Art of Supply
Art of Supply, hosted by Kelly Barner, draws inspiration from news headlines and expert interviews to bring you insightful coverage of today’s complex supply chains.
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BONUS: Indictment in the 2022 Tractor Trailer Human Smuggling Case
11/23/2024
BONUS: Indictment in the 2022 Tractor Trailer Human Smuggling Case
When we cover a news story on Art of Supply, we stick with it, even when it seems to have gone cold. In late August, we got an update on the case of the 53 migrants who lost their lives as a result of illegal attempted smuggling over the Mexico border back in 2022. On June 27th, 2022, an abandoned tractor trailer was found near Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas. The truck had mechanical problems and it had been abandoned by its driver. A local worker heard cries of distress and opened the trailer door. What he found would go on to be declared the deadliest example of migrant smuggling in U.S. history. In this bonus update episode, Kelly Barner shares the latest on the arrests, indictments, and specific charges associated with those allegedly involved in this crime. Links:
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Liverwurst, Listeria, and Liability: Food Safety at Boar’s Head
11/21/2024
Liverwurst, Listeria, and Liability: Food Safety at Boar’s Head
When something goes wrong in the supply chain, it is never good news. It always leads to disruption, often costs a lot of money, and sometimes people get hurt - or worse. In July of 2024, the USDA suspended production at a Boar’s Head processing plant in Jarratt, Virginia. A listeria outbreak, the worst such outbreak in over a decade, had started in the plant. The facility has been closed indefinitely, leading to over 500 layoffs of union employees, but that wasn’t the worst of the fallout. Before the outbreak was over, over 7 million pounds of meat were recalled, 59 people were hospitalized, and 10 people lost their lives. How could production have gone so wrong, especially in such a heavily inspected industry? Unfortunately, as the details emerged, it became clear that this was an easily preventable situation allowed to happen by multiple layers of mismanagement. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner covers: The details behind the outbreak: Where did it start and how did it spread? An odd family squabble that may or may not have contributed to the problem but which certainly didn’t help Problems associated with inspections: How were they conducted and why did they fail to protect consumers? And what we can expect to happen next Links:
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The Power of Visualization in Freight Optimization and Resilience with Ruud van Dijk
11/14/2024
The Power of Visualization in Freight Optimization and Resilience with Ruud van Dijk
“Humans are so much more effective in processing something visually than, let's say, a table or two pieces of text next to each other. If you see it on a map, you can say, okay, this line goes like this, the other goes like this. I can make the connection in my head very easily that, okay, this is what changes. And it also makes it very easy to sort of have an opinion on it, because it clicks in your head quite easily.” - Ruud van Dijk, Commercial Director, Routescanner We routinely talk about the complexity of global supply chains - here on Art of Supply and in the wider business community. Moving our focus from talk to action requires one key thing: data. But even with good data, these are highly complex decisions. They are often made without certainty, on a compressed time frame, and with a lot of money on the line. Setting up human beings for successful decision making under those circumstances requires more than data. The data needs to be standardized and presented in a way that matches how people process information and compare the likely outcome of multiple scenarios. In this episode of Art of Supply, Kelly Barner welcomes Ruud van Dijk. Ruud is the Commercial Director at Routescanner, a platform designed to improve transparency in container shipping and help companies optimize routes while lowering CO2 emissions and costs. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly and Ruud discuss: How data needs to be presented in an accessible format for decision makers to put it into practice The change effort associated with moving from a suboptimal but familiar approach to one that is far more effective Empowering supply chain teams to lead cross functional conversations about operationally minimizing both costs and environmental impact Links:
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Consolidating the USPS Final Mile
11/07/2024
Consolidating the USPS Final Mile
The United States Postal Service occupies a unique spot in the supply chain. On the one hand, it is a federal agency, tasked with delivering mail to every home, business, and P.O. box 6 (and sometimes 7) days per week. On the other hand, it does not “generally” receive taxpayer funding; it must meet its mission by selling postage and services. Thanks to this middle space between the worlds of public service and private industry, transformation is a massive challenge - even when successfully driving financial and operational change is a matter of long term survival. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner covers the current status of Delivering for America, the USPS’s 10-year transformational plan: The complexity of the U.S. post office’s operational and financial status quo The multiple roles that package volume will play in determining USPS success The slowdowns and questions that have plagued that transformation Links:
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Creating a B2C to B to C Improvement Cycle at Walmart Business w/ Ashley Hubka
10/31/2024
Creating a B2C to B to C Improvement Cycle at Walmart Business w/ Ashley Hubka
“Most fundamentally, strategy is about asking good questions, creating alternatives, and then making decisions about how to allocate scarce resources. [...] It's a place where you have a 360-degree view of a business.” - Ashley Hubka, Senior Vice President & General Manager, Walmart Business Corporate and consumer buying started and developed on separate tracks, and while there are some things that procurement has learned from and embedded in the B2B experience, others will always be beyond reach. What would happen if you took a consumer shopping experience and expanded it to support institutional customers as well? Walmart Business is in the process of finding out. Ashley Hubka is the Senior Vice President and General Manager at Walmart Business. She has held a number of consulting and strategy positions during her career and holds a degree in Philosophy from Harvard University. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner sits down with Ashley to learn: Why Walmart decided to offer a distinct experience for organizational and commercial customers How that experience is different than the consumer Walmart experience (and when it is the same) Areas of strategic B2B focus over the next 12-24 months Links:
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Part 4: Head-to-Head Comparison of Candidate Policies
10/24/2024
Part 4: Head-to-Head Comparison of Candidate Policies
In the final part of this four-part special series, we compare and contrast the actual policy positions of Democratic Candidate Vice President Kamala Harris and Republican Candidate Former President Donald J. Trump. With less than two weeks until election day, procurement and supply chain professionals must have plans in place for the eventuality of either candidate being voted into office, focusing on the areas where they agree as much as where they differ. Listen in as Kelly Barner describes where the two major party candidates actually differ (and where they have a lot in common) based on their own campaign websites, policy platforms, and statements from publicly available interviews: The differences we can expect when supply chain policy is focused on critical industries versus an emphasis on keeping production domestic Looking at a diverse range of energy sources as well as the overall cost and supply of available energy Corporate tax rates that may go up or down And one thing both candidates agree upon: China Links:
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Part 3: Republican Candidate Former President Donald J. Trump
10/23/2024
Part 3: Republican Candidate Former President Donald J. Trump
In part three of this four-part special series, we will cover the policies and plans of Republican Candidate former President Donald Trump. Former President Donald Trump is 78 Years old, and a former businessman/real estate developer as well as the former host of The Apprentice. He became the nominee on July 18, 2024 when he accepted the nomination at the Republican National Convention Listen in as Kelly Barner explores his policy positions and platform: Detailed positions on global trade and China The lack of detail regarding his position on emissions and the environment Strong statements about both the cost and availability of energy, and the importance of emphasizing domestic production over imports from other parts of the world Links:
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Part 2: Democratic Candidate Vice President Kamala Harris
10/22/2024
Part 2: Democratic Candidate Vice President Kamala Harris
In part two of this four-part special series, we will cover the policies and plans of Democratic Candidate Vice President Kamala Harris. Vice President Kamala is 60 Years old and a former Senator and Attorney General from the State of California. She became the presumptive Democratic nominee on July 21, 2024 when President Biden suspended his campaign for re-election, and the official nominee on August 22 when she accepted the nomination at the Democratic National Convention. Listen in as Kelly Barner explores her policy positions and platform: Detailed plans for renewable energy and the environment The lack of detail regarding her position on trade and tariffs Strong statements about China, specifically around the race to dominate AI, domestic labor protections, and intellectual property concerns Links:
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Part 1: Playing Politics with Supply Chains
10/21/2024
Part 1: Playing Politics with Supply Chains
There are two weeks to go until the 2024 U.S. Presidential Election. Interest, speculation, and tension have been building all year. Most news coverage of the election is intended to sway voters, hyperbolic to a fault, and not tailored to the specific information needs of procurement and supply chain professionals. What we really need to know is what each major party candidate has said and what likely outcomes that would lead to. In this four-part special series, we will cover the policies and plans of Democratic Candidate Vice President Kamala Harris and Republican Candidate Former President Donald J. Trump as well as how they compare. Listen in as Kelly Barner kicks off the series by explaining: Why all procurement and supply chain professionals need to be prepared for either candidate to win The impact of tariffs, China, energy, and environmental policy on corporate strategy The rules of engagement and discussion that will apply in this series and the discussions that result Links:
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Tips for Surviving in a Brave New World
10/17/2024
Tips for Surviving in a Brave New World
‘Brave New World’ was published by Aldous Huxley in 1932, right between two World Wars and during a time of accelerated scientific discovery. It comes as no surprise, then, that this fictional dystopian society 600 years in the future had adopted Henry Ford as their spiritual leader. 92 years later, we find ourselves in another time of rapid technological advancement, innovation that often seems to be on a collision course with the most fundamental structures of society. What can re-reading ‘Brave New World’ today teach us about change, innovation, chaos, and opportunity? More than you might expect. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner shares her own observations: How the advancements of science often get ahead of society’s readiness to understand them The level of discomfort and even frustration we must be willing to accept if we want to experience triumph Survival tips that procurement and supply chain professionals can use to succeed in our own ‘Brave New World’ Links:
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East and Gulf Coast Port Strike - Part 1
10/10/2024
East and Gulf Coast Port Strike - Part 1
“Let me be clear: we don’t want any form of semi-automation or full automation. We want our jobs—the jobs we have historically done for over 132 years.” -Harold Daggett, President of the International Longshoremen’s Association In April of 2024, most ‘experts’ felt that a strike of unionized workers at ports along the East and Gulf Coasts was unlikely. The International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) was firm about not working beyond September 30th without a signed agreement. After 6 months of disagreement and an automated gate at the port in Mobile, Alabama that brought talks to a halt, the ILA was true to their word. They went on strike at the stroke of midnight on September 30, 2024. Just 3 days later however, a surprise announcement revealed that the ILA and the U.S. Maritime Alliance had reached a temporary agreement: a $4 per hour rise annually for the next 6 years and a 90 day temporary halt to the strike. But this story - and negotiation - is not over. Not by a long shot. In this week’s episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner covers: The major issues on the table in the strike, as well as what remains to be settled before January The outside forces that played a role in bringing the strike to such an abrupt end Whether the union has won the battle but lost the war by separation pay from automation in the negotiation. Links:
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Supply Chains as Business in Action w/ Thomas Goldsby
10/03/2024
Supply Chains as Business in Action w/ Thomas Goldsby
“The vigor with which companies left to go to the Far East and pursue low cost country sourcing has certainly not been reversed. That's why it is largely emotional; it's largely talk.” -Thomas Goldsby, Dee and Jimmy Haslam Chair of Logistics at the Haslam College of Business at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville Business never allows us to stop learning. You might not take formal classes or participate in a training program, but real-world circumstances are a constant - and sometimes brutal - teacher. In this week’s Art of Supply interview, Kelly Barner welcomes a real teacher, a professor actually, to share his point of view on X-shoring, but also to talk about how companies learn what they can and can’t do with supply chains and production and how government intervention and funding may or may not help reorient where in the world production takes place. Thomas Goldsby is the Dee and Jimmy Haslam Chair of Logistics at the Haslam College of Business at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville. He is also the Co-Executive Director of their Global Supply Chain Institute. Perhaps most importantly he is actively instructing and inspiring the next generation of supply chain management professionals. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Thomas and Kelly discuss: What X-shoring is and how companies currently make decisions about where to source and produce The material importance of mapping out supply chains Understanding the tradeoffs between automation quality and labor costs, and how both impact product quality Why all companies should be making an effort to experiment, learn fast, and then get the economics of change squared away Links:
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Developing and Deploying Digital Empathy
09/26/2024
Developing and Deploying Digital Empathy
“Digital empathy is the ability to humanize customer behaviors, preferences, and aspirations through the connection between human-centered data, insights, and the meaningful customer engagement powered by those insights.” - Brian Solis, Forbes Contributor Despite the fact that AI and automation seem to dominate business discussions, we haven’t stopped talking about relationships and soft skills. As the work environment and working conditions become increasingly digital, what sort of role does that carve out for empathy? While sympathy politely expresses appropriate concern, empathy feels with you. It is a shared experience, allowing emotions to become ‘contagious’ in a way. That may be a natural response in our personal lives, but what does empathy look like in the context of digital innovation and disruption? In this episode of Art of Supply, Kelly Barner considers empathy in the digital world: Why digital empathy may be the missing ingredient in a leading customer experience Embedding empathetic practices and success factors into digital transformation journeys How empathy and human connections - when leveraged right - can serve as a source of unbeatable competitive advantage. Links:
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Evaluating India as a Viable Alternative to China w/ Samir Kapadia
09/19/2024
Evaluating India as a Viable Alternative to China w/ Samir Kapadia
“Folks from Dell to HP to Nike to Hasbro to Sony to Apple to Google to Goldman, they're all looking back at India and saying, let's go double down, triple down and build a presence here.” - Samir Kapadia, Managing Principal at Vogel Group and Founder and CEO at India Index Most companies are obsessed with moving their supply chains out of and away from China - whether it is for regulatory, risk, or human rights-related reasons. That obsession is so strong, that in some cases, they are willing to embrace an “ABC strategy” as you will hear from this week’s guest: anywhere but China. Samir Kapadia is a managing principal at Vogel Group, a lobbying and trade organization based in Washington, D.C. In 2019 and in 2020, he was ranked the number one tariff exemption lobbyist in Washington D.C.. Samir is also the founder and CEO of a B2B marketplace called India Index, which helps U.S. companies source from India, so he is uniquely qualified and also entirely willing to be honest about the opportunities and challenges of looking to India as an alternative to China. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner takes the opportunity to ask Samir for his professional opinion on: Why China looms so large over global supply chains The mindset and culture that play into corporate decisions about where to source internationally, and when to make a change Reasons India deserves serious consideration as an alternative to China as well as what companies should be aware of before they make new plans Links:
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Advancements & Adjustments in the GE Appliances Supply Chain
09/12/2024
Advancements & Adjustments in the GE Appliances Supply Chain
“The way we were running distribution, the processes we were using, it wasn’t a matter of, ‘Well, just incrementally improve what you’ve got.’ “We needed to rethink, take a step back and say, ‘Are we really set up the way we need to be set up?’” - Marcia Brey, VP of Logistics for GE Appliances (via the WSJ) GE Appliances recently made news for a series of planned investments in their supply chain. As interesting as their efforts are today, they are the next step in an ongoing series of advancements and adjustments… and advancements and adjustments. Now owned by Haier, a Shanghai-based company, GE Appliances has been on both sides of the outsourcing - reshoring divide. As they respond to macro conditions and competitive pressures, their supply chain is what connects production with customers, and the top line with the bottom, regardless of continual change. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner addresses three key questions about their operation: Is GE Appliances really (successfully) reshoring manufacturing? How is the Department of Transportation’s FLOW program helping them manage potential supply chain disruptions? What role do metrics play in how they manage high stakes decisions about labor and inventory? Links:
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Proposed Patent Rule Changes and their Impact on Innovation w/ Wen Xie
09/05/2024
Proposed Patent Rule Changes and their Impact on Innovation w/ Wen Xie
Procurement and supply chain professionals rely upon competitive market dynamics. After all, competition drives innovation, cost savings, efficiency, and - profit. Anything that changes the dynamics around the benefits associated with disclosed innovation has the potential to alter how companies invest, how much of that information they make public, and, ultimately, the value and diversity of solutions available to consumers of all kinds. In this week’s episode of Art of Supply, Kelly Barner welcomes back Wen Xie. Wen is a Washington D.C-based patent attorney who is tuned into how changing policies and regulations alter the value proposition associated with the patent process, one that exists to benefit the general public in exchange for certain protections. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly and Wen discuss: The basic premise behind the current U.S. patent system Pending changes to how the government gets involved in patents they invested to support How changes in cost and associated protections may affect how and when companies invest in patents Links:
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The (Lost) Art of Accepting Criticism
08/29/2024
The (Lost) Art of Accepting Criticism
“The trouble with most of us is that we would rather be ruined by praise than saved by criticism.” - Norman Vincent Peale The Art of Supply podcast regularly covers topics that come with a bit of discomfort: allegations of child labor and greenwashing, the role of government regulations in bringing about change, and China, and absolutely anything to do with China. It isn’t possible to talk about topics like these without getting feedback, and that feedback often takes the form of criticism. In this episode, Kelly Barner takes a break from the usual coverage of news stories and expert interviews to talk about criticism, and how its inevitability shapes her content and makes it better. Listen to this week’s episode of Art of Supply to hear about: The Art of Supply content creation process The differences between welcome criticism and the criticism we intentionally avoid Our philosophy on receiving criticism And why covering these complex topics is so important that it is worth the risk Links:
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Freight Electrification as a Service w/ Ian Rust
08/22/2024
Freight Electrification as a Service w/ Ian Rust
There are a lot of preconceived notions about the barriers preventing electrified road freight from becoming mainstream. It is seen as too difficult, expensive, complicated, inefficient, and more. Most of those perceptions are based on the approaches to electrified trucking that have been tried so far. Perhaps by taking a different approach we can advance the transition away from diesel. In this episode of Art of Supply, Kelly Barner speaks with Ian Rust, the Founder and CEO at Revoy, a company looking to make electric-powered freight transport possible and affordable at scale. Rather than doing a one-for-one trade from diesel-powered to electric, he recommends being more flexible, more innovative, and more creative. Listen to their conversation to hear: Why we need to accept trucking as a foundational part of freight, and introduce changes with care The common objections Ian hears to the idea of electric trucking and his response to them Where and how regulations can support the transition from diesel to electric, and when private industry should be allowed to do what they do best Links:
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Fishing for Truth in the Seafood Supply Chain
08/15/2024
Fishing for Truth in the Seafood Supply Chain
Companies and consumers regularly rely on product descriptions to decide whether or not to make a purchase and to determine the right price for that product. In the case of seafood, those descriptions and tiers create choices for consumers, but they also provide a built in incentive for fraud at scale. Any time someone is willing to pay a higher margin for a premium product, someone else is willing to turn that into an opportunity for profit. The problem is so widespread, that estimates suggest between 20 and 40 percent of all seafood sold in the United States is mislabeled. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner covers some stinky problems in the seafood supply chain: The most common sources of fish fraud How technology is being used to combat widespread deception and ensure consumer safety Lessons from the seafood supply chain that we can apply in other industries Special thanks to Joseph Barner for his help in making this episode possible. Links:
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Orchestrating the Chaos of Retail Fulfillment w/ Mike Robinson
08/08/2024
Orchestrating the Chaos of Retail Fulfillment w/ Mike Robinson
“Every time I don't have a delivery truck stop in front of your house, 800 grams of CO2 is never created.” - Mike Robinson, Head of Retail Solutions and a Founding Member at The Eighth Notch (T8N) The ecommerce boom of the last few years has led to new business models and consumer experiences, but it has also added to the number of packages being delivered each day. Does the number of packages correlate to the number of items ordered? No, it does not. Placing an online order for 7 items of clothing from one company could result in 1 package, or 2, or 3, 4, 5, 6, or 7. More packages means more tracking for the consumer, more risk of porch pirates, more doorbell rings, more packages sitting out in the rain. It also increases the number of delivery trucks on our streets, the emissions from those trucks, and the amount of packing material. In this episode of Art of Supply, Kelly Barner interviews someone who is willing to propose a solution. Mike Robinson is Head of Retail Solutions and a Founding Member at The Eighth Notch (T8N). He has deep retail experience including time at Macy’s and as an advisor to The Gap. Now he is attacking the chaos of retail fulfillment. Listen to this episode to hear Mike explain: Why retail fulfillment is currently so fragmented The range of benefits associated with synchronizing the post-checkout customer experience Changes in thinking and customer conditioning that will need to take place before these benefits can be realized Links:
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Will FedEx Freight hit the open road?
08/01/2024
Will FedEx Freight hit the open road?
On June 26th, The Wall Street Journal reported that FedEx plans to spin off their freight division - and the most interesting part is why. FedEx Freight is the less-than-truckload (LTL) division of the company. It is the most profitable division, with a recent operating margin over 20 percent, compared to 11.8 percent for FedEx Ground and 2 percent for FedEx Express. The company has realized that the division is so successful it will generate more shareholder value on its own. With estimated valuations between $30 and 50 Billion, it is too big to be bought, but too small of a division of FedEx to stay. Pending an internal review scheduled to be complete later this year, FedEx Freight is likely to have a future as a standalone company. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner covers this story in the larger context of supply chain operations, investment, and profitability: Providing an overview of the current LTL landscape Comparing FedEx Freight’s performance with UPS Freight, which the company spun off in 2021 Considering what this move may mean for the supply chain as a whole and for procurement professionals tasked with managing LTL spend Links:
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The Great Supply Train Robbery
07/25/2024
The Great Supply Train Robbery
According to reporting in the New York Times, about 20 million containers travel through the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach California annually. Those containers are full of goods that need to travel to warehouses, stores, and consumer homes by truck and rail. Unfortunately, a growing percentage of those goods never arrive, thanks to a sharp uptick in cargo theft. As Supply Chain Brain has reported, U.S. cargo thefts were up 9 percent year-over-year in 2023, with an additional increase at the end of the year. The increase in rail cargo theft has significantly impacted Union Pacific and their customers, leaving literal debris fields around their tracks in the Los Angeles area. In this week’s episode of Art of Supply, Kelly Barner covers the complexity and loss stemming from rampant rail container theft: Why trains leaving Los Angeles and Long Beach are particular targets for theft How Union Pacific is (and is not) attempting to stem the losses Why divisions between public and private security are creating an opening that thieves are eager to exploit Links:
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De Minimis: Supply Chain Trifles the Law Should be Concerned With
07/18/2024
De Minimis: Supply Chain Trifles the Law Should be Concerned With
Section 321 of the U.S. Tariff Act of 1930 contains a small provision known as ‘de minimis.’ From a Latin phrase meaning “the law does not concern itself with trifles,” this provision has become a major concern for retailers, shippers, and regulators. De minimis is supposed to simplify shipping so that packages under $800 can be sent to U.S. consumers from overseas without distracting U.S. Customs and Border Patrol from their core mission. With the rise in global ecommerce, however, this provision - or loophole - is proving to be far more than a trifle’s worth of trouble. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner covers: The history of the de minimis provision, including how it was intended to be used and how it is being used today Two foreign-based retailers that are pumping hundreds of millions of packages a year into the U.S. under the provision - and a third major U.S. retailer that looks poised to join them Ongoing efforts to stem the tide and increase oversight, including which organizations are advocating for de minimis reform and which are against making changes Links:
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Chasing a Common Supply Chain Objective: Saving Lives w/ Adrian Ristow and David Canarutto
07/11/2024
Chasing a Common Supply Chain Objective: Saving Lives w/ Adrian Ristow and David Canarutto
“You can't just come with ideas. You’ve got to show that you're going to be on the journey with them.” - Adrian Ristow, Executive Director of Project Last Mile “Coca-Cola Project Last Mile is held within the practitioners of my craft to be the flagship model of what good looks like in terms of public-private partnerships.” - David Canarutto, Private Sector Relationship Manager at The Global Fund For over a decade, one public-private partnership has worked to make lifesaving medicines available in the most remote parts of Africa. Known as Project Last Mile, this collaboration includes the efforts and resources of organizations like The Global Fund, USAID, and The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. And it all started with a cold Coca-Cola. In this episode of Art of Supply, Kelly Barner welcomes Adrian Ristow, Executive Director of Project Last Mile and Project Director for The Coca-Cola Company, and David Canarutto, Private Sector Relationship Manager at The Global Fund, to talk about what makes this partnership so successful. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Adrian and David talk about: What set Project Last Mile up for sustained success, especially in the earliest phase of the effort The importance of flexibility, effective communications, and a healthy relationship with failure How the members of this partnership are standing on their past accomplishments to chase their common objectives into the future Links: on LinkedIn on LinkedIn
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Project Last Mile: A Story Worth Retelling
07/04/2024
Project Last Mile: A Story Worth Retelling
About 15 years ago, someone noticed that while you could buy a cold Coca-Cola in the most remote corners of Africa, lifesaving medicines that require cold chain logistics were nowhere to be found. A group approached the company and asked, will you teach us how you manage your supply chain in rural Africa so we can apply those learnings to healthcare? Coca-Cola not only said yes, they threw their full support behind the effort that would come to be known as Project Last Mile. The public-private partnership was so impressive and effective that it became the subject of episode 90. But that wasn’t to be the end of the story. Project Last Mile heard the episode and contacted Art of Supply and made their leadership team available for an interview. Next week’s episode of Art of Supply will be Kelly Barner’s interview with Adrian Ristow, Executive Director of Project Last Mile and Project Director for The Coca-Cola Company, and David Canarutto, Private Sector Relationship Manager at The Global Fund, one of Project Last Mile’s most important partners. This week, we revisit the original episode in appreciation of the effort that has been made to date, the remarkable benefits it has generated, and the power of Coca-Cola’s decision to say yes. Links:
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Ultimate Endless Real Estate Costs at Red Lobster
06/27/2024
Ultimate Endless Real Estate Costs at Red Lobster
Red Lobster, the largest seafood chain in the United States, declared bankruptcy on May 19, 2024. As of the filing, they had 551 locations operating in 44 states, but underperforming locations have already started to close. What brought about the bankruptcy of the restaurant chain that rapper Flavor Flav describes as “one of America's greatest dining dynasties”? It wasn’t all-you-can-eat shrimp, as some have suggested, but it may very well have been endless real estate costs. In this week’s episode of Art of Supply, Kelly Barner walks a mile in Red Lobster’s shoes: Tracing their rise as an innovative dining concept, the first restaurant to advertise on national television Evaluating the impact that a ‘sale leaseback’ of their real estate had on the chain’s long term profitability Questioning the rationale of being owned by their largest seafood supplier, and all of the complications that accompanied this circular relationship Links:
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Former Pioneer Oil CEO Scott Sheffield - Colluder or Scapegoat?
06/20/2024
Former Pioneer Oil CEO Scott Sheffield - Colluder or Scapegoat?
On May 25, the Federal Trade Commission announced their consent for the planned acquisition of Pioneer Natural Resources by ExxonMobil. It was the largest shale oil and gas merger ever planned. The consent may not have been a surprise, but one of the conditions was: that former Pioneer Natural Resources CEO Scott Sheffield was prohibited from taking a planned seat on ExxonMobil’s board and accused of colluding with other industry players to increase consumer prices and maximize company profits. Articles began to appear in the media that described the condition, which ExxonMobil did agree to, as “unprecedented,” “unusual,” and even “a smear campaign.” Is Scott Sheffield a colluding villain or a scapegoat of big oil and the federal government? In this episode of Art of Supply, Kelly Barner brings together details about: The structure of the oil market, including U.S. producers as well as OPEC and OPEC+ The case against Scott Sheffield, as made by the FTC and media outlets that side with them The case made in his defense, some in his own words and some from industry onlookers and commentators as well as other media outlets Links:
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Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act: Progress or Setback?
06/13/2024
Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act: Progress or Setback?
The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, or UFLPA, took effect in June of 2022 to protect an ethnically Turkish, predominantly Muslim minority that lives in the Xinjiang autonomous region of China. The Uyghurs have been the subject of forced labor claims and investigations - truly the stuff of supply chain nightmares. If companies try to import anything connected to Xinjiang into the United States, they must prove conclusively that it did not involve forced labor. But what if the Uyghurs are moved out of Xinjiang? What does that do to enforcement of the law? In this episode of Art of Supply, Kelly Barner looks into the simultaneously expanding and dissolving front line in the war against Uyghur forced labor: How worker relocation is making it harder for U.S. Customs to enforce the UFLPA Why the specifics of the law may have provided the blueprints for defying it What business leaders and supply chain decision makers will have to grapple with if they want to achieve the intended objectives of this law Links:
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Sending a Powerful Message About America’s Pharmaceutical Independence
06/06/2024
Sending a Powerful Message About America’s Pharmaceutical Independence
On April 30th, 2024, the U.S. Senate Committee on Armed Services, Subcommittee on Personnel, held a hearing about the Department Of Defense’s efforts to ensure service members would have access to safe, high-quality pharmaceuticals. One of the panelists invited to testify was Victor Suarez, a retired Colonel from the United States Army. He worked for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) before becoming the Lead Vaccine Program Manager for Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine during Operation Warp Speed (2020-2021). Today he is the Founder and Principal Growth Partner at Blu Zone Bioscience & Supply Chain Solutions, LLC. In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner welcomes Victor to share his frank point of view on why today’s pharmaceutical supply chains are under strain: Why facilitating the market entry of generic drugs in 1984 led to the scarcity we face today The surprising challenge (and importance) of defining “Made in the U.S.A.” The solution he sees as the most likely to succeed, especially given the reasonable investment associated with it Links:
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Symptoms of Disruption in the Pharmaceutical Supply Chain
05/30/2024
Symptoms of Disruption in the Pharmaceutical Supply Chain
Pharmaceutical supply chains are never far from news headlines. Regular drug shortages affect our families, friends, and neighbors when they can’t access their chemotherapy treatments, ADHD medication, and pain medication - just to name a few. In 2023, Americans spent over $600 Billion on prescription drugs. That’s more than ever before — and more than any other country in the world. 90 percent of the prescriptions are for generic drugs, although they represent only 20 percent of spending. Pharmaceutical supply chains are complex, highly regulated, global, and associated with HUGE profit margins - but not for all medicines, and the R&D costs are just as astronomical as the profits. In this week’s episode of Art of Supply, Kelly Barner attempts to distill one of the most complex supply chains in the world down to some very familiar dynamics: Profitability, supply chain resilience, and negotiating leverage The differences between brand name and generic drug profit margins Production issues that exist thanks to global producers, consolidated negotiators like GPOs and wholesalers, and the exacerbating role of insurance companies And what a few groups - including well known Shark Tank investor Mark Cuban - are trying to do about it Links:
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