Articles
Commentary
Going Straight to the Sourcing
Strategic sourcing, which consultants popularized in the late 1980s/early 1990s, is a supply chain management approach that formalizes the way organizations gather and use information to leverage consolidated purchasing power and find the best values in the marketplace. Strategic sourcing involves developing supply channels at the lowest total cost, as opposed to the lowest purchase […]
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No Industry is Amazon-Proof
Amazon is now in the oil business. With the release of its Amazon Basics Synthetic Motor Oil, the mega retailer has effectively entered an industry ripe for disruption. There isn’t an industry Amazon can’t enter. I’m amazed at how many executives across different industries tell me that they’re not concerned about Amazon for one reason […]
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Rethink Fulfillment During Peak Season
Peak season is a great opportunity to determine where your warehouse priorities should lie. Here are the biggest stories to watch this holiday season. From fast to accurate. Amazon Prime’s free two-day shipping sent shockwaves through the fulfillment industry. Reaching peak productivity and keeping up with Amazon became a major topic of discussion. But it’s […]
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The Supply Chain World is Not Flat
The idea that supply chain and logistics networks aren’t linear is not new, and neither is the concept of the circular economy. In our globalized world, the value chain has gotten much more complicated and difficult to manage, with many more variables now part of the equation. Add in the fact that the globe’s resources […]
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Talent Gap or Training Gap?
In the past, workforce training and development for blue- and gray-collar jobs took a back seat at many businesses and academic institutions. Schools often steered students toward white-collar career paths, while businesses put cutting costs, staying globally competitive, and turning a profit above training workers—a short-sighted focus on the next quarter rather than the next […]
Read MoreGood Question: What recent supply chain development will have the greatest impact on your job
Tariffs create global challenges. The United States has taken a strong position in dealing with fair trade, but we have felt the same strong efforts by many governments around the world. Michael Ford Chief Compliance Officer BDP International The digitalization of the supply chain will provide the single biggest boost to transparency in what is […]
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Good Question: To address the truck driver shortage, should we lower the minimum driver age to 18?
I agree with lowering the age restriction for getting an interstate CDL to 18. Currently, commercial drivers between 18 and 21 can operate with a CDL as long as they don’t cross state borders. Think about that—a 19 year old can legally operate a commercial rig between Miami and Pensacola, Florida (670 miles apart), but […]
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Good News From the Government! (Yes, You Read That Right)
In its second estimate of Q2 2018 Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the U.S. Census Bureau quoted growth at 4.2 percent, the best quarterly figure since Q3 2014. That comparison is important because 2014 was also the last time the truck market was tight. When GDP rises above four percent, freight grows and the truck market […]
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Shipping and Delivery: How to Get it Right
Thanks to the rise of e-commerce and heightening customer expectations, shipping and delivery have become key drivers of overall customer satisfaction. An e-commerce company’s ability to meet customer expectations can be a source of competitive differentiation. Executing against the wrong strategy—or not having a strategy at all—is a recipe for higher costs and lower customer […]
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Conserving a National Resource
Everyone has an opinion about how to combat the truck driver shortage—from boosting pay and benefits to lowering the age for getting a CDL (see Good Question, page 10) to self-driving trucks. But one valuable weapon you don’t hear much about is driver wellness programs. Carriers can implement these programs quickly, and net near immediate […]
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Tuning Into Supply Chain Orchestration
In both the B2B and B2C markets, customers demand speedier shipments, greater flexibility, and more transparency in the order lifecycle. Only by innovating to establish real-time visibility with the power to make changes can companies achieve the agility required to meet customer needs and stand out from the competition. Let’s dig into five trends you […]
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Using IoT to Move From Push to Pull
Customers want more and they want it now. If you are unable to meet expectations, they will go elsewhere. The supply chain model often used in retail distribution is outdated and broken. Using Internet of Things (IoT) and vertically integrated order processes can achieve a leaner supply chain and help you say goodbye to out […]
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Store Delivery Keeps Retailers in the Game
Multi-channel retail and fulfillment is typically based on the assumption that customers choose a main way to connect, whether physical stores or a website. Many retailers manage each channel separately with different teams, budgets, processes, tools, reporting structures, and revenue goals. In multi-channel retail and fulfillment, stores have their own stock and sell directly to […]
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Returning Experience
The war between the retail/e-commerce customer experience and increasing costs is heating up, thanks to the impact that rising transportation prices are having on the retail process. That trend plagues e-commerce players and retailers, both large and small. For example, in July 2018, spot market trucking costs were up 30 percent year-over-year, according to DAT. […]
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Leveraging Technology: Put Strategy First
With all the hype about technology’s potential, it’s easy to lose track of the basic truth that technology enables strategy. Technology applied to an inappropriate strategy will accelerate a firm’s demise. Tech trends enable strategies that are reshaping global supply chains. These new technologies complement each other; used in combination they create synergies far beyond […]
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5 Tactics for Managing the Unexpected
No supply chain is immune from risk, and the farther a company’s supply chain traverses the globe, the more opportunity for things to go awry. Companies can take proactive steps to ensure they won’t be blindsided by sudden changes to their supply chain. Taking out a credit insurance policy from a credit insurer is just […]
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Good Question: What’s your best time-management tip?
The Eisenhower Box has had the largest impact on my time management. People have a tendency to put everything in the “urgent/important” bucket, which dilutes their focus. It has helped me more confi dently delegate or eliminate tasks altogether.
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Will Airbnb for Warehouses Take Off?
On-demand services are becoming so much a part of our daily lives that millennials can’t imagine a world before Uber or Postmates. Now, on-demand service is becoming a reality in the logistics real estate sector. Technology platforms such as Flexe and Stord connect organizations that need warehousing space to those that have extra space on […]
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How to Reach the Pinnacle of Success
Last year, at age 29, Daniel Kaskinen, manager, strategic sourcing at Premier Inc., became the megawatt winner of the ISM®/Thomas™ 30 Under 30 Rising Supply Stars Recognition Program. He was recognized for his exceptional success at improving efficiencies and saving millions of dollars at his previous company, even at an early point in his career. […]
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How to Prepare for Proposed China Tariffs
At the stroke of midnight July 6, 2018, tariffs against imports of tens of billions in yearly value of Chinese goods took effect for goods entered into or withdrawn from warehouses for consumption. Here’s what you should know: The 25-percent duties are based on country of origin, not country of export, and apply only to […]
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