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Thankfully, the learned analysts, writers and soothsayers I follow aren’t quite as depressing. Let’s take a look at what some of the modern day prophets have been saying and the common themes that appear.
In the tradition of David Letterman, (in no particular order) let’s hit the Top 10 Supply Chain Predictions for 2012. Continue Reading »
President Barack Obama is directing the Departments of State and Homeland Security to come up with a plan to protect the $14.6 trillion U.S. economy from interruptions in the supply chain. The White House released a National Strategy for Global Supply Chain Security today that gives officials from those departments six months to make recommendations on identifying risks and making commercial infrastructure more resilient.
“We have seen that disruptions to supply chains caused by natural disasters — earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanic eruptions — and from criminal and terrorist networks seeking to exploit the system or use it as a means of attack can adversely impact global economic growth and productivity,” Obama said in a letter dated Jan. 23 and released by the White House today. Continue Reading »
GPOs have the difficult task of reducing spend while sourcing for healthcare goods. As anyone who’s made purchases with someone’s health at stake knows – this is not an area you can cut corners. At the same time, physician preference items can be some of the costliest categories of spend facing the industry.
For healthcare procurement executives looking to bring in costs and improve compliance, a new trend is arising. GPO executives are deploying spends analysis more regularly to gain better visibility into areas of savings leakage and improve compliance tracking but they are also tapping the strategy for a new care quality purpose by aligning physician supply preferences with patient outcomes. Continue Reading »
Charming Shoppes Inc announced the following executive leadership announcements.
Bryan Q. Eshelman has been promoted to Executive Vice President – Chief Supply Chain Officer, effective immediately. Eshelman joined Charming Shoppes in 2010 as Senior Vice President – Operations, with responsibility for technology, logistics, technical design and quality assurance.
As Chief Supply Chain Officer, he will retain responsibility for the aforementioned functions and assume the additional responsibility for the Company’s global direct sourcing operations, including, its buying offices in Hong Kong, China, and India, strategic sourcing across all product categories and brands, vendor compliance, and international trade and customs compliance. Continue Reading »
Ryder System, Inc., a leader in transportation and supply chain management solutions, today announced that it has published a Corporate Sustainability Report highlighting Ryder’s progress towards improving the communities and environments where the Company does business. The report profiles Ryder’s efforts to drive business growth in economically viable, environmentally sound, and responsible ways. It is organized across five categories: Governance, Ethics and Compliance, Environmental Stewardship, Safety and Security, and People and Community. A one page “Progress at a Glance” provides readers an easy to digest snapshot of Ryder’s accomplishments and goals.
“As a leading provider of transportation and logistics solutions, our stakeholders expect us to be stewards of real-world efficiency and sustainability,” stated Ryder Chairman and CEO Greg Swienton. “We take this expectation seriously and will continue our commitment to achieving results the right way, and delivering on our promises with character and accountability.” Continue Reading »
Progress Software Corporation (PRGS), a leading software provider that enables companies to be operationally responsive, announced it has named Henry Hicks as Industry Vice President, Supply Chain. A long-time advocate for the optimization of the virtual supply chain, Hicks will drive the market strategy and solution development for Progress Software’s global Supply Chain Practice, helping customers gain real-time foresight into disruptions and offering them the ability to conquer supply chain complexity and meet service level agreements.
Hicks’ unparalleled expertise in sales and marketing strategy and supply chain management has been honed through a breadth of strategic positions. Recently, Hicks was the Vice President of Worldwide Services Sales and Marketing for Lenovo Computers and was responsible for long-term growth strategies and overall sales performance of the division. Prior to Lenovo, Hicks was a Vice President at Capgemini Consulting and led the West Supply Chain Practice, where he advised clients on how to optimize and virtualize their supply chains. He has also held key roles with Deloitte, Dell, Frito Lay and UPS. Continue Reading »
As companies seek to achieve smarter commerce and put their customers at the center of their commerce processes, one of the primary challenges they face is dealing with complicated and extended supply chains. With the complexity and volatility of today’s supply chains, companies are turning to supply chain analytics to optimize their networks on a more frequent basis.
To help clients with this challenge, IBM is leading the industry again in supply chain analytics with its latest release of the IBM ILOG LogicNet Plus supply chain design solution. This solution provides powerful optimization and scenario analytics to determine optimal supply chain configurations, sourcing strategies and production plans. It takes into account all cost and constraint variables, whether manufacturing, transportation or warehousing, across multiple tiers of even the most complex networks. Continue Reading »
A $1 million RFP for coal has been posted to Ariba Discovery®, the premier service for matching business buyers and sellers globally offered by Ariba, Inc. (NASDAQ: ARBA), the leading provider of collaborative business commerce solutions. Is it a coincidence? Or is the Indian manufacturing company behind the posting performing the work of elves?
“If the number of folks on his naughty list has grown, Santa may need to beef up his coal supply,” said Rob Mihalko, Vice President, Ariba Discovery. “And with Christmas just five days away, he’ll need to do it fast.” Continue Reading »
RILA Urges Congressional Action to Avert National Railroad Shutdown: Work stoppage could disrupt retail supply chains well into 2012. The Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) is calling on Congress to step in to avert a work stoppage that would disrupt retail supply chains during the holiday shopping season and well into 2012.
A breakdown in negotiations between the National Railway Labor Conference and railroad negotiators could lead to a nationwide shutdown on December 6. Congress can impose the terms recommended by the Obama Administration’s Presidential Emergency Board on both rail management and labor. Estimates suggest that a national railroad work stoppage would cost the U.S. economy $2 billion per day.
“We urge Congress to exercise their power to step in to keep the flow of goods moving and avert an avoidable economic catastrophe. Such a significant interruption of supply chains at this critical time would have a broad and dramatic effect, while interfering with retailers’ ability to provide customers with the items they seek during the holidays and beyond,” said RILA President Sandy Kennedy. Continue Reading »
As I look forward to the holiday season (yes it is hurtling towards us again), I now do all of my planning, negotiating and actual shopping from the comfort of my armchair. And as a result, my buying habits have changed over the past few years. I no longer buy CD’s, I buy Apple iTunes cards. For my mother’s birthday, I didn’t buy her a book, I bought her an Amazon Kindle. In fact, if you know where to look on the internet, you will find examples of companies leveraging social media and networks to capture customers, deliver innovation and differentiate themselves in the marketplace. Here are some examples:
> iTunes has revolutionized the way we buy and consume music
> Amazon has reinvented the way we read books
> Groupon have inject hysteria into the process of bargain hunting on the Web.
> Go to www.reebok.com/Customize , www.nike.com/iD, or www.miadidas.com, to design a pair of sneakers.
> Shirts My Way asks users to submit their exact body measurements for a shirt tailored to fit.
> MixMyGranola lets you choose all the fixings that go into your granola mix.
> Chocri lets you create your own chocolate bar.
> Heinz will let you add custom labels to ketchup bottles.
> Personalized M&Ms are now available with your face, or a company logo on them.
> SAP has even found an orchard that lets you customize apples (see picture)
So, how will social networking affect businesses and supply chains? We are seeing a lot of marketing to end consumers, and thus new channels to drive demand, but how can we improve our supply processes? Can we leverage social networks to drive benefits across our end-to-end supply chain processes? Continue Reading »
Want to know where the food on your table comes from and who has handled it? Then you’ll want to register for this event.
Food safety encompasses the origin, processing and packaging of food so that consumers don’t get sick from the food they buy. Increased food production, growing market demand and faster delivery are just three of the many challenges companies face in trying to keep food safe all along the food supply chain.
RFID increasingly provides the most effective means to solve these challenges and to ensure compliance with recently enacted legislation designed to protect consumers.
The MIT Enterprise Forum is bringing together key experts for a panel discussion of the major issues, technologies, and business cases surrounding the RFID-enabled food chain. Come and hear for yourself how RFID is making food safer and food-borne illness easier to trace.
Moderator: John Greaves, President and CEO, SSI
John Greaves has been actively involved in AIDC (Automatic Identification and Data Capture) including RFID for many years. His pioneering work in the area of global logistics, inventory management and the returnable transport Items sector with both active and passive RFID has led to the significant adoptions occurring in supply chains, health care and security.??He was the founding chair of the US RFID standards group, led the European Spectrum Initiative, was the leader of the GTAG program for EAN.UCC, and developed — among many significant RFID implementations worldwide — the one-tag-per-pallet UHF solution with CHEP.
From California Environmental Protection Agency: “The formal Cap-and-Trade rulemaking began with the release of the Staff Report: Initial Statement of Reasons (ISOR). The ISOR and formal rulemaking materials are available on the cap-and-trade rulemaking web page. The Board Hearing on this item was held on December 16, 2010. At the hearing, the Board approved Resolution 10-42 directing several modifications to the regulation as written. As a result, on July 25, 2011, the first Notice of Public Availability of Modified Text and Availability of Additional Documents (First 15-Day Change Notice) was issued. The public comment period for the 1st 15-Day Change Notice ended August 11, 2011.
On September 12, 2011, staff proposed additional modifications to the regulatory text in the Second Notice of Public Availability of Modified Text and Additional Documents and Information (Second 15-Day Change Notice). These modifications addressed comments ARB staff received in the first 15-day Change Notice and are the result of additional staff analysis and stakeholder engagement. The public comment period for the 2nd 15-Day Change Notice ended September 27, 2011.
On October 20, 2011, the Board adopted the final cap-and-trade regulation. As part of finalizing the regulation, the Board considered the related environmental analysis (i.e. functional equivalent document) and written responses to environmental comments. The Board also approved the adaptive management plan. The final regulation must be filed with the California Office of Administrative Law (OAL) by October 28, 2011. Continue Reading »
My first CSCMP Annual Conference was in 1989 and I always try to get there every year to catch up with all my logistics and supply chain friends!
As with every year, there are opportunities to learn new things and meet new people. Here’s a link to my recent tweetstream for shoutouts to some of the great people I met this year!
Held again in Philadelphia, this year’s event brought back memories of 2004, the year the old CLM: Council of Logistics Management became today’s CSCMP: Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals!
New of course, in it’s second year, is The CSCMP Supply Chain of the Future exhibition. And I’m pleased to report I did come across the retail & consumer products supply chain of the future but NOT at the exhibition (more on this later) Continue Reading »
The Retail industry Leaders Association (RILA) applauded President Obama today for formally submitting the three pending free trade agreements (FTAs) to Congress for approval, moving them one step closer to completion. Stephanie Lester, RILA Vice President of International Trade issued the following statement.
“We applaud President Obama for formally initiating the widely anticipated process to approve the three pending free trade agreements with South Korea, Colombia and Panama. This action allows Congress to finally consider and approve the country’s topmost trade agenda items later this month. A proactive trade agenda, including these important FTAs, will create new economic opportunities, promote U.S. exports, and sustain and grow well-paying U.S. jobs that rely on trade. RILA looks forward to bipartisan support in Congress for all three trade agreements, as well as renewal of the Generalized System of Preferences and Trade Adjustment Assistance.”
“American merchants and consumers will benefit from a robust and proactive trade agenda, including the implementation of these agreements, which can foster U.S. economic growth and job creation. Once the pending FTAs are ratified, RILA urges policymakers to devote more attention to other job-creating trade items, such as the ongoing Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations.
“We thank Congress and the Administration for their continued bipartisan support for the trade agenda, and we look forward to working on next steps in a swift and successful approval process for the FTAs.”
RILA is the trade association of the world’s largest and most innovative retail companies. RILA members include more than 200 retailers, product manufacturers, and service suppliers, which together account for more than $1.5 trillion in annual sales, millions of American jobs and more than 100,000 stores, manufacturing facilities and distribution centers domestically and abroad.
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Capgemini Consulting, the global strategy and transformation consulting brand of the Capgemini Group, in cooperation with Penn State University, leadership advisory firm, Heidrick & Struggles and global logistics provider, Panalpina, today announced the findings of the 16th Annual Third-Party Logistics (3PL) Study, examining the global market for outsourced logistics.
The report reveals that the majority of shippers worldwide are increasing their use of 3PL services, with 64 percent of respondents reporting a rise. At the same time, the report indicates an average of 42 percent of total logistics expenditures being spent on outsourcing, the same as last year’s study. However, 24 percent of shipper respondents reported some return to insourcing 3PL services and 58 percent report they are reducing or consolidating the number of 3PLs they use, indicating uncertainty about the global economy continues to impact 3PLs.
The 2012 Third-Party Logistics Study is based on over 2,250 responses from both shippers and logistics service
providers in North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Latin America, as well as other locations throughout the
world such as the Middle East and Australia. In addition to documenting the evolution of the third-party logistics market, this year’s report also provides an in-depth analysis of logistics operations in emerging markets and the electronics industry as well as talent management to address the skills shortage in the logistics industry. Continue Reading »
The Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP) will unveil its new certification program, SCPro™, at its annual conference next week in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The event will be held October 2-5, 2011, at the Pennsylvania Convention Center.
The SCPro™ program is a rigorous, three-level certification that offers global supply chain management professionals a way to demonstrate a broad range of industry skills and mastery of end-to-end supply chain functions.
“We are extremely excited to unveil CSCMP’s groundbreaking certification program at our annual conference,” said Rick Blasgen, CSCMP president and chief executive officer. “Our members overwhelmingly asked us to develop a comprehensive certification that diligently measured and accurately reflected an individual’s skills and knowledge across the entire supply chain.” Continue Reading »
Kuehne + Nagel, one of the world’s leading logistics companies, has named William F. Rooney Vice President, Seafreight Transpacific. In line with Kuehne + Nagel’s Transpacific “Go for Growth” initiative, William Rooney will lead all of the company’s Transpacific market efforts in the U.S. William Rooney joins Kuehne + Nagel with 38 years of experience in transportation management. Most recently, he served as President of Hanjin Shipping America, responsible for North and South America.
Previously, William Rooney held a number of senior management positions with Sea-Land Service for over a span of 25 years in the U.S. and Europe. He has also held senior management positions with GT Nexus and CMA-CGM. Paolo Montrone, North America Senior Vice President Seafreight, said, “We are very pleased to welcome William Rooney to lead our new strategic Transpacific efforts in the U.S. His comprehensive knowledge of the Transpacific trade will ensure Kuehne + Nagel continues to expand our seafreight solutions, ensuring that we are consistently meeting and exceeding the needs of our customers.” #
About Kuehne + Nagel
With more than 60,000 employees at 900 locations in over 100 countries, the Kuehne + Nagel Group is one of the world’s leading logistics companies. Its strong market position lies in the seafreight, airfreight, contract logistics and overland businesses, with a clear focus on providing IT-based lead logistics solutions.
For further information, please visit www.kuehne-nagel.com
JDA® Software Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: JDAS), The Supply Chain Company®, today announced that Fabrizio Brasca, vice president, global logistics, JDA Software, will participate in a panel discussion at the CSCMP Annual Global Conference at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia, Pa. The panel is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. EDT on Tuesday, Oct. 4.
Session Details
In addition to Brasca, the panel, entitled “Outsourced versus Insourced – Debated by Case Studies,” features Todd Jackson, president, Alliant Logistics, a division of the U.S. Foodservice; Mathew Menner, senior vice president, Transplace; and William Pollard, vice president, customer service and transportation, Del Monte Foods, Inc.
In the session, panelists representing both sides of the debate will each present a real-world case study: an “outsourced” supply chain and its third-party logistics partner, and an “insourced” supply chain and its pervasive technology solutions partner. Key learnings from each phase of the respective relationships – “spec, build, and run” – will be shared. The session is designed to provide additional fact-based inputs related to each scenario to help attendees in their decision making as they consider the future direction of their respective supply chain strategies.
Founded in 1963, CSCMP is a worldwide professional association dedicated to the advancement and dissemination of research and knowledge on supply chain management. With more than 8,500 members representing nearly all industry sectors, government, and academia from 67 countries, CSCMP members are the leading practitioners and authorities in the fields of logistics and supply chain management. The CSCMP Annual Conference brings together supply chain experts to share insights into streamlining operations, eliminating inefficiencies, deploying cutting edge business processes, reducing costs, inspiring team members, and increasing profitability.
Continue Reading »
