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Bethany Adamonis: Ready for the Real World
When Bethany Adamonis headed for her co-op job last January, she didn’t know a great deal about supply chain management, her college major. Up to that point, she’d taken only one course on the subject, an introductory class that was so theoretical she couldn’t see how the principles she learned would play out in the […]
Read MoreMelanie Foster: Raisin to Believe
Although Melanie Foster has lived in California’s Sacramento Valley all her life, her influence reaches around the globe. As distribution and transportation manager for Sunsweet Growers Inc., she is one of the people responsible for making sure that much of the world’s supply of prunes and other dried tree fruits reaches customers. “I handle all […]
Read MoreGreg Schwartz: Smooth Operator
In the smoothie business, hot weather is a blessing; as temperatures rise, so does demand. But when the sun blazes too long over peach orchards or berry fields, it may ruin the crops. Then, bringing in the fruit needed to whip up a perfect healthy drink becomes a complicated puzzle. That’s why Greg Schwartz, vice […]
Read MoreJim Calo: Under Armour’s Over Achiever
Active people look to Under Armour’s clothing, footwear, and sports gear to help them stay at the top of their game. Since last October, Jim Calo has been giving Under Armour a similar boost. As the Baltimore firm’s first chief supply chain officer, Calo spends much of his time with the operations team, scouting for […]
Read MoreNorbert Ore: The Creative Touch
When Norbert Ore looks back at his career, he recalls with special satisfaction a phase that started in 2001, when a job switch took him from Chesapeake Corp. to Georgia-Pacific (GP) LLC, Atlanta. His new position, the one he still holds today, was group director, strategic sourcing and procurement. Even for a supply chain veteran […]
Read MoreVimal Patel: Taking an Eagle’s-Eye View
When Vimal Patel speaks, everyone listens. As manager of merchandise flow at American Eagle (AE) Outfitters’ Warrendale, Pa., distribution center, his job is to make sure all departments – receiving, replenishment, packing, and shipping – pull together to achieve the facility’s goals. “Every department wants to do well individually, but they don’t always look at […]
Read MoreSteve Lash: Loco Like A Fox
“A chicken is actually corn with feathers,” Steve Lash says. He should know. Lash is director of supply chain management for El Pollo Loco, a restaurant chain that built its success on citrus-marinated, flame-grilled, Mexican-style chicken. With more than 360 stores in seven states, and a 12-state expansion underway, El Pollo Loco (Spanish for The […]
Read MoreJohn Rickard: Logistics With a Human Touch
Try this logistics experiment: Drop packages of food from a helicopter onto a field filled with football and rugby players and see if anyone gets hurt. That’s the exercise John Rickard and his associates at the relief agency International Rescue Committee (IRC) conducted in 1999 while laying plans for a humanitarian mission in the mountains […]
Read MoreDebbie E. Jackson: Life at the End of the ERP Tunnel
Debbie Jackson is starting to get her life back. It has been on hold since late 2003, while she and her colleagues at Johns Hopkins University endured one of the truly harrowing ordeals of business life: a major ERP implementation. As supply chain procurement team lead for HopkinsOne—the initiative to move all the Johns Hopkins […]
Read MoreBrent Shinall: Bursting with Energy
When Brent Shinall grew bored with his job as manufacturing engineer for hypersonic engine maker Pratt & Whitney, he started exploring new career opportunities. “I saw people in the purchasing department working with suppliers and negotiating contracts, and thought, ‘That looks like more fun,’” he recalls. So when the company’s purchasing manager needed an engineer […]
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