Supply Chain Radio

No matter what area of supply chain you’re in, there’s no hiding from the large shadow Amazon casts over the industry. Amazon’s recent innovations, Prime Now and Flex, focus on transforming last mile delivery to be even quicker and more convenient than ever before. How is Amazon consistently able to come up with radical solutions to longstanding problems? In this episode, we explore what it takes to develop revolutionary technological innovations for the supply chain.

On this very spooky episode of Supply Chain Radio, we peer into a dark tale of supply chain horror. The year, 1999. The time, Halloween. The plot, a large scale candy manufacturer is about to experience a supply chain nightmare of Frankensteinian proportions. Listen on, if you dare... Sound Effects and Music Used: Lightning - http://soundbible.com/2015-Thunder-Strike-1.html Wolf Howl - http://www.freesound.org/people/adrilahan/sounds/172652/ Heartbeat - http://soundbible.com/1001-Heartbeat.html Creaky Door - http://soundbible.com/1870-Sqeaking-Door.html Crowd Shouting - http://www.freesound.org/people/DickBlox/sounds/101871/ Woman Scream - http://www.freesound.org/people/sironboy/sounds/132106/ Grandfather Clock Ticking - http://www.freesound.org/people/Ryding/sounds/125968/ Grandfather Clock Chiming - http://www.freesound.org/people/ollyoldhoff/sounds/69976/ Maniacal Laugh - http://www.freesound.org/people/AP3850/sounds/221798/ Ghostly Moan - http://www.freesound.org/people/Billy_Storm/sounds/164285/ Zombies

American Apparel is going bankrupt, and other retailers are likely to follow. What made this iconic brand become obsolete? There are a variety of reasons, but major blame is due to their inability to compete with fast fashion brands like Zara & H&M who are cannibalizing market share from most traditional retailers. Is there any way to flourish amidst the fast fashion brands? Find out in this podcast.

Data provides the visibility needed to make decisions. If the data isn’t clear, companies run into risk. In supply chain, it’s even harder working with a large network of suppliers all on different technology systems. But there is a very important shift in the way that this problem is being addressed – the concept of crowdsourcing on a networked platform to raise the overall quality of data. At the end of the day, data is not a magic light switch, it’s a critical ongoing investment.

The alarming findings resulting from a 5,000 person survey, highlighting the frequency with which customers faced stock-outs and their reaction to it, is discussed in this podcast. Stock-outs are prolific and consistent across the globe, and retailers need to deploy technology solutions that will eliminate them to preserve excellent customer experience.

Pragmatic examples of supply chain innovation show how data-minded employees created quantifiable results.

The relationship between a buyer and a seller in the direct supply chain is a delicate balance. Communications have shifted from paper-based to web-based portals, and now include a more sophisticated exchange of data. It’s shortsighted to think of suppliers merely as vendors. Instead, a more robust strategy is to think of them as partners in a network.

Reading might seem like a luxury sometimes, but ideas and innovation can come from a variety of inspiring sources. From Elon Musk to TED Talks, here are five books sure to stimulate the minds of supply chain professionals.

Manufacturing might be moving all over the world but now production facilities are popping up in the most remote parts of the globe. Hear about why manufacturers are setting up shop in places like northern Russia and what challenges they bring.

From self-ordering inks to push-button detergent delivery, new technology is changing the way we buy goods. What might these innovations in the consumer space bring to the business world?

Gap, one of the most prominent heritage brands, is moving into the world of fast fashion. The shift, from ordering a whole season’s worth of inventory at a time, to rotating small batches every six weeks will be tremendously challenging. Gap will face this challenge, though, with a secret weapon: network technology.

There's lots to consider when investigating supply chain technology. How easy will it integrate with your systems? How difficult will it be for partners to get on board? The real value of a supply chain platform comes when it unites all partners--buyers, suppliers, 3PLs, carriers, and financial providers. Crucially, good cloud-based technology also meets the needs of specific industries while, at the same time, delivering benefits across verticals to the entire community.

Supply chain visibility offers incredible value to companies, with the opportunity to save in numerous areas, from inventory to transportation to agility and finance. Many executives feel like they’re doing just fine, but they are missing out on a whole different level of visibility: real time, end-to-end, transactional, and immediately accessible. When companies have that level of visibility, it becomes a very different picture.

Cloud is the only way to harness supply chain visibility. All previous attempts to make it happen with ERP software have not scaled – companies have switched to cloud in order to see it work. A cloud-based supply chain visibility system is a connecting layer that runs over the top of ERP and TMS systems. Cloud improves data quality, and improves the way information is translated and transmitted, resulting in supply chain visibility.

Cloud is the prevailing model because it’s the only one that works.

Everyone in supply chain is excited about the Internet of Things. Smart, connected sensors distributed throughout the supply chain will bring us unprecedented visibility. But the IoT in supply chains has a long, strange history. Find out how music, espionage, and a notorious four letter word were responsible for the cutting edge technology we have today.

Real applications of the Internet of Things are already happening in supply chain. Together with information systems, IoT is helping companies reduce blind spots by providing all the data from transactions and partners in the supply chain network. Insights happen when companies look at data over time, and can see where moving sourcing from one supplier to another can make a big difference. Big Data is not just about an operational set of tools, it’s about the long-term detailed memory that allows companies to look at trends and analytics to drive insight.

Cloud supply chain technology allows companies to remain agile and avoid risk caused by disruptions like the financial crisis in Greece.

Boris Felgendreher of GT Nexus sits down with Mick Jones, ‎Vice President Global Logistics, Supply Chain Strategy & Network Transformation for Lenovo to hear his perspective on challenges in the modern supply chain.

Businesses are shifting from one size fits all supply chain to a multi-dimensional approach in order to better serve customers.