Themes from the 2018 SCM World Leaders Forum

Dr. MadhavDurbha

SCM World Leaders Forum - Photo via SCMWorld.com

“Thick data” vs big data, the power of the supply chain profession, and cybersecurity

I just returned from a very inspiring 2018 SCM World Leaders Forum in London. While I attend several supply chain conferences in any given year, SCM World is a favorite of mine for a couple of reasons.

For one, this is a power-packed forum with the who’s who of supply chain in attendance. The executives in charge of supply chains for some of the most admirable companies from around the world were in attendance. With approximately 200 professionals in attendance the event is rather exclusive, which provides plenty of one-on-one networking opportunities.

Here are the major themes from the forum:

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Blockchain: Preventing E. Coli Through Enhanced Traceability

MikeMcAllister

Blockchain: Preventing E. Coli Through Enhanced TraceabilityBy: APICS CEO Abe Eshkenazi, CSCP, CPA, CAE

This article was originally published on apics.org, and is repubished with permission.

Blockchain has been touted as the cure-all for everything from financial fraud to voting, but Wired magazine’s Maryn McKenna suggested that blockchain could help prevent E. coli. How? Consider that in mid-April, the earliest signs of an outbreak of the disease surfaced in New Jersey. Then on May 2nd, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reported that 121 people in 25 states have been infected with this particularly dangerous strain of E. coli.

Health officials narrowed the source down to romaine lettuce, but identifying which romaine lettuce from where is still a problem. First, consumers were instructed to avoid prechopped romaine lettuce. Then, after an outbreak at an Alaska prison pointed to whole romaine lettuce heads, the CDC targeted all romaine grown in Yuma, Arizona.

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Is automation killing white collar jobs?

Dr. MadhavDurbha

Is automation killing white collar jobs?

Not so fast!

I recently came across a Bloomberg article citing how certain functions of the white-collar workforce at Amazon is getting replaced by automation. Employees drawing six-figure salaries to negotiate multi-million dollar deals with major brands on behalf of Amazon are being replaced by software that predicts what shoppers want, when they want, and how much to charge for it.

Typically, vendor negotiation is a high-touch activity with lots give and take. However, it is also a function that results in predictable outcomes. At the end of the negotiation, the buyer places an order for a certain volume of a group of products at a negotiated discount with agreed upon delivery dates and payment terms.

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Business Reporter: The Future of the supply chain

MikeMcAllister

Business Reporter: The Future of supply chainTrevor Miles on achieving the path to supply chain transparency

When it comes to creating the perfect supply chain, it all starts with transparency.

That’s the stance of Kinaxis thought leader Trevor Miles (follow @milesahead on Twitter), who recently sat down with Business Reporter journalist Alastair Greener in London, England to discuss the future of supply chain, and what the perfect supply chain might look like.

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Don’t let incorrect design assumptions affect supply chain performance

AlexaCheater

Don’t let incorrect design assumptions affect supply chain performanceWouldn’t it be nice if your supply chain actually performed the way you designed it to? That doesn’t have to be a pipe dream. Supply chain perfection just got one step closer with the Self-Healing Supply Chain and its ability to improve supply chain design assumptions.

Supply chains are complex and full of inter-dependencies. A problem in one area can wreak widespread havoc on others. Suppliers who are always late or one market consuming all available supply for globally required parts can destroy your ability to meet customer demands.

But it doesn’t have to be that way.

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The Self-Healing Supply Chain Webinar: The state of the art and its prospects for the future

MikeMcAllister

Josh Greenbaum & Trevor Miles | The Self-Healing Supply Chain WebinarThe future of supply chain planning has arrived

The notion of a supply chain that heals itself sounds futuristic. Mix in notions such as artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML), and you’re not entirely wrong. But unlike that flying car the Jetsons promised we would have by now, the self-healing supply chain is real.

Having already proven its value for companies like Schneider Electric and MSD (also known as Merck & Co., Inc. in the US and Canada), the Self-Healing Supply ChainTM is forcing us to re-imagine what’s possible when it comes to supply chain planning.

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Takeaways from the 2018 Gartner Supply Chain Executive Conference

Dr. MadhavDurbha

Dana Stiffler - Gartner Supply Chain Executive ConferenceSupply chain insights from leading industry experts

Supply chain skills in high demand, digital twins, disruptive technologies, and other takeaways from the 2018 Gartner supply chain conference

I just returned from the highly engaging and inspiring Gartner Supply Chain Executive Conference in Phoenix, Arizona. With more than 2200 supply chain professionals in attendance, the event had a very good representation across practitioners, technology providers, and consultants.

Here are some key takeaways from the Gartner supply chain event:

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Is your supply chain not performing the way you designed it to?

AlexaCheater

Is your supply chain data fake news?Garbage in, garbage out has never been more relevant

Data accuracy has always been an issue. But with the recent push toward building digital supply chains, it’s reaching a critical tipping point as companies integrate more and more data sources. Don’t let your supply chain make headlines for all the wrong reasons. When you improve your planning data accuracy, you’ll be able to:

  • More reliably model revenue and profit so you have a better picture of your company’s health
  • Spot performance degradation faster so you can take action before it impacts the bottom line
  • Empower your team to focus on exceptions and stop wasting time chasing down rogue data

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