Collaboration meets visibility: Why FourKites recent funding success brings supply chain one step closer to the future
Everybody knows that there are two things I absolutely love: collaboration, and visibility. And never have these two things been more important than this past year. We’ve faced unprecedented times, as the COVID-19 pandemic tore through the industry, disrupting...
Katy Pickett on Finding Your Path in Supply Chain
There’s no denying it—female supply chain leaders empower diversity, innovation, and transformation to propel purposeful, intelligent moves to build back a smarter, more resilient supply chain. And at Let’s Talk Supply Chain, we understand that women achieve more when...
Women In Supply Chain Feature – Barbara Melvin
So, let’s get started with your journey - what are your earliest career memories, how did you get into supply chain and how did you get to where you are now? I grew up in Georgia and earned my bachelor’s degree in political science from Georgia Southern University. My...
Innovating with Lean Staffing
If 2020 taught us anything, it’s to open our minds to new ideas. New ways of working. New ways of connecting. New ways of marketing. New ways of selling. New ways of hiring. And new ways of growing. Disruption has a way of doing that, and the...
Melissa Puchalla on Women in Supply Chain Rising Up
Women supply chain leaders have been fueling momentum, making purposeful moves to reimagine a smarter, stronger supply chain. And at Let’s Talk Supply Chain, we know women achieve more when we empower each other. Every month, we’re proud to feature the female...
170: Give your business a fresh start – Simulation: The Future is Here
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We Improve through Learnings
The strangest and most complicated year of this century is over, we are now in 2021, called the year of hope .... in the form of vaccines and cure for this damn virus that has infected more than 80MM of people, and killed already almost 2MM globally. We will all wish...
Blythe Brumleve on Digital Marketing and the Supply Chain
Women leaders are pressing forward through the disruption into a new year and a new age for supply chain. They’re making bold moves and shaking up the supply chain to build it back—smarter and stronger. And at Let’s Talk Supply Chain, we know anything is possible...
Putting the Smart in Smarter Logistics
It is not a secret that technology evolves at an accelerated rate. As an example, I have seen the progress of vinyl records to cassettes to compact discs to playable digital files and finally to streaming media. My teenage sons, on the other hand, have never owned a...
What your freight broker isn’t telling you about quality and compliance
With volume spikes, prolonged truck price increases, and record-level tender rejections, 2020 has been one of the most volatile years in recent freight market history. If you’re like most shippers we’ve talked to, you’ve had to work hard this year to get the coverage...
Conquering COVID-19
An Assault Plan for COVID-19 Vaccine Supply Chain Distribution The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is of global significance, and 2020 is not a year that will soon be forgotten. The development of COVID-19 vaccines are imminent and seen as a solution that the world is...
Memory Mathema on Breaking Barriers in Supply Chain and Her Greatest Inspiration – Her Daughter
Through the supply chain disruption, women leaders are pressing forward—making bold moves to shake up the supply chain and build it back—stronger. At Let’s Talk Supply Chain, we think that anything is possible when women empower each other. And every month we’re...
It’s Hard to Understate the Importance of TCO
One of the most important people in your company may not even be in the room when you make big procurement decisions. If you choose a supplier and don’t have a supply chain manager in the conversation, you run the risk of taking on a contract that will leave you...
Sarah Scudder has a Message for Marketing and Procurement Teams – Oh, and Bradley Cooper
Even through the current supply chain disruption, women leaders are making fearless moves to shake up the supply chain and build it back smarter. At Let’s Talk Supply Chain, we believe we can only make progress when women empower each other. That’s why every month...
Supply Chain Talent: The Treasure to Find & Keep
The most common consumer behavior during sales periods is bargain article search, especially articles with high value but significantly lower price than regular. This happen in all markets, including stock exchange. But there are always other people willing to get rid...
Paola Núñez is on a Mission to Bring More Women into Supply Chain
Even through the disruption, women leaders are making bold moves to shake up the supply chain and build it back—stronger. At Let’s Talk Supply Chain, we know that anything is possible when women empower each other. That’s why every month we’re proud to feature the...
Racing With the Machine: Is your Supply Chain Job in Peril?
At the release of the white paper on the benefits of Robotic Process Automation (RPA) released by The Logistics & Supply Chain Management Society and Automation Anywhere on 27th August , it was highlighted that Small to medium-sized forwarders and logistics...
Strategic Pallet Procurement and Program Management
Pallet Alliance brings control, transparency, and price optimization to multi-site corporate pallet spends by creating strategic corporate-level pallet programs. Most companies maxed out the value of traditional RFPs long ago. These RFPs are often performed with...
How the Internet of Things Relates to the Supply Chain
The Internet of Things (IoT) has revolutionized the supply chain industry in a short period of time. IoT-powered tools are enabling a digital supply chain, in which shipments are tracked, monitored, and analyzed in real-time. Through IoT tracking, businesses can...
Joselina Peralta on Paying It Forward Across the Supply Chain
Even through the current supply chain disruption, women leaders are making their mark by building the chain back—stronger. At Let’s Talk Supply Chain, we know anything is possible when women empower each other. That’s why each month we’re proud to highlight female...
Elsie Qian on Being a Woman in Logistics and the Customer Obsession
Ready for some inspiration? At Let’s Talk Supply Chain, we know the power in promoting the female trailblazers who are making bold moves to push our industry forward. Every month we’re proud to highlight woman leaders who are fiercely changing the face of supply...
Want to Reduce the Tax Cost in Your Value Chain?
The main objective of global value chain management is to achieve the greatest value possible at the lowest cost possible. In order to achieve this objective, it is important for the value chain professional to consider every possible line item in the Income...
The Best Practices for Ensuring Smooth Supply Chains
Supply chain business can be difficult to get into, and finding success can be much harder. Between the rise of globalization and constantly shifting customer demand, today’s supply chain operations are very different from the past. However, this doesn’t mean that we...
Make sure your data has it’s COAT
If your data doesn’t have a COAT, there could be a range of bad or costly decisions made which could affect the business performance, financial situation, risk jobs, or even the fate of the company. You wouldn't go out in freezing temperatures without the appropriate...
Sydney Badger On a Mission to Make the Fashion Supply Chain More Sustainable
Ready for some inspiration? At Let’s Talk Supply Chain, we understand the power in promoting the female trailblazers who are making big moves and propelling our industry forward. Every month we’re proud to feature woman leaders who are boldly changing the face of...
7 Musts for Your Next Virtual Conference
Online events have been growing in popularity for years—eliminating obstacles for working parents and other professionals who can’t swing a week away from home at a hotel. And now, while we are learning to find a new normal while protecting ourselves and others from...
Adaptability is the Key to Creating Resilient Supply Chains
For any company that makes commodities, taking steps to create resilience in your supply web can make or break the survival of your business when confronted with unforeseen events. Creating supply web resilience means having processes, systems, and/or technologies in...
Choosing the Right Technology is Not the Key to Successful Digital Transformation
Digitization — digitalization — digital transformation. These words have been buzzing around the supply chain world in recent years and have received significant attention the past few months due to COVID-19 disruptions. The current theme in supply chain: adopt...
Vidya Netrakanti Talks Adapting in Supply Chain During a Pandemic
Needing some inspiration? At Let’s Talk Supply Chain, we know the value of elevating the voices of the female trailblazers who are fearlessly changing the face of our industry. Every month, we feature a supply chain woman leader on our blog, sharing their stories,...
Procurement: Never Heard Of Us? We Can Probably Save Your Business
Everyone knows what a Sales Manager, Operations Director and a Logistics Manager does. Not many people understand what Procurement is and what we do, as can be evidenced when I meet people at gatherings of professionals at events such as expat meetups or non-industry...
How to Successfully Implement and Plan for Industry 4.0
The fourth industrial revolution is here. Are you prepared? Industry 4.0 brings both challenges and opportunities as it offers a new way to organize and control the entire value chain, enabling you to customize based on customer requirements. Manufacturing is now more...
Jennifer Tracy on Teamwork and the Future of Supply Chain
Ready to be inspired? At Let’s Talk Supply Chain, we know the value of elevating the voices of the female trailblazers who are fearlessly changing the face of our industry. That’s why every month we feature a woman leader in supply chain on our blog. We share their...
How Print E-Sourcing Helps Solve the Tail Spend Catch-22
Managing tail spend has been an important topic for sourcing and supply chain professionals for the past several years. In most companies, external spending has a Pareto-like distribution – the largest 20% of suppliers (by dollar volume) account for about 80% of the...
Covid-19 : What can Supply Chains learn from Europe
This time there are no instructions for use! After nearly 30 years of experience in Supply in France & Europe (B2B & B2C), I have never seen anything like it, a deconstruction of almost all the supply chains in less than a month… For 3 weeks now, we have been...
Procurement – Time to Protect Your Supply Chain
America, along with the rest of the world, is in uncharted territory as an international pandemic meets a global economy. Businesses large and small are being immensely impacted by travel restrictions, quarantines, school closings, and mandated closures of businesses...
No Toilet Paper? Supply Chain to the Rescue
As the CoronaVirus runs across the world, everyone is suddenly being exposed to news story after news story focusing on Supply Chains. For an activity that usually doesn't get this much attention, it’s both great and terrible at the same time. As someone who has spent...
Christina Christensen on Women Having It All and Supply Chain
At Let’s Talk Supply Chain, we know the value of elevating the voices of the female trailblazers who are fearlessly changing the face of our community. That’s why every month we feature a woman leader in supply chain on our blog. We share their stories, achievements...
WISC – Cathy Morrow Roberson on Simplifying Supply Chain
This month we’re proud to feature Cathy Morrow Roberson in our Women in Supply Chain blog series. Cathy is the founder and president at Logistics Trends & Insights LLC, a global logistics market research company that provides industry insights, research content...
Smart Steps Toward Managing Supply Chain Surprises
Imagine you work at a famous tech company, about to launch your next category-killing gadget. You announce the launch date with great fanfare. You've instructed suppliers to prepare for a 10% increase in production. Stores are primed with glossy marketing materials....
Kleo Landucci On Curiosity, Leadership and Supply Chain
At Let’s Talk Supply Chain, we know the importance of elevating the voices of the female trailblazers who are boldly changing the face of our community. That’s why every month we highlight a woman leader in the industry on our blog. We share their stories,...
Charlotte de Brabandt on Women and Global Supply Chain
At Let’s Talk Supply Chain, we know the importance of elevating the voices of the female trailblazers who are boldly changing the face of our community. That’s why every month we highlight a woman leader in the industry on our blog. We share their stories,...
Jill Clifford on Facing Your Fears and What Every Supply Chain Leader Needs to Know
This month we’re proud to feature Jill Clifford in our Women in Supply Chain blog series. Jill is the president at Aborn & Co., a modern managed freight solution that has negotiated over $5B in client freight expense with savings ranging up to 35%. Jill is a...
Tanya Bischoff on Highs, Lows and the Future of Supply Chain
At Let’s Talk Supply Chain, we think it’s important to elevate the voices of the female trailblazers who are boldly changing the face of our community. That’s why every month we highlight a woman leader in the industry on our blog. We share the stories, achievements,...
Here’s How the Fresh Supply Chain Can End World Hunger
There’s a lot of noise in the news these days with global economies and environments up in the air, but one crisis isn’t getting the attention it should. World hunger is still a world-wide epidemic. These numbers are shocking, devastating and undeniable. So, let these...
WISC – Daria Kremenskaia on Taking Risks and a Lifetime in Supply Chain
Meet our Sponsor This Women in Supply Chain feature was made possible by our sponsor, HULFT. HULFT provides a single global platform that allows IT to find, secure, transform and move information at scale. HULFT's seasoned data logistics consultants uncover hidden...
The regionalization of manufacturing, Why is Panama in the eyes of the hi-tech industry?
Disruptions are the new normal in our lives and in global supply chain it’s no different if you consider all the challenges occurring in the manufacturing/tech sector. Out of the box thinking is the new normal. Increasing tensions between the world’s largest...
WISC -Felicia Payin Marfo on Taking Risks and Empowering Women in Logistics
At Let’s Talk Supply Chain, we think it’s important to elevate the voices of the female trailblazers who are boldly changing the face of our community. That’s why every month we highlight a woman leader in the industry on our blog. We share the stories, achievements,...
AFRICA – Guide to the World’s Largest Free Trade Area
When I say “Africa” – what do you think of? Some answer poverty, corruption, war, the developing world. Others answer opportunity, economic growth, emerging markets, the final frontier for business. The reality is that this vast continent of 54 countries (and one...
3 Reasons Warehouses Need Great Working Conditions Now
A few weeks ago, I couldn’t sleep and after swiping through HBOGO found a Last Week Tonight episode on one of my favorite topics. That’s right, Logistics. John Oliver’s video on warehouses has racked up 5.9 million views this month. And it’s all about the dark side of...
How Truman’s Reduces the Cleaning Product Supply Chain by 70%
For decades, home cleaners have lined retail shelves in ready-to-spray, use-it-then-lose-it bottles that contain 98 percent water. To meet consumer demand, big cleaning brands each ship more than 30 million pounds of water and 1.5 million pounds of single-use plastic...
The time is now for retailers to future-proof their supply chains with a cohesive approach for end-to-end replenishment planning
In business, SWOT analyses are used for organizations to assess strengths and weaknesses, usually to evaluate their position in the marketplace: “What is our advantage if you compare us to X company? Where do they shine while we might struggle? Do we view anything as...
Jessica Vania on the Next Generation of Supply Chain and Making an Impact – WISC July
Meet our Sponsor This Women in Supply Chain feature was made possible by our sponsor, HULFT. HULFT provides a single global platform that allows IT to find, secure, transform and move information at scale. HULFT's seasoned data logistics consultants uncover hidden...
Key takeaways from Collision 2019, The future of procurement
Blockchain and AI in the supply chain Technology is changing the world, and if you are not involved in it, then you are not going anywhere, as explained this year at Collision 2019. And there has never been a technology that has captured everyone's attention like...
Lights Out? People in the Supply Chain of Tomorrow
Are organizations moving closer to the lights out supply chain? Not all- most organizations have learned that keeping a close pulse on their customer’s market trends and utilizing this valuable information to make supply chain decisions can improve the brand growth...
Panama, “ONE SIZE FITS ALL” for global supply chains
World commerce is under continuous disruptions, the growing urgency in the arrival of a product or service expected by the consumer is not a trend anymore, supply chains are being transformed into digital supply chains or fulfillment networks as some experts like to...
Angela Czajkowski On Building Your Own Opportunities and Moving Supply Chain Forward
SPONSORED BY HULFT At Let’s Talk Supply Chain, we think it’s important to elevate the voices of the female trailblazers who are boldly changing the face of our community. That’s why every month we highlight a woman leader in the industry on our blog. We share the...
4 REASONS TO INVEST IN CUSTOMER SERVICE TRAINING!
Any area of a company benefits from the qualification of its employees , and this would not be different with the service team. However, the qualification of this team benefits the entire company, since it stimulates the acquisition and maintenance of clients - which...
Here’s Why Logistics Leaders are Calling Proposed Tariffs “the Definition of Supply Chain Disruption”
The Trump administration promised last Thursday it will impose 5% tariffs on all Mexican imports starting June 10th, that is, unless Mexico slows the flow of undocumented migrants. The tariffs are planned to jump by five percentage points monthly, slated to reach a...
What is the importance of chemistry among people in the workplace?
What is the importance of chemistry among people in the workplace? Team chemistry is one of the most complicated keys to the success of organizations. Effective teams are more than just a collection of talented members. To be effective, a team has to be able to...
Transforming supply chains and the talent gap
Global supply chains are changing rapidly and many businesses are recognizing that adopting new technology will help them navigate the changes, streamline their operations, and save time and money. With the pressure to apply technological solutions to get ahead of the...
Women in Supply Chain, May 2019 – Erica Howell
"Your podcast had significantly helped me learn about other areas of supply chain outside of trucking and grow my career. Thank you for all the work that you do" - Erica Howell So, when I started my Women in Supply Chain Series on the podcast, I never could have...
3 Amazon Moves You Need to Know About Now and How You Can Compete
Amazon is fundamentally changing the way consumers and industry professionals think about retail and supply chain. And, if you’re reading this then you probably already realize that when it comes to supply chain and commerce – change is the only constant now. The...
Top 10 ways to manage through stress
...and be your best self I don't know about you but the word "busy" is like nails scratching a blackboard for me, some use it instead of saying no to something, others see it as something to be proud of and self-importance. We all have busy in our lives and if we...
Have an Interview? Presentation Matters!
"The average person puts only 25% of his energy into his work.The world takes off its hat to those who put in more than 50% of their capacity,and stands on its head for those few and far between souls who devote 100%." —Andrew Carnegie It’s no secret that I love...
Women in Supply Chain – April 2019
So, today, I am excited to highlight Audrey Ross in my Woman in Supply Chain blog series. Audrey is one of the most knowledgeable, fun, loyal, and most generous women in supply chain that I know, plus she is my #tradebestie, and has agreed to join me along with Leah...
Strength in Diversity – Not Numbers
By Sheri Spinks ENGAGED CULTURE It is often said that two heads are better than one, but if those heads belong to two individuals that share the exact same values, beliefs, background, skills and experience, culture, and education – where is the value in that? If you...
Don’t be scared of a Gap (in your career that is)
We no longer go through the three traditional stages of life :education, work and retirement it is therefore more likely we will experience some type of gap during our careers.Returners include: family caregivers,stay at home parents,students and retirees. Why would...