Building a Healthcare Supply Chain For the Future
Philip Hampden Smith is senior vice president of supply, North America, at Reckitt, the company behind multiple hygiene and health brands, including Mucinex, Lysol, Finish, Biofreeze, Airborne, Durex, K-Y, and Neuriva.
RESPONSIBILITIES: Leading the end-to-end manufacturing and go-to-market strategy, including oversight of manufacturing facilities and distribution centers across North America.
EXPERIENCE: Senior vice president, global health supply; end-to-end supply director-ASEAN health, hygiene and nutrition; and other positions with Reckitt. Large-pack operations manager, focused improvement manager, and canning operations team leader, all with Molson Coors Brewing UK. PTO process engineer, Merck & Co.
EDUCATION: First-class Master of Engineering (MEng) degree, chemical and process engineering, Newcastle University.
Within a lot of supply chains, everybody’s busy working on the immediate priorities. They’re not taking a collective look forward at what’s coming and getting prepared for the future.
In contrast, Reckitt is in the midst of a transformation. With an eye on the future, we’re building a more resilient supply chain. Across our global health portfolio, we offer a wide range of over-the-counter medicines, as well as vitamins and supplements. We see that the dynamics of cold and flu season have shifted. Flu, COVID, and RSV now peak earlier, last longer, and are emerging off-season. The volatility has required us to adjust.
We completed a study that laid down the blueprint we’re following. It drives our strategic supply agenda, particularly in the health division. It’s something I’m extremely proud of.
Our work was the catalyst for the $200+ million investment in a new facility in Wilson, North Carolina. We had very much been a supply chain in the traditional sense. We had strong global operations and centralized a lot of our capabilities in certain facilities.
Meeting Future Needs
In doing this study, we realized that as challenges, such as geopolitical tensions, continue to surface, traditional supply chains will not meet the needs of the future. In North America, we understood that regionalizing our supply chains and providing access to our products more quickly was a strategic imperative. The Wilson facility is a direct result of that insight.
Completing this study required dedicated resources. Team members stepped back from their day-to-day responsibilities to pressure-test assumptions, explore future scenarios, and model the long-term needs of the business. Then, we overlayed projections against demand forecasts.
It’s like playing a strategic chess game. You try to piece together various factors to ensure that you build a strategy with the future in mind. It requires considering capital investments, potential expansions, deeper partnerships, and insourcing opportunities.
Now that our focus and vision are clear, we are in the execution phase. We are setting ourselves up for the future, so we’re ready to sustainably outperform.
I also focus on recruitment. A company is only as good as its supply chain, and the supply chain is only as good as the talent behind it. Competition for talent is intense, and ensuring we have the right people is essential to delivering on our strategy.
Starting Out
My father was in the oil and gas industry. He was my inspiration—hardworking, dedicated, and technically outstanding. I tried to model that, which drove me toward engineering.
As a child, I was into sports.That made me competitive, but I also loved social connection and teamwork.
Helping people resonates with me, so I pivoted toward the healthcare space. It’s purpose-driven and about making people feel better. What’s great about Reckitt is that we make products that people trust. And it’s a kick to see your products on TV or in the store.n
Philip Hampden Smith Answers the Big Questions
1. What activities make you better at supply chain management?
I get to the gym by 5:30 every morning. You can do something like a Kaizen Blitz event that’s intense, focused, and short term. But consistent performance will beat short-term intensity. That’s very much what we find in supply chain. You also learn that progress requires patience, in the gym or in supply chain management.
2. What leadership or supply chain lesson resonates with you?
Particularly in my recent roles, I’ve found that you need to manage the supply chain as a network and not a series of silos. True resilience and efficiency comes from visibility and collaboration across a network. If you operate with silos, you can make some progress, but it’s not built on a strong foundation.
3. What gets you out of bed in the morning?
Being around people and tackling problems together. Supply chain is a contact sport. If you’re not into teamwork, if you’re not getting down on the ground, staying close to your shop floor, and really understanding the challenges and then helping to solve problems, I don’t think supply chain management is for you.