it has taken over the technology world. The reality is,
as Gartner put it, “most initiatives are still in the alpha
or beta stages” and ”enterprises are still deciding how
to navigate this technology.”
Chain of Custody/Chain of Events
Anyone who has ever watched a police procedural
understands the basic concept of chain of custody. If
they have a piece of evidence, they need to ensure
they can document the entire chain of people and
places where that evidence changed hands. For the
evidence to be valid in court, that chain cannot be
broken. There can be no gap, or gray area, regarding
who had control of the evidence at any point in time.
Chain of events is exactly what it sounds like: tracking
a series of events to know exactly when they occurred
(e.g., during inspections, at document sign-off, etc.).
Custody and events overlap where knowing “who” as
well as “when” are critical.
If you think about it, supply chain is ultimately all
about chain of custody and chain of events. You have
product at its point of creation. That product moves
through various channels and is handled by various
entities, until it reaches its destination. For any indus-
try, knowing where product has been, where it cur-
rently is, and where it is going, is crucial, but chal-
lenging. That’s why various industries and diverse
Chain of events is
exactly what it sounds
like: tracking a series of
events to know exactly
when they occurred.
44 | THE DOPPLER | SPRING 2018