 2025, and found that three-quarters of CSCOs gave themselves a score of at least 75 out of 100 when asked how effective they were in their position. However, only a little more than half of C-suite peers did the same when scoring their CSCOs.

“Collaboration is prioritized by both CSCOs and their C-suite peers, but our data shows a disconnect between how effective CSCOs truly are in this critical measure of effectiveness,” said Claudia Clemens, Senior Director Analyst in Gartner’s Supply Chain practice. “More than 60% of CSCOs state that they make proactive investments in peer relationship building, but less than half of their C-suite partners actually recognize these efforts.”

The survey identified that driving value with the C-suite through effectively collaborating across departments contributed to a disproportionate impact among five key traits that C-suite executives identified as contributing to CSCO effectiveness (see Figure 1).

Figure 1:

Gartner’s analysis of this disconnect revealed that the barrier to performance is not the time spent, but the quality of the time. This finding is an opportunity for CSCOs to elevate conversations with their C-suite peers beyond everyday challenges, and shift to the value-creating opportunities for collaborating across the C-suite.

Breaking into the Boardroom

Both CSCOs and their C-suite peers agree that the ideal CSCO is an innovative, “maverick” leader willing to push the boundaries of what a supply chain could be. CSCOs who embody the maverick profile are more likely to claim a seat in the boardroom.

CSCOs breaking into the boardroom regularly engage in these three behaviors:

1. Devote Time to Areas the C-suite Values Most: To maximize their impact, CSCOs must align their efforts with what the organization values most—such as cross-team collaboration, agility, digital innovation, growth, and risk management—by prioritizing enterprise-driven goals over self-driven tasks, delegating daily operations, and focusing on long-term strategies.
2. Collaborate for Impact: CSCOs are generally viewed positively among their C-suite peers for aligning strategic plans and proactively raising risks, but CSCOs must also present solutions to these risks to enhance the value of their contributions and clarify the supply chain’s role in supporting the enterprise.
3. Showcase Supply Chain Value: Nearly 40% of the C-suite executives surveyed believe CSCOs fall short in helping the executive team understand how the supply chain supports the organization. Effective CSCOs proactively communicate and demonstrate supply chain value by aligning strategy with business goals, clarifying dependencies, integrating supply chain considerations into strategic plans, explaining the impact of investments, and highlighting capabilities that affect outcomes.

Gartner clients can read more in Supply Chain Executive Report: Decoding CSCO Effectiveness. Nonclients can attend the upcoming webinar: 5 Key Traits for CSCO Effectiveness.