Articles

Case Studies

Top Hat and Tales

Stephanie Carter is the co-founder, president, and chief executive officer of Wallaroo Hat Company, a Boulder, Colorado-based manufacturer of stylish sun-protective hats, founded in 1999. Responsibilities: Supply chain logistics, overall operations, design, manufacturing, marketing, and human resources. Education: B.A. in Spanish and French language and literature, cum laude, New York University, 1989; J.D., University of […]

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GE Appliances Flips Its Smart Switch

GE Appliances Flips Its Smart Switch

Do you think about how big appliances, such as refrigerators, washing machines, and dishwashers, move through the supply chain—from the factory to a homeowner’s property or a commercial apartment building? Mark Shirkness does, every single day.

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Reading the Room

Annette Danek-Akey is executive vice president of supply chain at multinational publishing company Penguin Random House. Responsibilities: Manage distribution, transportation, customer service, fulfillment, reverse logistics, and remainder sales. Oversee 1,700 employees in three distribution centers that ship 1.5 million books per day. Experience: EVP and SVP, supply chain, Penguin Random House; SVP and VP, fulfillment, […]

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Improving Visibility: And Sew It Goes

Improving Visibility: And Sew It Goes

Family-owned Tacony Corporation offers sewing and home and commercial floor care products in more than 100 countries. Because of the number of products it sells and the geographic span of its operations, supply chain visibility and efficiency are key. At the same time, providing timely, accurate deliveries has become ever more critical, given rising customer expectations.

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Robotics-as-a-Service Automates Order Fulfillment

Robotics-as-a-Service Automates Order Fulfillment

THE CUSTOMER Ecentria is a technology-enabled e-business platform and the corporate parent of OpticsPlanet, CampSaver, and USIQ—purveyors of high-performance and technical gear and leading destinations for enthusiast customers of the greater outdoor, sporting goods, and tactical consumer markets. THE PROVIDER inVia Robotics is aSouthern Californiarobotics company founded in 2015 that provides next-generation warehouse automation solutions. […]

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Focus on the Future

Robert Johnson is a collaborative leader and considers himself part of the team. His advice: “Don’t assume someone else is steering the ship” and “treat the company as though you own it.”

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Taking Up Space

Mark Wiese works at the NASA Kennedy Space Center in Florida as manager of the deep space logistics Gateway program. Responsibilities: Provides project management expertise and strategic vision for spacecrafts, launch vehicles, and integration services to advance NASA’s Gateway lunar orbiting platform. Oversees integration of commercial logistics missions to the Gateway. Experience: Management, logistics, and […]

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Strategize. Inspire. Listen.

To steer his company through a global pandemic, Andrew Kirkwood rolls up his sleeves, continues to connect with customers and internal staff, keeps learning, and doesn’t mind some WhatsApp teasing from his team.

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The True Value of Supply Chain Transformation

Lyndsi Lee is senior vice president of supply chain with True Value Company, a leading hardware and home improvement wholesaler. Responsibilities: Drive end-to-end supply chain optimization, develop integrated planning and logistics strategies, and build best-in-class sourcing programs. Experience: Division vice president, inventory management and global sourcing, also with True Value; principal, project leader, Boston Consulting […]

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Molson Coors Brews the Right Transportation Mix

Molson Coors Brews the Right Transportation Mix

Take a look at the loading area of Molson Coors Beverage Company’s breweries, and the word “complexity” comes to mind. It’s not just the vast quantity of beer and beverage products moving out of its seven North American production facilities that turns up the volume on logistics and supply chain operations. It’s also the frequency of trucks being loaded and the pace of activity all week long—including weekends—that add to the challenge of delivering products to its 700 distributors on time.

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Distributors, Shippers Eye Surcharging to Stay Afloat Amid COVID-19 Outbreak

Logistics is one of the many sectors currently grappling with the impacts of COVID-19 on the bottom line. The need for seamless supply chains is paramount, with much of the world looking to the industry to feed families, maintain infrastructure, and even deliver essential medical equipment to front-line healthcare workers. Although the industry is among […]

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Peak of Perfection

An authentic leader with an open-door policy, Juliann Larimer chooses justice over peace when fighting for her company and employees.

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Cultivating Raw Talent

Stephanie Benedetto is co-founder and CEO of Queen of Raw, an online marketplace that makes buying and selling unused fabrics efficient and transparent. Responsibilities: Developing and enhancing Queen of Raw’s blockchain-enabled marketplace for unused materials, hiring and managing staff, attracting both customers and suppliers. Experience: Associate, Baker Botts; associate, Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft; legal assistant, […]

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There’s No Business Like Shoe Business

There’s No Business Like Shoe Business

About 12 years ago, G. Brent Barkin, the son of Shoe Station founder Terry S. Barkin, urged his father to start a website for the family-owned business. The senior Barkin followed his son’s advice and invested some money in creating a new channel. But he had his doubts, asking, “Who’s going to buy shoes from a website?”

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Surge Protector

About 35 years ago, Mark Hogan left a successful career as an accountant to pursue a job in freight transportation. He hasn’t looked back.

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Taking a Dip Into Supply Chain Management

Frank Armetta is global vice president of supply chain with Sabra Dipping Company, a division of PepsiCo. Responsibilities: Leads procurement, strategic sourcing, manufacturing, warehousing, distribution reports, global engineering, and global quality. Also oversees the Australian and Western Europe businesses. Experience: Vice president, global manufacturing with Sabra; global manufacturing vice president for PepsiCo Worldwide Flavors in […]

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