Shows
Art of SupplyIntermodal by Design: How Coordination Drives Efficiency W/ Anne ReinkeWhen it comes to moving freight long distances, you can go from ship to drayage to rail to over-the-road trucking… or you can go intermodal. Intermodal freight transportation combines the advantages of sea, air, and land transport to facilitate a preplanned end-to-end journey. Understanding the relative cost, security, and emissions benefits of intermodal transportation is key for companies looking for the most efficient way to move their goods. In this episode of Art of Supply, Kelly Barner is joined by Anne Reinke, the CEO and President of the Intermodal Association of North America (IANA). Anne ha...
2025-10-2330 minArt of SupplyLost at Sea: Can the U.S. regain maritime dominance?"Today, the U.S. ranks 19th in the world in commercial shipbuilding, and we build less than 5 ships each year, while the PRC is building more than 1,700 ships. In 1975, the United States ranked number one, and we were building more than 70 ships a year." - Katherine Tai, U.S. Trade Representative (2021-2025) The Trump Administration is on a mission to make shipbuilding great again… a bipartisan effort that started during the Biden Administration. In the spring of 2024, the U.S. Trade Representative released the findings and recommendations of a Section 301 investigation into whether or not Ch...
2025-08-2116 minArt of SupplyComing Unchained to Embrace Global Supply Networks W/ Tim Richardson"We've had this whole period of trying to manage supply chains for lowest cost, whereas I think now we're managing for resilience at a managed cost and at an acceptable cost." - Tim Richardson, Founder and CEO, Iter Consulting Supply chains aren't really chains anymore. They're complex, interconnected networks. Supply networks are anything but predictable. What used to be straightforward relationships between suppliers and customers have become webs of interconnected partnerships, each with its own risks and opportunities. The leaders and teams who succeed in this environment understand that optimizing for resilience at a m...
2025-08-0735 minArt of SupplyPrioritizing Dispute Prevention Over Problem SolvingAfter spending years reviewing business books, Kelly Barner knows how to recognize authors who truly move the needle–and Kate Vitasek is one of them. Her latest work, Preventing the Dispute Before It Begins: Proven Mechanisms for Fostering Better Business Relationships, co-authored with James Groton, Ellen Waldman, and Allen Waxman, takes on a surprisingly neglected topic: dispute prevention. While this topic can be applied to procurement, it's also very human, looking at business relationships from their most troubled moments and aspiring to lay out a plan as well as offering up resources to help teams and individuals st...
2025-06-1921 minArt of SupplyHigh Velocity Lessons on Lobbying and Trade W/ Samir Kapadia"In this climate of being a trade professional in Washington, expect to be in an Uber for about half of the day and then the other half of it sitting in rooms making cases of why people either should be not paying tariffs or how other people should be paying tariffs." - Samir Kapadia, Managing Principal at Vogel Group and Founder and CEO at India Index Supply chain professionals have always had to keep a close eye on trade–both the policies and the geopolitical happenings that affect it. But with tariffs launching trade-related topics to the to...
2025-06-1240 minArt of SupplySemiconductor CHIPS, Checks, and Challenges"Even though the world's advanced economies are largely considered post-industrial, chipmaking is an area where domestic manufacturing is now being treated as a high priority for economic and national security reasons." Jon Martin, Writing for the 'More than Moore' substack The CHIPS and Science Act, which took effect in August of 2022, is an ambitious Federal program that will inject $52.7 Billion into U.S. semiconductor manufacturing, research and development, and workforce training. As we look back nearly 3 years later, there has been more talk than action, but no one party or entity bears all...
2025-05-2924 minArt of SupplyHow U.S. Tariffs Are Reshaping Global Freight W/ Judah LevineGlobal supply chain leaders and consumers alike have watched for months as the U.S. tariff rollercoaster starts and stops, impacting imported goods. While these policy changes are expected to directly impact supply chains, what about their impact on the cost and availability of freight? As companies hold their breath and wait to see if and/or when their imports will be subjected to tariffs, many have been doing their best to plan as far ahead as possible and get stock in well before seasonal demand hits. Even so, concerns still exist over tariff timelines and the...
2025-05-2229 minArt of SupplySupply Chains & Second Chances: Human Trafficking AftercareIn recent years, a lot of work has been done to raise awareness about the massive problem of human trafficking as well as to start to attack that problem. In this week's episode of Art of Supply, Kelly Barner interviews two women engaged in an important part of that fight through an organization called Gift of Freedom: Sharon Siar and Nicole Glenn. Sharon Siar is the Founder and President Gift of Freedom, and she is also the Vice President and CFO at Talon Freight Services Nicole Glenn, is a Board Member for Gift o...
2025-05-1527 minArt of SupplyBuilding a U.S. Solar Supply Chain"Between 2008 and 2013, China's fledgling solar-electric panel industry dropped world prices by 80 percent, a stunning achievement in a fiercely competitive high-tech market." - John Fialka, Scientific American In March, Corning, Suniva, and Heliene announced a partnership that will allow them to build a U.S. supply chain for solar panels, from polysilicon to wafers to cells to panels. In a global solar industry worth $100 Billion, the opportunity is massive, but so is the risk. The path to the present moment is littered with companies who failed operationally or found themselves tangled up in controversy because they...
2025-05-0815 minArt of SupplyManufacturing Labor Market Insights in an Uncertain WorldEconomic commentators often look at consumer spending as a barometer for confidence and outlook - how good or bad financially do individuals and families think the broader economy is, and how profitable it will be for them? The same can perhaps be said for companies and hiring managers. How confident are they that they will be able to keep people employed in uncertain times, and what skills are they most eager to invest their scarce dollars in? In this week's Art of Supply interview, Kelly Barner speaks with Christine Corson, Managing Director of Supply Chain...
2025-05-0121 minArt of SupplyBeef with the Big 4: McDonald's vs. the Meat MonopolyIn October of 2024, McDonald's sued four of the world's largest meat producers – Tyson, JBS, Cargill, and National Beef Packing – for allegedly conspiring to inflate the price of beef by creating artificial scarcity in the market. This is not the first time McDonald's has sued these meat producers, and it is not the first time these meat producers have been sued. Over 200 cases have been brought by restaurants, retailers, wholesalers, and ranchers. Some are still pending and others have been settled - with high payouts but no admission of wrongdoing. In this week's episode of Art of S...
2025-04-2417 minArt of SupplyIn Defense of Lean Thinking W/ Thomas GoldsbyEverything runs in trends, supply chains included. What was once considered a critical strategy can be cancelled in a heartbeat if conditions change - only to be rediscovered and reapplied to great advantage a couple of years later. In this week's Art of Supply interview, Kelly Barner welcomes back Professor Thomas Goldsby. Tom is the Dee and Jimmy Haslam Chair of Logistics at the Haslam College of Business at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville. He is also the Co-Executive Director of their Global Supply Chain Institute. Tom rejoins the show to make a case in support o...
2025-04-1737 minArt of SupplyScope 3 Showdown: Green Century v. FordOn May 8th, at Ford Motor Company's annual shareholder meeting, they will face a proposal focused on how they report their efforts to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions on their way to being carbon neutral by 2050. The proposal was made by Green Century Capital Management, a sustainability-focused activist fund that regularly challenges recognizable companies about their emissions reduction efforts, using the threat (or promise?) to mount a shareholder vote if necessary. Companies like Procter & Gamble, PepsiCo, Coca-Cola, and McDonald's have faced similar challenges, all intended to change how they manage their Scope 3 emissions. ...
2025-04-1021 minArt of SupplyWho owns the Panama Canal?The Panama Canal is a 51 mile long waterway that allows ships to cut about 8,000 miles off of a trip from New York to San Francisco around the route around Cape Horn. The country of Panama owns the canal, which is operated by the Panama Canal Authority, an agency of the Panamanian government, but who owns the ports located on either side of the canal? Until now, it has been CK Hutchison, a Hong Kong based firm - raising concerns about China's interest and influence in the supply chain critical Panama canal. On March 4th, it...
2025-03-2715 minArt of SupplyDecoding the DOGE Savings CalculatorThe Department of Government Efficiency, better known as DOGE, was created by executive order on President Trump's first day back in office. It immediately became one of the most controversial parts of the administration's first couple of months. Love it or hate it, if you work in procurement, you have to watch what DOGE is doing. And if you can't bring yourself to review their objectives, strategies, and tactics, you at least have to watch the DOGE savings calculator. Public-facing and deliberately bare-bones, the DOGE savings calculator provides information on savings, payments, spend, Federal workforce...
2025-03-2023 minArt of SupplyInvesting in People-powered Safety in Food Manufacturing W/ Nathan Walts"Everyone at the plant has a duty to protect the products that we're sending out to the customer. Ultimately, you really have to think about it as sort of a 'circle of life.' What's my responsibility with what I'm doing in this part of the process, and what's going to happen when this product reaches the consumer?" - Nathan Walts, CEO, WorkForge The food supply chain is uniquely complex and critical, because when something goes wrong lives are at stake. Regulations and standards play an important role, but only if people follow them. It...
2025-03-1330 minArt of SupplyEast and Gulf Coast Port Strike – Part 2Back in October, when the East and Gulf coast port strike ended after 3 days, we knew there would be a part 2. Short though it was, the strike is estimated to have cost the U.S. economy $3.8 - 5 Billion per day, but that wasn't seen as the greatest 'cost' at the time. With the Presidential campaign in full swing, all eyes were on the impact it might have on the candidates' relative popularity. Now that the members of the International Longshoremen's Association (ILA) have ratified the deal negotiated with the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX), we can look...
2025-03-0619 minArt of SupplyA Narrow Path Towards Noninflationary TariffsSince President Trump took office on January 20th, speculation about tariffs has been omnipresent in supply chain planning conversations. But we do have a guide to the administration's philosophy, A User's Guide to Restructuring the Global Trading System, written by Stephen Miran and published by Hudson Bay Capital in November of 2024. Miran is Trump's pick to lead his Council of Economic Advisers, and will be appearing before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs the day this episode first airs. In his User's Guide, Miran makes the case that it is possible to u...
2025-02-2726 minArt of SupplyLessons in Listening from Joe Rogan and Charlamagne tha God"I talk to people and I record it. That's it." - Joe Rogan People often say that we all need to learn to communicate better, and that is true. But we need to invest more effort on the listening side than the talking side. Joe Rogan and Charlamagne tha God are standout media personalities and cultural icons. They are also fantastic listeners and exceptional conversationalists. Their ability to prepare for and host interviews has earned them millions of subscribers and billions of downloads, making it easier to get their choice of guests. What c...
2025-02-2024 minArt of SupplyWho will decide the future of EV trucking?Who will decide when EV trucking goes from being an option available to anyone to an enforceable mandate that everyone must comply with? That question is at the heart of this week's interview. Kelly Barner had the opportunity to speak with Nebraska Attorney General Michael Hilgers. His state is on the front lines of a legal effort to ensure that if regulations end up driving the EV transition, that those regulations are properly established - undertaken by elected officials with a vested interest in the people of Nebraska and the dozens of states who have s...
2025-02-1344 minArt of SupplyDylan v. Goliath: The Freight Essentials RICO Case"If anyone thinks that they know it all, they're in the wrong place." - Dylan Admire The series of relationships that make the freight industry work is like a supply chain in and of itself. Under the freight agent model, agents help shippers find capacity through brokers who hold carrier contracts, facilitate financing and payments, and carry the MC number under which the agent operates. When this model works well, everyone wins–but when it doesn't work as all of the parties expect, the fallout can be substantial. In this week's Art of Su...
2025-02-0658 minArt of SupplyMisfortune on 34th Street: Accounting Issues at Macy's"It is almost always the cover-up rather than the event that causes trouble." - Tennessee Senator Howard Baker, in reference to the Watergate scandal Whether you shop at Macy's or not, you surely know the brand. In 2023, Macy's was the leading department store in the United States by revenue, with sales of approximately $23 Billion. On November 25, 2024, Macy's delayed an earnings announcement planned for the next day. They had discovered some "creative accounting" and wanted to conduct an internal investigation. Two weeks later, they announced that small parcel delivery expenses had been mishandled - approximately $150 Million wo...
2025-01-3021 minArt of SupplyNebraska v. California: The EV Trucking Transition"Now an unelected group of powerful actors has opened a three-front effort to transform the nation's logistics fleet from diesel-powered to electric-powered at a breakneck pace. This terrible policy is being crafted almost entirely out of public view. Nebraska is fighting back." -Mike Hilgers, Nebraska Attorney General (WSJ Op Ed, Jan 17 2025) If you expected the transition from diesel-powered to EV trucking to take place on the open road, think again. Instead, it looks like this systemic change will work its way through the court system. Nebraska is leading the resistance to a forced transition on...
2025-01-2318 minArt of SupplyThe Dawn of a New Era in U.S. Trade Policy"India is putting their money where their mouth is. If they're able to execute upon a free trade agreement or a pseudo free trade agreement...then that would create the fluidity to buoy all of those ships in that harbor." - Samir Kapadia - Managing Principal at Vogel Group and Founder and CEO at India Index Regardless of the topic, 2024 was filled with 'what if' conversations. We were waiting to find out who would win the U.S. Presidential election–and therefore whose policies would be dominating business decisions in 2025 and beyond. Of all of th...
2025-01-1640 minArt of SupplyReenvisioning Robotics for Warehouse Optimization"We have that emotional pull to group together as humans and fight the automation. The reality is you cannot have one without the other, and they are very much working together." -Matt Naslund, Chief Commercial Officer, Mytra As businesses look to streamline operations and optimize decision-making, a combination of hardware, software, and automation offer a solution. The challenge then becomes figuring out where automation makes sense–and how quickly and heavily organizations should implement solutions that enable it. No matter the level of sophistication or maturity of an organization, automation technology is a key factor in...
2025-01-0942 minArt of SupplyRe-reading Good to Great at the Start of a New YearIn 2001, Jim Collins published the book 'Good to Great.' He was supported by a team that invested 10.5 'people years' over the course of 5 calendar years to figure out what allows some good companies to become great companies. Their research revealed key findings about leadership, use of technology, building a team, company culture, and vision. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner re-reads 'Good to Great' in light of 2025 business conditions: Reviewing some of the key points from the book as an introduction or a refresher Considering how they apply t...
2025-01-0220 minArt of SupplySupply Chain Stories to Watch at the Start of 2025Many of the supply chain news stories we covered in 2024 look ready to carry right over - or even rise to the top - as we start a new year. Some of these stories are likely to re-emerge with the incoming Trump Administration, while others are ready for a change in direction thanks to geopolitics. Supply chain professionals that already have an eye out for breaking news will be best positioned to respond as needed. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner highlights five 2024 news stories that are likely to remain...
2024-12-2618 minArt of SupplySolving Supply Chain Puzzles: Insights from a Year of InterviewsThis year on Art of Supply, we welcomed a fantastic group of guests. Each interview episode creates two kinds of challenges: asking questions worthy of the guest's expertise and capturing a conversation that lives up to audience expectations. Looking back on the interviews we ran in 2024, there are a few key messages that stand out, as individual points of view and what they collectively offer supply chain professionals as we move into 2025. Don't ever make a decision solely on short term cost. Victor Suarez: Former Lead Vaccine Program Manager for Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine...
2024-12-1922 minArt of SupplySupply Chain Forecast: Volatile with Tim Richardson"I think if you could summarize what the trend is going to be in the future - It's going to be volatile. That's the trend." - Tim Richardson, Founder and CEO of Iter Consulting In order to be influential with the C-suite, someone must have experience and expertise in a given subject. They must do detailed technical work and analysis to prepare their strategy recommendations and to be ready to answer questions. They must have a strong grasp of their domain, no matter how complex it is - but they have to be able to co...
2024-12-1245 minArt of SupplyWalking a Mile in Another Supply Chain's Shoes W/ Alex Jennings"The reason I like listening is I think, 'If I'd have been CPO there or in other organizations, what would I have done to try and prevent that? And what red flags would I have held up? And what can we learn from that so that it doesn't happen again?'" - Alex Jennings, CEO and co-founder of The Alchemie Network We all consume content for different reasons–education, entertainment, or otherwise. There are always lessons to be learned from one company or supply chain that can be applied in another. To discuss these stories...
2024-11-281h 04Art of SupplyBONUS: Indictment in the 2022 Tractor Trailer Human Smuggling CaseWhen we cover a news story on Art of Supply, we stick with it, even when it seems to have gone cold. In late August, we got an update on the case of the 53 migrants who lost their lives as a result of illegal attempted smuggling over the Mexico border back in 2022. On June 27th, 2022, an abandoned tractor trailer was found near Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas. The truck had mechanical problems and it had been abandoned by its driver. A local worker heard cries of distress and opened the trailer door...
2024-11-2304 minArt of SupplyLiverwurst, Listeria, and Liability: Food Safety at Boar's HeadWhen something goes wrong in the supply chain, it is never good news. It always leads to disruption, often costs a lot of money, and sometimes people get hurt - or worse. In July of 2024, the USDA suspended production at a Boar's Head processing plant in Jarratt, Virginia. A listeria outbreak, the worst such outbreak in over a decade, had started in the plant. The facility has been closed indefinitely, leading to over 500 layoffs of union employees, but that wasn't the worst of the fallout. Before the outbreak was over, over 7 million pounds of meat...
2024-11-2120 minArt of SupplyThe Power of Visualization in Freight Optimization and Resilience with Ruud van Dijk"Humans are so much more effective in processing something visually than, let's say, a table or two pieces of text next to each other. If you see it on a map, you can say, okay, this line goes like this, the other goes like this. I can make the connection in my head very easily that, okay, this is what changes. And it also makes it very easy to sort of have an opinion on it, because it clicks in your head quite easily." - Ruud van Dijk, Commercial Director, Routescanner We routinely talk about the...
2024-11-1435 minArt of SupplyConsolidating the USPS Final MileThe United States Postal Service occupies a unique spot in the supply chain. On the one hand, it is a federal agency, tasked with delivering mail to every home, business, and P.O. box 6 (and sometimes 7) days per week. On the other hand, it does not "generally" receive taxpayer funding; it must meet its mission by selling postage and services. Thanks to this middle space between the worlds of public service and private industry, transformation is a massive challenge - even when successfully driving financial and operational change is a matter of long term survival.
2024-11-0725 minArt of SupplyCreating a B2C to B to C Improvement Cycle at Walmart Business w/ Ashley Hubka"Most fundamentally, strategy is about asking good questions, creating alternatives, and then making decisions about how to allocate scarce resources. [...] It's a place where you have a 360-degree view of a business." - Ashley Hubka, Senior Vice President & General Manager, Walmart Business Corporate and consumer buying started and developed on separate tracks, and while there are some things that procurement has learned from and embedded in the B2B experience, others will always be beyond reach. What would happen if you took a consumer shopping experience and expanded it to support institutional customers as well? W...
2024-10-3132 minArt of SupplyPart 4: Head-to-Head Comparison of Candidate PoliciesIn the final part of this four-part special series, we compare and contrast the actual policy positions of Democratic Candidate Vice President Kamala Harris and Republican Candidate Former President Donald J. Trump. With less than two weeks until election day, procurement and supply chain professionals must have plans in place for the eventuality of either candidate being voted into office, focusing on the areas where they agree as much as where they differ. Listen in as Kelly Barner describes where the two major party candidates actually differ (and where they have a lot in common) b...
2024-10-2414 minArt of SupplyPart 3: Republican Candidate Former President Donald J. TrumpIn part three of this four-part special series, we will cover the policies and plans of Republican Candidate former President Donald Trump. Former President Donald Trump is 78 Years old, and a former businessman/real estate developer as well as the former host of The Apprentice. He became the nominee on July 18, 2024 when he accepted the nomination at the Republican National Convention Listen in as Kelly Barner explores his policy positions and platform: Detailed positions on global trade and China The lack of detail regarding his position on emissions and the environment Strong statements about b...
2024-10-2316 minArt of SupplyPart 2: Democratic Candidate Vice President Kamala HarrisIn part two of this four-part special series, we will cover the policies and plans of Democratic Candidate Vice President Kamala Harris. Vice President Kamala is 60 Years old and a former Senator and Attorney General from the State of California. She became the presumptive Democratic nominee on July 21, 2024 when President Biden suspended his campaign for re-election, and the official nominee on August 22 when she accepted the nomination at the Democratic National Convention. Listen in as Kelly Barner explores her policy positions and platform: Detailed plans for renewable energy and the environment The lack of d...
2024-10-2218 minArt of SupplyPart 1: Playing Politics with Supply ChainsThere are two weeks to go until the 2024 U.S. Presidential Election. Interest, speculation, and tension have been building all year. Most news coverage of the election is intended to sway voters, hyperbolic to a fault, and not tailored to the specific information needs of procurement and supply chain professionals. What we really need to know is what each major party candidate has said and what likely outcomes that would lead to. In this four-part special series, we will cover the policies and plans of Democratic Candidate Vice President Kamala Harris and Republican Candidate Former...
2024-10-2115 minArt of SupplyTips for Surviving in a Brave New World'Brave New World' was published by Aldous Huxley in 1932, right between two World Wars and during a time of accelerated scientific discovery. It comes as no surprise, then, that this fictional dystopian society 600 years in the future had adopted Henry Ford as their spiritual leader. 92 years later, we find ourselves in another time of rapid technological advancement, innovation that often seems to be on a collision course with the most fundamental structures of society. What can re-reading 'Brave New World' today teach us about change, innovation, chaos, and opportunity? More than you might expect.
2024-10-1726 minArt of SupplyEast and Gulf Coast Port Strike - Part 1"Let me be clear: we don't want any form of semi-automation or full automation. We want our jobs—the jobs we have historically done for over 132 years." -Harold Daggett, President of the International Longshoremen's Association In April of 2024, most 'experts' felt that a strike of unionized workers at ports along the East and Gulf Coasts was unlikely. The International Longshoremen's Association (ILA) was firm about not working beyond September 30th without a signed agreement. After 6 months of disagreement and an automated gate at the port in Mobile, Alabama that brought talks to a halt, the ILA...
2024-10-1023 minArt of SupplySupply Chains as Business in Action w/ Thomas Goldsby"The vigor with which companies left to go to the Far East and pursue low cost country sourcing has certainly not been reversed. That's why it is largely emotional; it's largely talk." -Thomas Goldsby, Dee and Jimmy Haslam Chair of Logistics at the Haslam College of Business at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville Business never allows us to stop learning. You might not take formal classes or participate in a training program, but real-world circumstances are a constant - and sometimes brutal - teacher. In this week's Art of Supply interview, Kelly Barner welcomes a real...
2024-10-0350 minArt of SupplyDeveloping and Deploying Digital Empathy"Digital empathy is the ability to humanize customer behaviors, preferences, and aspirations through the connection between human-centered data, insights, and the meaningful customer engagement powered by those insights." - Brian Solis, Forbes Contributor Despite the fact that AI and automation seem to dominate business discussions, we haven't stopped talking about relationships and soft skills. As the work environment and working conditions become increasingly digital, what sort of role does that carve out for empathy? While sympathy politely expresses appropriate concern, empathy feels with you. It is a shared experience, allowing emotions to become 'contagious' in a...
2024-09-2623 minArt of SupplyEvaluating India as a Viable Alternative to China w/ Samir Kapadia"Folks from Dell to HP to Nike to Hasbro to Sony to Apple to Google to Goldman, they're all looking back at India and saying, let's go double down, triple down and build a presence here." - Samir Kapadia, Managing Principal at Vogel Group and Founder and CEO at India Index Most companies are obsessed with moving their supply chains out of and away from China - whether it is for regulatory, risk, or human rights-related reasons. That obsession is so strong, that in some cases, they are willing to embrace an "ABC strategy" as you will...
2024-09-1949 minArt of SupplyAdvancements & Adjustments in the GE Appliances Supply Chain"The way we were running distribution, the processes we were using, it wasn't a matter of, 'Well, just incrementally improve what you've got.' "We needed to rethink, take a step back and say, 'Are we really set up the way we need to be set up?'" - Marcia Brey, VP of Logistics for GE Appliances (via the WSJ) GE Appliances recently made news for a series of planned investments in their supply chain. As interesting as their efforts are today, they are the next step in an ongoing series of advancements and adjustments… and advancements an...
2024-09-1225 minArt of SupplyProposed Patent Rule Changes and their Impact on Innovation w/ Wen XieProcurement and supply chain professionals rely upon competitive market dynamics. After all, competition drives innovation, cost savings, efficiency, and - profit. Anything that changes the dynamics around the benefits associated with disclosed innovation has the potential to alter how companies invest, how much of that information they make public, and, ultimately, the value and diversity of solutions available to consumers of all kinds. In this week's episode of Art of Supply, Kelly Barner welcomes back Wen Xie. Wen is a Washington D.C-based patent attorney who is tuned into how changing policies and regulations alter...
2024-09-0535 minArt of SupplyThe (Lost) Art of Accepting Criticism"The trouble with most of us is that we would rather be ruined by praise than saved by criticism." - Norman Vincent Peale The Art of Supply podcast regularly covers topics that come with a bit of discomfort: allegations of child labor and greenwashing, the role of government regulations in bringing about change, and China, and absolutely anything to do with China. It isn't possible to talk about topics like these without getting feedback, and that feedback often takes the form of criticism. In this episode, Kelly Barner takes a break from the...
2024-08-2920 minArt of SupplyFreight Electrification as a Service w/ Ian RustThere are a lot of preconceived notions about the barriers preventing electrified road freight from becoming mainstream. It is seen as too difficult, expensive, complicated, inefficient, and more. Most of those perceptions are based on the approaches to electrified trucking that have been tried so far. Perhaps by taking a different approach we can advance the transition away from diesel. In this episode of Art of Supply, Kelly Barner speaks with Ian Rust, the Founder and CEO at Revoy, a company looking to make electric-powered freight transport possible and affordable at scale. Rather than doing...
2024-08-2242 minArt of SupplyFishing for Truth in the Seafood Supply ChainCompanies and consumers regularly rely on product descriptions to decide whether or not to make a purchase and to determine the right price for that product. In the case of seafood, those descriptions and tiers create choices for consumers, but they also provide a built in incentive for fraud at scale. Any time someone is willing to pay a higher margin for a premium product, someone else is willing to turn that into an opportunity for profit. The problem is so widespread, that estimates suggest between 20 and 40 percent of all seafood sold in the United S...
2024-08-1527 minArt of SupplyOrchestrating the Chaos of Retail Fulfillment w/ Mike Robinson"Every time I don't have a delivery truck stop in front of your house, 800 grams of CO2 is never created." - Mike Robinson, Head of Retail Solutions and a Founding Member at The Eighth Notch (T8N) The ecommerce boom of the last few years has led to new business models and consumer experiences, but it has also added to the number of packages being delivered each day. Does the number of packages correlate to the number of items ordered? No, it does not. Placing an online order for 7 items of clothing from one company...
2024-08-0849 minArt of SupplyWill FedEx Freight hit the open road?On June 26th, The Wall Street Journal reported that FedEx plans to spin off their freight division - and the most interesting part is why. FedEx Freight is the less-than-truckload (LTL) division of the company. It is the most profitable division, with a recent operating margin over 20 percent, compared to 11.8 percent for FedEx Ground and 2 percent for FedEx Express. The company has realized that the division is so successful it will generate more shareholder value on its own. With estimated valuations between $30 and 50 Billion, it is too big to be bought, but too small of...
2024-08-0122 minArt of SupplyThe Great Supply Train RobberyAccording to reporting in the New York Times, about 20 million containers travel through the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach California annually. Those containers are full of goods that need to travel to warehouses, stores, and consumer homes by truck and rail. Unfortunately, a growing percentage of those goods never arrive, thanks to a sharp uptick in cargo theft. As Supply Chain Brain has reported, U.S. cargo thefts were up 9 percent year-over-year in 2023, with an additional increase at the end of the year. The increase in rail cargo theft has significantly impacted Union...
2024-07-2524 minArt of SupplyDe Minimis: Supply Chain Trifles the Law Should be Concerned WithSection 321 of the U.S. Tariff Act of 1930 contains a small provision known as 'de minimis.' From a Latin phrase meaning "the law does not concern itself with trifles," this provision has become a major concern for retailers, shippers, and regulators. De minimis is supposed to simplify shipping so that packages under $800 can be sent to U.S. consumers from overseas without distracting U.S. Customs and Border Patrol from their core mission. With the rise in global ecommerce, however, this provision - or loophole - is proving to be far more than a t...
2024-07-1821 minArt of SupplyChasing a Common Supply Chain Objective: Saving Lives w/ Adrian Ristow and David Canarutto"You can't just come with ideas. You've got to show that you're going to be on the journey with them." - Adrian Ristow, Executive Director of Project Last Mile "Coca-Cola Project Last Mile is held within the practitioners of my craft to be the flagship model of what good looks like in terms of public-private partnerships." - David Canarutto, Private Sector Relationship Manager at The Global Fund For over a decade, one public-private partnership has worked to make lifesaving medicines available in the most remote parts of Africa. Known as Project Last Mile, this collaboration i...
2024-07-1151 minArt of SupplyProject Last Mile: A Story Worth RetellingAbout 15 years ago, someone noticed that while you could buy a cold Coca-Cola in the most remote corners of Africa, lifesaving medicines that require cold chain logistics were nowhere to be found. A group approached the company and asked, will you teach us how you manage your supply chain in rural Africa so we can apply those learnings to healthcare? Coca-Cola not only said yes, they threw their full support behind the effort that would come to be known as Project Last Mile. The public-private partnership was so impressive and effective that it became the s...
2024-07-0424 minArt of SupplyUltimate Endless Real Estate Costs at Red LobsterRed Lobster, the largest seafood chain in the United States, declared bankruptcy on May 19, 2024. As of the filing, they had 551 locations operating in 44 states, but underperforming locations have already started to close. What brought about the bankruptcy of the restaurant chain that rapper Flavor Flav describes as "one of America's greatest dining dynasties"? It wasn't all-you-can-eat shrimp, as some have suggested, but it may very well have been endless real estate costs. In this week's episode of Art of Supply, Kelly Barner walks a mile in Red Lobster's shoes: Tracing their rise as an i...
2024-06-2722 minArt of SupplyFormer Pioneer Oil CEO Scott Sheffield - Colluder or Scapegoat?On May 25, the Federal Trade Commission announced their consent for the planned acquisition of Pioneer Natural Resources by ExxonMobil. It was the largest shale oil and gas merger ever planned. The consent may not have been a surprise, but one of the conditions was: that former Pioneer Natural Resources CEO Scott Sheffield was prohibited from taking a planned seat on ExxonMobil's board and accused of colluding with other industry players to increase consumer prices and maximize company profits. Articles began to appear in the media that described the condition, which ExxonMobil did agree to, as "...
2024-06-2019 minArt of SupplyUyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act: Progress or Setback?The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, or UFLPA, took effect in June of 2022 to protect an ethnically Turkish, predominantly Muslim minority that lives in the Xinjiang autonomous region of China. The Uyghurs have been the subject of forced labor claims and investigations - truly the stuff of supply chain nightmares. If companies try to import anything connected to Xinjiang into the United States, they must prove conclusively that it did not involve forced labor. But what if the Uyghurs are moved out of Xinjiang? What does that do to enforcement of the law? I...
2024-06-1318 minArt of SupplySending a Powerful Message About America's Pharmaceutical IndependenceOn April 30th, 2024, the U.S. Senate Committee on Armed Services, Subcommittee on Personnel, held a hearing about the Department Of Defense's efforts to ensure service members would have access to safe, high-quality pharmaceuticals. One of the panelists invited to testify was Victor Suarez, a retired Colonel from the United States Army. He worked for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) before becoming the Lead Vaccine Program Manager for Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine during Operation Warp Speed (2020-2021). Today he is the Founder and Principal Growth Partner at Blu Zone Bioscience & Supply Chain Solutions...
2024-06-0643 minArt of SupplySymptoms of Disruption in the Pharmaceutical Supply ChainPharmaceutical supply chains are never far from news headlines. Regular drug shortages affect our families, friends, and neighbors when they can't access their chemotherapy treatments, ADHD medication, and pain medication - just to name a few. In 2023, Americans spent over $600 Billion on prescription drugs. That's more than ever before — and more than any other country in the world. 90 percent of the prescriptions are for generic drugs, although they represent only 20 percent of spending. Pharmaceutical supply chains are complex, highly regulated, global, and associated with HUGE profit margins - but not for all medicines, and the R...
2024-05-3019 minArt of SupplySearching for the Limits of Employee Activism at GoogleSome corporations have chosen to wade into socially sensitive waters over the last few years and others have been pushed in from behind. The adoption of a social mission or set of causes at the company level does not guarantee 'trickle down' benefits to individual employees. The right to free speech is one of the most valued privileges granted in the United States. But it has limitations - something 50 (now former) Google employees discovered the hard way last month. In this week's episode of Art of Supply, Kelly Barner explores the legality of employee speech an...
2024-05-2322 minArt of SupplyEmpathy is Not a Soft Skill“The first casualty of war is truth—the second is empathy. Empathy has to call for backup. The backup is in the form of radical empathy.” -Lou Agosta, Assistant Professor of Medical Education at Ross Medical University at Saint Anthony Hospital We have a difficult six months ahead of us. A contentious presidential election looms in the U.S., the world continues to be war-torn, and companies find themselves mired in social topics that threaten to win over one half of consumers or stakeholders while alienating the other half. Could consciously practiced empath...
2024-05-1623 minArt of SupplyThe Surging Problem of AI Energy ConsumptionOn April 9th, Rene Haas, CEO of Arm Holdings, a British semiconductor and software design company came out and made a statement about data center energy consumption that most people would find shocking. He said, "by the end of the decade, AI data centers could consume as much as 20% to 25% of U.S. power requirements. Today that's probably 4% or less." Everyone wants to talk about AI, but this reality is something we don't discuss nearly enough. AI may be the greatest unrecognized threat to the environment today, because AI is an energy hog. ...
2024-05-0927 minArt of SupplyReplacing Good Intentions with Good Outcomes at Whistl"We know what matters to our employees, and we know what matters to our customers, and we know where the leadership view is. That alignment means that you make progress more easily because you're focused on stuff that matters and that people care about." - Gareth Hughes is the Business Services and ESG Director for Whistl If the road to hell is paved with good intentions, as they say, what is the road to sustainability paved with? Put another way - if the road you are journeying down is lined with little more than good intentions, how...
2024-05-0239 minArt of SupplyExamining the Practicality of the EV Truck MandateHeavy-duty trucks include tractor-trailers, ambulances, garbage trucks, and school buses. All of these are now on an official timeline for reduced emissions, in alignment with a new Federal mandate. Manufacturers of heavy-duty vehicles must reduce their overall emissions by mandated percentages according to model year, starting with their 2028 models and extending through 2032. When the rules were released on March 29th, we heard the usual responses from the usual cast of characters. Environmental advocacy groups love it, and trucking industry associations say it is ridiculous. But will it work? In this week's episode of t...
2024-04-2523 minArt of SupplyPlaying the "China Card" in U.S. Ports80 percent of all ship-to-shore (S2S) cranes at ports in the United States - and 75 percent of all S2S cranes in the world - are made by just one company: ZPMC. Short for Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries Company Limited, ZPMC is a Chinese state-owned manufacturing and engineering firm. It was founded in 1992 and quickly grew to become the largest S2S crane manufacturer in the world. U.S.-China relations have been on shaky footing in recent times, making concerns about these cranes, and the critical role they play in major ports, a top p...
2024-04-1816 minArt of SupplyNet Zero in New York? JBS Accused of GreenwashingOn February 28, 2024, New York Attorney General Letitia James sued JBS, the largest meat company in the world, for civil fraud. James is accusing the company of 'greenwashing' or making statements to sound more environmentally friendly than they truly are. In 2021, JBS made a commitment to reach net zero emissions by 2040. James says this statement is "unsubstantiated" and "unachievable" without reducing production, and that their marketing campaigns "in effect, provide environmentally conscious consumers with a 'license' to eat beef." What earned JBS the unwanted attention of the Attorney General's office in New York? The company has pl...
2024-04-1121 minArt of SupplyEven with +1, China is still #1"China's supply chain has gone through significant, transformative changes in the last five years. For executives or engineers, designers or buyers, who have not been here since before COVID, they're going to see a completely different China." - Jeffrey Goldstein, Founder & President of Onward Global It is impossible to discuss global supply chains without being hyper aware of the role of China. Whether it is their access to critical raw materials, specialization in certain production processes, or labor advantages, relocating supply chains to other parts of the world is harder than it sounds. Even companies...
2024-04-0444 minArt of SupplyWhat You Don't Know Can Hertz YouIn October of 2021, Hertz announced that they would purchase 100,000 Tesla Model 3's for their rental fleet, followed by 175,000 from GM, and 65,000 from Polestar. The move was supposed to help them overcome shortages of conventional cars, lend the recently ex-bankrupt company a 'cool factor,' and lean on the sustainability trend to drive revenue. Instead, it backfired. On April 1, 2024, Hertz will get their fifth CEO in four years. How could this strategy, one that seemed to be in alignment with corporate and consumer sentiment, go so wrong? In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast...
2024-03-2822 minArt of SupplyTreasure Hunting with TJXThe global off-price apparel and home fashion market is estimated to be worth $900 Billion. While retailers like Macy's and Bed Bath & Beyond faltered or fell over the last few years, the chains owned by TJX - notably TJ Maxx, Marshalls, and Home Goods - have thrived. TJX has seized the opportunity to snatch up excess brand name inventory and sell it at a discount over the last few years, but their growth is not a COVID-related fluke. The foundation for their success was laid decades ago, and continues thanks to investments in talented buyers, strong supplier relationships...
2024-03-2120 minArt of SupplyThree Strikes for the New Baseball UniformIn early February, news hit that there was a problem with the new Major League Baseball uniforms. Redesigned by Nike and made by Fanatics, the new uniforms were unveiled with tremendous fanfare. They were designed to be more comfortable, cooler, and better at moisture wicking. Unfortunately, one man's breathable is another man's translucent. Pictures started to appear on social media that revealed far more than anyone would want. The LEAST of the players' concerns was that tucked in jerseys were visible through the pants. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, K...
2024-03-1424 minArt of SupplySurviving the Supply Chain Arena"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena…" - President Theodore Roosevelt, 1910 The last four years of supply chain challenges have taken a toll. People are exhausted, stressed, and scarred. Unlike many areas of life that have gone back to 'normal,' supply chains continue to be batted about by geopolitical strife, the economy, and literal attacks. The result of all th...
2024-03-0742 minArt of SupplyTime to Return to Just-in-Time?"Wisdom is given equally to everybody. The point is whether one can exercise it." - Taiichi Ohno, The "Ten Precepts" The supply chain profession has recently run the gauntlet of existential challenges. Is it possible that - given enough time - they could return to the old ways? There have recently been a number of news stories about retailers returning to just-in-time inventory management. If that is the case, and supply chains are returning to pre-pandemic practices with minimal changes, then we may be setting ourselves up to forget… and fall prey to the same fai...
2024-02-2923 minArt of SupplyCase Dismissed: Byron Allen v. McDonald'sOn February 2, 2024, news broke on one of the court cases we've been following for a while. In May of 2023, two of the companies owned by Byron Allen, a black businessman and producer, sued McDonald's for $100 Million in California for fraud and false promise. The suit claimed the company lied when it said it was going to spend more money with black-owned media companies. California Superior Court Judge Mel Red Recana dismissed the case against McDonald's and ordered Allen to pay their legal fees. But if you know anything about Byron Allen, you know that this...
2024-02-2219 minArt of SupplyKiller App: The UK Post Office ScandalIn today's digital age, jokes are often made at technology's expense. Computers don't like switching from one virtual meeting platform to another. Sometimes webinar platforms insist upon seeing someone's earbuds as a microphone rather than as a speaker. And why does software always need to update when we are already 5 minutes late for a meeting? Digital gremlins have become the tie that binds, and we are all conditioned to be patient, recognizing that nothing - least of all software - is perfect. But what if the problems with software go beyond minor inconvenience and actually d...
2024-02-1520 minArt of SupplySavings v. Safety in Aircraft ManufacturingOn January 5th, Alaska Airlines flight 1282 left Portland, Oregon en route to Ontario, California. Just minutes into the flight, the Boeing 737 Max 9 lost a door plug, creating a gaping hole in the side of the aircraft. Fortunately, all 171 passengers and six crew members were safe, largely because the plane had only reached 16,000 feet, minimizing the amount of cabin decompression that took place. It also helped that no one was sitting in front of the plug, which was put in place to cover a spot that otherwise would have been an extra emergency exit Once the...
2024-02-0821 minArt of SupplyThe Drone Final Mile Becomes RealityIn 2013, then-Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos predicted that drone deliveries would be a reality in five years. More than 10 years later, they are still largely in the pilot phase, but a drone final mile is becoming a reality fast for some parts of the company. As the FAA reduces restrictions on drone deliveries in places like the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area, they are kicking off a race to make drone deliveries realistic, affordable, and available to consumers, bringing small items to consumers in 30 minutes or less. Companies like Amazon and Walmart are now locked in a race to...
2024-02-0123 minArt of SupplyWeight and Value x Distance: Studying Global Supply Chain Use and CostIn June 2023, Sharat Ganapati, an Assistant Professor of International Economics at Georgetown University and a Faculty Research Fellow at the National Bureau of Economic Research, and Woan Foong Wong, Assistant Professor of Economics at the University of Oregon, wrote a research paper that was published in the Journal of Economic Perspectives. Titled How Far Goods Travel: Global Transport and Supply Chains from 1965-2020, the paper takes a new look at global transportation. Unlike traditional trade metrics, which often fail to reflect the role of distance, they examine transportation usage worldwide by weight and value as well as...
2024-01-2523 minArt of SupplyHigh Stakes in the Red SeaOn New Year's Eve, weeks of rising tension in the Red Sea reached a boiling point. Houthi militants tried to board the Maersk Hangzhou just one day after hitting the vessel with a missile. The ship's crew sent out a distress signal that was picked up by the USS Eisenhower and the USS Gravely, which sent helicopters to support the on-ship-security team. Three Houthi ships were destroyed and ten assailants were killed, according to the Houthi military's own report. The crew of the Hangzhou is safe and there were no indications of fire resulting from t...
2024-01-1819 minArt of SupplyIntroducing Art of SupplyEffective today, Dial P for Procurement is the Art of Supply. Rather than being a change in content, this rebrand brings the name and brand identity of the show into alignment with the content we have already been creating. Building on the strength of the category-leading Art of Procurement podcast, Art of Supply will focus on supply chain topics and news stories while advocating for the impact all supply management professionals can have on companies, industries, the environment, and people everywhere. Art of Supply will continue to provide in-depth researched coverage of trending s...
2024-01-1115 minArt of Supply2023 Dial P for Procurement Year in ReviewLooking all the way back to the beginning of the year has a way of putting everything into perspective. The individual and cumulative impact of all of the events that took place in 2023 can not be understated: from legal action, to labor unions, to geopolitics. In this episode, Kelly Barner reviews the stories and topics covered on Dial P for Procurement this year - following the lead of the listening audience. She goes back to the beginning of the year to see which three Dial P for Procurement episodes had the greatest number of downloads...
2023-12-2818 minArt of SupplyTroubling Times for Electric TruckingWith all the recent buzz about electric vehicles (EVs), not to mention the push towards sustainability and emissions reduction, it was only going to be a matter of time before electric Class 8 trucks entered the scene. Class 8s are classic semis or tractor trailers, so they are not just part of the supply chain, they have supply chains themselves. There are a number of companies in the space, some with familiar names and some that are startups. Commercial electric trucking has been in the news recently, and not for entirely good reasons. In this episode...
2023-12-2121 minArt of SupplyReading FedEx Ground the RICO ActThe Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, better known as RICO, is usually associated with organized crime. It was used in 1992 to bring down the Gambino Crime family and sentence John Gotti to life in prison. But there is no supply chain mafia, right? A recently filed legal complaint will ask and hopefully answer that very question… On December 8th, it was disclosed that PYNQ Logistics Services had filed a lawsuit against FedEx Ground, claiming FedEx engaged in a deliberate effort to defraud them in their role as a FedEx Ground independent service provider. They cl...
2023-12-1424 minArt of SupplyThe White House Council on Supply Chain Resilience"Did you ever think we'd be talking this much about supply chains?" - President Biden On Monday, November 27, 2023, President Biden announced the creation of the White House Council on Supply Chain Resilience. The event was big news for the administration and for supply chain professionals. Almost 30 new actions focused on strengthening economically important and national security-critical supply chains were rolled out. But the devil is always in the details. And if we are going to figure out what this announcement means for private sector professionals, we have to look past the official statements and think...
2023-11-3022 minArt of SupplyWhere are they now?The stories we cover on Dial P for Procurement are pulled from the headlines, but some have more 'legs' than others. Just because a story, person, or company slides down in the feed, we can't stop following it. In this week's episode of Dial P for Procurement, Kelly Barner looks back at the people who played large roles in three past episodes to find out the answer to one common question: where are they now? What happened with the company that sued McDonald's over their supplier diversity program? What about those guys who allowed 53 people to d...
2023-11-2317 minArt of SupplySupply Chain Post Mortem: ConvoyConvoy was a digital freight brokerage founded by former Amazon executives to digitally revolutionize a high-transaction, low-profit space. Investors included Bill Gates, former Vice President Al Gore, Bono and The Edge from U2, the investment arm of Google parent Alphabet, and Jeff Bezos. Convoy was launched in 2015, reached a $3.8 Billion valuation in early 2022, and was gone less than 18 months later. What was Convoy's cause of death? As you might have guessed, there was more than one. In this episode of Dial P for Procurement, Kelly Barner performs a supply chain post-mortem, led by a brief...
2023-11-1625 minArt of SupplyIs it the most wonderful time of the supply chain year?According to the National Retail Federation, 43 percent of people started doing their holiday shopping in October, leading the NRF to predict a year-over-year holiday spending increase of 3 to 4 percent. 58 percent of shoppers will buy online, and all of those gifts have to be packed and shipped… probably via small parcel channels. And yet, final mile carriers like FedEx and UPS are bracing for a weaker than usual holiday shopping season. In this week's Dial P for Procurement, Kelly Barner looks at the numbers and dynamics at play in the complex small parcel market: Current pri...
2023-11-0924 minArt of SupplyCoca-Cola's Project Last Mile"Coke is everywhere. In fact, when I travel to the developing world, Coke feels ubiquitous. [...] If we can understand what makes something like Coca-Cola ubiquitous, we can apply those lessons then for the public good." -Melinda Gates In Africa, nearly half of people lack access to critical medicines. The continent covers 11.7 million square miles and is divided into 54 different countries. Physical infrastructure is a huge problem, meaning that the roads themselves serve as roadblocks for critical medicines and supplies that need to reach rural locations. Coca-Cola, on the other hand, has mastered the fine art o...
2023-11-0222 minArt of SupplyThe LEGO Sustainability SagaIn 2012, LEGO made a commitment to make all of their bricks out of sustainable materials by 2030, just in time for the company's 100th anniversary. As Tim Guy Brooks, LEGO's head of environmental responsibility said, "We can't say we inspire and develop the builders of tomorrow if we're ruining the planet." The company has been willing to invest and experiment, but a solution continues to elude them. Corn-based bricks were too soft and wheat-based ones didn't look right. Bricks made from other materials proved too hard to pull apart or lost their grip, known as "clutch power" in...
2023-10-2621 minArt of SupplyNegotiating Lessons from Hollywood LaborThe last two years have brought us many news stories about labor unions throwing their weight around. First there was the fear that the railway workers unions would stop freight in the lead up to Christmas, then we watched as the Teamsters negotiated with Yellow and UPS, managing to avoid a strike in both cases, the United Auto Workers union is now actively on strike, and Kaiser Permanente's workers have a tentative deal on the table for ratification by their members in the largest healthcare labor movement in history. So why did the writers union s...
2023-10-1921 minArt of SupplySmucker's + Hostess = Supply Chain SynergyIn early September, J.M. Smucker announced that they had struck a deal to acquire Hostess, the 130 year old maker of treats like Twinkies, Ho-Hos, Ding Dongs, Zingers, and Voortman cookies. Smucker agreed to pay $5.6 Billion including $900 Million in debt for the company. Most people felt the deal was overpriced, and Smucker's stock fell 7 percent, but the two executive teams had done their homework, and they are convinced that the potential synergies between the two organizations are well worth it. Smucker's has mastered the grocery retail space while Hostess is a convenience store superstar, and...
2023-10-1220 minArt of SupplyBooks As a Proxy for Free Thought"If all printers were determined not to print anything till they were sure it would offend nobody, there would be very little printed." ― Benjamin Franklin Banned Book Week was started in 1982 to call attention to censorship and intellectual freedom. In 2023, it runs from October 1-7, culminating with Let Freedom Read day on Saturday the 7th. This week and the many events that will fill it may be driven by librarians, but the premise behind it is one that every adult should be able to embrace. Nobody should tell you what information you can read, because no...
2023-10-0525 minArt of SupplyThe Competitive Expectations Behind the Google Antitrust TrialGoogle is currently being sued by the U.S. Department of Justice for violating the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890. Not since they went after Microsoft in 1994 has there been such a major antitrust trial with such widespread implications - and never before has U.S. antitrust law been so tested. While it is not illegal to have a monopoly, it is illegal to stifle competition in order to keep one. Google must now prove that it is the quality of their search product - not their statistically dominant position - that earns them widespread use, w...
2023-09-2821 minArt of SupplyGetting a Kiss From a World Class Supply ChainAfter years of pandemic-fueled spikes in demand for chocolate and salty snacks, Hershey's supply chain hit the wall. During The Hershey Company's second quarter earnings call on July 28, 2022, CEO Michele Buck warned investors that the company "will not be able to fully meet consumer demand" for Halloween candy. Ingredients were in short supply, and with production lines shared by regular and seasonal merchandise, the company had some tough decisions to make. Despite their best efforts, Hershey did fail to meet demand last year - much to the dismay of chocolate-lovers everywhere. In this we...
2023-09-2121 minArt of SupplyThe Cold, Hard Facts About Cold Chain LogisticsNews stories have a way of going from the front page to the scrap heap, and even the spotlight focused on the supply chain over the past few years couldn't prevent it from happening altogether. One specific element of supply chain - cold chain logistics - recently resurfaced in coverage of the costs and challenges surrounding transport of Ozempic and Wegovy, different brand names for the same prescription injection. Cold chain is a modern marvel, but while it is impressive and critical, it is also expensive and it is hitting manufacturer Novo Nordisk in the wallet.
2023-09-1424 minArt of SupplyNerves of U.S. Steel"You can't unscramble eggs." – J.P. Morgan There are few companies in the United States as storied and historic as U.S. Steel. Dating all the way back to the Gilded Age, U.S. Steel was formed in 1901 when J.P. Morgan financed the merger of Andrew Carnegie's Federal Steel and National Steel, into one behemoth. The resulting company is the now second largest steel company in the United States and the eighth largest in the world. U.S. Steel has survived industrialization, two world wars, and the modern era of global supply cha...
2023-09-0717 minArt of SupplyDodging the Urban Doom LoopIn the book "Good to Great" by Jim Collins, he writes about the flywheel effect, a prosperous cycle of work and change that eventually picks up speed and builds its own momentum. Anyone that has taken a product to market or started a company has tried to get that virtuous cycle going. Fewer people talk about the flywheel effect's evil cousin: the doom loop. Also covered by Collins, the doom loop is what takes down the companies that want to affect positive change but can't figure out how. He calls it "reaction without understanding." If t...
2023-08-3124 minArt of SupplyWho is to blame for Yellow's demise?On July 30th 2023, Yellow Freight announced that they would cease operations after 99 years in business. Chapter 11 bankruptcy followed just one week later. It took more than one thing to bring about Yellow's bankruptcy, one of the largest in the history of the trucking industry: poorly integrated acquisitions, a strained relationship with the Federal government, and an ill-timed fight with the Teamsters union. The more coverage comes out about Yellow's recent bankruptcy, the more surprising it is that they made it so close to 100 years in business. In this episode of Dial P, Kelly Barn...
2023-08-2424 minArt of SupplyRestoring Business Imagination Through Nature"For men like Ford, Firestone, and Edison, whose success in the world had given them access to any thing they might want, these impressions [of the great Smoky Mountains] had a value beyond calculation." American Journey, p. 276 In 1918, Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, Harvey Firestone, and naturalist John Burroughs took a long road trip in the eastern United States. They slept under the stars, cooked outside, and made their way through the countryside, meeting people, investigating curiosities, and deepening their friendships as they went. That story, and the events leading up to and following after it, s...
2023-08-1724 minArt of SupplyThe Problem with Performative ESGThere is something troubling going on in the ESG movement. Recent news stories on ESG investing, the status of Chief Diversity Officers, and Pride month raise questions about the corporate commitment to such programs. While ESG is not a new idea - in fact, the corporate social responsibility programs that preceded it date back to the 1970s - there has always been a tension between what companies say about environmental and social issues and what they are able to do. In this episode of Dial P, Kelly Barner brings together three stories that touch upon...
2023-08-1026 min