The SupplyChainBrain Podcast

The entrepreneur has taken on near-mythic status in modern-day society. But who is this individual really? You can't deny the importance of the entrepreneur: the individual who challenges conventional wisdom, and makes something new and transformational. We look up to the individual who pursues a goal with relentless passion, builds a business from its beginnings in a humble garage, and realizes smashing success. But the entrepreneur can also be a difficult person, one who doesn't subscribe to the norms of human behavior. On this episode, we speak with Joe Carlen, founder of Value Guards and author of A Brief History of Entrepreneurship - The Pioneers, Profiteers, and Racketeers Who Shaped Our World. He sketches out a nuanced view of this unique individual, whose contributions to society can be immense, but who might also cross some ethical lines along the way. One thing is certain: it's about more than just making money.Support the show

Can't wait to ditch that old phone, computer, car or sweater? You're a victim of planned obsolescence. As consumers, we often bemoan the poor quality of products, blaming manufacturers for deliberately designing them with a short lifespan. Then we scramble to buy the latest version of the hot new item. Planned obsolescence is a reality, and it's killing the earth, says Kamila Pope, a Brazil-based lecturer, researcher and lawyer with a specialty in environmental and bio-law. On this episode, she talks about her new book, Understanding Planned Obsolescence: Unsustainability Through Production, Consumption and Waste Generation. Pope relates how we became a consumer society, the survival of which depends on continuous growth (and consumption). And she lays out the price we're paying for our acquisitive ways. How about putting corporate executives in jail for making products that are designed to last only a short time? That's what regulators in the European Union and Brazil apparently want to do. But can an economy based on sustainable and long-lasting products survive?Support the show

How long can our society get by without trucks? How about five days? A new documentary, Be Prepared to Stop, presents a portrait of the trucking industry in crisis. Chief among its woes is the nation's crumbling infrastructure, with no solution in sight for funding critical repair, maintenance and construction of roads, highways and bridges. But the film goes even further, to show us the everyday lives of truckers, as well as key issues related to driver safety, and the failure of government to act on multiple fronts. As the film puts it, ''America's 'Check Engine light' is on.'' On this episode, we speak with the filmmakers, co-director and executive producer Jennifer Clymer, and co-director and producer Marijane Miller. They recall how they became aware of the industry's dire plight, what they learned in making the movie, and what steps need to be taken now. It's all about adopting a nationwide view of citizens' self-interest — or, as the filmmakers put it, ''the ultimate connectivity movie.''Support the show

The so-called platform economy promises to drastically change the nature of work. Is that a bad thing, or a good thing? Call it the ''platform'' or ''gig'' economy: the blending of powerful computing with the growth of networks, digitizing the means by which work is assigned and carried out. Uber and Airbnb are obvious examples, but there are an estimated 1,800 other active platforms today, with many more to come. What happens, though, when work is intermediated by a digital platform? What's the impact on wages, job security and other aspects of traditional employment? The Institute for the Future is looking for answers, in its Workable Futures Initiative. The idea is to spark a productive conversation about a trend that is in danger of outpacing our ability to understand its long-term impact on society. On this episode, we speak with Devin Fidler, research director for the Institute for the Future. He describes the work of the initiative, and its mission to discover the potential for ''positive platforms.'' He also discusses the implications of a system governed by algorithms, raising the possibility of a ''self-driving'' company that is managed entirely by software. In such a world, what's the fate of the traditional American worker?Support the show

In the age of the omnichannel, is there any hope for traditional retail chains? The signs aren't especially encouraging. Old-line retailers such as Sears, Roebuck & Co., Kmart Corp. and J.C. Penney Co., Inc. have struggled to stay profitable while battling competition from two directions: big-box giants such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and Target Corp. on one side, and the e-commerce wave, led by Amazon.com, on the other. It's the latter trend, however, that has done more to transform retailing in recent years. Today, the traditional brick-and-mortar retailer is expected to maintain multiple fulfillment streams, including ship from store, pick up in store, ship direct from suppliers and deliver to homes and businesses. What's more, all of those channels must be seamlessly blended to provide for a consistently excellent customer experience. How can they do it? On this episode, we get answers from Diego Pantoja-Navajas, vice president of product development with Oracle Warehouse Management Cloud. He stresses the need for an integrated approach to fulfillment, both from a systems and business-process standpoint. Old-line retailers that can achieve that goal, he says, stand a chance of survival after all. It's all about ''retail reinvention.''Support the show

The blockchain has emerged from the shadows. Now it might hold the key to transforming global supply chains. The blockchain was originally intended as a system of record for the digital cryptocurrency bitcoin. Now, however, the blockchain finds itself poised to play a much larger role in global commerce – and, especially, the supply chain. The blockchain provides all partners in a transaction with a secure, distributed ledger that allows them to see the same information at the same time. The open-source software protects against discrepancies in the record, as well as fraudulent manipulation of the data, while eliminating inefficiencies in data management. Among the key players in developing blockchain on a broader scale today is IBM. On this episode, we speak with Brigid McDermott, the company's vice president of blockchain business development and ecosystem. She explains how the blockchain works, why it's such a radical concept in global business, and how it's likely to evolve. ''Blockchain,'' she says, ''is about trust.''Support the show

How can a new company break into the venerable freight-forwarding business? Technology holds the key. For decades, freight forwarding was dominated by a host of smallish, regional firms, many of them family-owned and passed down through generations. Later, the function got swallowed up in the global mega-providers who offer a whole range of logistics services. That has made it tough for new entrants to succeed. Now, however, the doors appear to be opening, thanks to technology. Turns out there's plenty of room for a startup that's out to digitize and automate a business that has long been highly paper-intensive. On this episode, we speak with Ryan Petersen, CEO and founder of San Francisco-based Flexport. He recounts how he built the company with little or no up-front money from big investors, and how it has grown beyond expectations over the past four years. Petersen also offers advice to others who seek to break into the highly regulated business of logistics with new service models. It might be one of the last sectors to be transformed by technology and data.Support the show

The cash-to-cash cycle is a key metric for measuring the efficiency of a supply chain. But many companies seem unable to deploy it with success. ''Cash-to-cash'' is defined as the period from when a company spends its first dollar on materials for a product, to when it gets back a dollar of revenue from the buyer. It's an extremely useful tool for assessing the way in which product gets to market, as well as the producer's bottom-line profitability. But many companies have a tough time implementing it. On this episode, we speak with Jay Fortenberry, a former executive with Honeywell, John Deere and Toyota. He has developed a ''cash-to-cash series'' model that claims to save companies millions of dollars through the removal of supply-chain inefficiencies. Turns out you can have a strong return on investment, but not be consistently generating cash. And the ability to do that, says Fortenberry, ''is imperative for the survival of a business.''Support the show

So the major driver behind all those lost American jobs is free trade? Not so fast. Trade has indeed caused many manufacturers to shift their operations offshore. And there's no denying that a hefty portion of the U.S. manufacturing base has been decimated over the past couple of decades. But is the first trend really to blame for the second? On this episode, we hear a nuanced perspective on why domestic production jobs have disappeared. Michael Hicks, professor of economics and director of the Center for Business and Economic Research at Ball State University, says the real reason behind most job losses is higher worker productivity, not trade. And that's primarily a result of advances in automation, coupled with more efficient supply chains. Hicks also points out that U.S. manufacturing output today is higher than it's ever been. But what do we tell those workers who have lost lucrative plant jobs?Support the show

Going up against the behemoth that is Amazon.com, does the smaller e-commerce provider have a chance? The answer is yes, provided that the small or medium-sized e-tailer can find a way to match Amazon's level of service, as well as differentiate its product in the marketplace. On this episode, we get some tips on how that daunting task might be achieved, in our conversation with Dan Coll. He is senior manager of e-commerce fulfillment with FedEx Supply Chain. Coll discusses how smaller entities can carve out market niches by focusing on what he calls ''the unboxing experience.'' It's all about giving customers what they want, in selection, convenience and product quality. Or maybe what they didn't even realize they could have. Long live the little guy!Support the show