As proof, consider the top 50 news stories of 2010 (Infographic). While most of the big stories were related to the economy, election, and terror (because the three major news networks that reach over 3/4s of the US population love to promote terror), the 3rd biggest story of 2010 was the BP Oil Spill (that will still be talked about in decades to come just like the Exxon Valdez oil spill is still talked about today) and the 10th biggest story of 2010 was the Toyota (Gas Pedal) Recall that affected most of the Toyota Vehicle Line-Up, including the Avalon, Camry, Corolla, ES 350, Highlander, IS 250, IS 350, Lexus, Matrix, Prius, RAV4, Sequoia, Tacoma, Tundra, and Venza. While the recall may have been limited to components manufactured by one supplier, it had devastating effects across the Toyota line.
In comparison, not one of the top 50 new stories revolved around a supply chain success. In fact, only the continued debate on the economy and the Toyota recall revolved around business. The majority of the top stories revolved around politics (28), and the rest were rather evenly split between bad news (7), natural disasters (6), and culture (7). The media doesn’t care about your success, only your failures. Make this the year your organization gets those risk management systems and processes in place so that it doesn’t end up being the top news story of 2011.