Our customers are the physicians and the dentists, but we know that at the end of the day, it's all about the patient and patient care.
-Jim Mullins, SVP Global Supply Chain, Henry Schein
Episode Summary
Operating a growing business can be a challenge – a wonderful challenge, but a challenge all the same. Growing pains are par for the course, but when growing through acquisition is core to the business’ strategy, managing transitions and integrations well is absolutely critical.
Jim Mullins is the Senior Vice President of Global Supply Chain at Henry Schein, the world’s largest provider of health care products and services to office-based dental and medical practitioners. They acquire 12-15 companies per year and have done so for as long as Jim can remember.
In this interview, Jim speaks with Scott Luton and Greg White about:
• How Henry Schein is investing in and leveraging technology to manage their large and growing supply chain
• Why he believes so strongly in the importance of mentorship and participating in cross functional projects
• How the Henry Schein team approaches the integration of newly acquired companies to ensure the intended value is achieved
Episode Transcript
Intro/Outro (00:03):
Welcome to supply chain. Now the voice of global supply chain supply chain now focuses on the best in the business for our worldwide audience, the people, the technologies, the best practices, and today’s critical issues. The challenges and opportunities stay tuned to hear from those making global business happen right here on supply chain now.
Scott Luton (00:31):
Hey, good morning, everybody. Scott Luton and Greg White with you here on supply chain. Now, welcome to today’s show Greg, how you doing?
Greg White (00:38):
I am doing quite well. How are you
Scott Luton (00:40):
Doing wonderful. Doing wonderful. We’re easing into early fall here in the Metro Atlanta area. Little bit slightly cooler temps. Okay. Uh, my garden’s waving the white flag, so that’s a whole nother story, but, uh, but you know, all that aside today, getting aside, we’ve got a big show teed up as we’re interviewing the supply chain leader of a fortune 500 company that serves healthcare professionals worldwide. Are you ready for this, Greg?
Greg White (01:04):
I am. I’m a big fan. Have to confess, right? I that’s my, my early disclosure big fan. Um, yeah, I, and you know, because of the business they’re in, I made sure I brush my teeth and gargled and all that stuff so that we are, we are ready for our guest.
Scott Luton (01:20):
Wonderful, wonderful, well, I’m excited too. We’ve enjoyed the prep, uh, with, uh, Jim and his team. So let’s formally welcome him in, uh, our guest today. Jim Mullins, senior vice president global supply chain with Henry shine, Jim, how you doing?
Jim Mullins (01:33):
Doing great Scott, uh, Greg, nice to see you and really appreciate, uh, being on with both of you today. So thank
Greg White (01:39):
You. Thank you. I always try to be hygienic, you know, so
Scott Luton (01:43):
<laugh>, well, you know, uh, beyond Greg’s hygiene, we’ve got some big topics to talk here today. Uh, but we wanna start where we typically start with many of our guests, Jim. Yeah. You know, before we get into the heavy lifting, tell we know you a little better. So tell us, where did you grow up and give us se anecdotes about your upbringing?
Jim Mullins (01:59):
Yeah, I, so I’ve born and raised on long island. Um, a great, great place to, to grow up. I still reside on long island and actually, uh, Henry shine world worldwide corporate headquarters, uh, is, is on long island as well. So, you know, I, I think, uh, the, the joke is if you’re born on long island, you’re not allowed to leave. So, um, you know, I’ve been, I’ve been here pretty much, uh, you know, my entire, my entire life. So, uh, great restaurants, great beaches, uh, uh, and just really a great community that to grow up in. So, uh, again, great to be here this morning.
Scott Luton (02:32):
Agreed. All right. One quick follow up to that. Um, what, what, what sports team are you most passionate about?
Greg White (02:39):
Oh, here we go.
Jim Mullins (02:41):
Um, J E S jet jets, jets. Um, but that please don’t tell anybody. Yeah,
Scott Luton (02:49):
<laugh> wait. We hope the jets continue rebuilding. I’ll tell you, we’re just talking with a, uh, a previous guest Greg, about the bill Parcell years, uh, with the jets. So who, who knows? Well, maybe this is the year they get back. I don’t know. Um, so Greg, I know him talking about long island and, and you know, company headquarters and that stuff, and that rings a bell with you, right? Where we’re going next with Jim.
Greg White (03:09):
Yeah, well, I mean, I, so I did a lot of business with Henry shine. The very first piece of technology that my company built was, was for Henry shine. So, um, and I’ve been really deeply involved, hence the disclaimer, because, you know, I’ve learned a lot about it, Jim and I crossed paths. We can’t pin it down to exactly where, but we did cross paths there many, many eons ago. And so I’d love, and Jim, you’ve been with Henry shine for a long time, and I’d love to understand and, and have our listeners understand what was a, a role or a responsibility that you’ve had over the last several years that really sort of shape how you see business, how you see the world.
Jim Mullins (03:53):
Yeah, it’s a, it’s a great question, Greg. I’m not sure if it, if it was a specific role, uh, as you mentioned, I I’ve been with the company for 34 years. Um, when we had one distribution center here on, on long island, uh, totally domestic business telesales business, wasn’t even a full service business back in 1988, as we continued to grow and branch out, um, and went moved into, uh, you know, outside of north America. We initially into Europe. That’s when I started to, to really understand a little bit more about international business. Um, uh, really understanding as the company kind of tapped into other parts of the world. That’s where I really started to really understand a little bit more the, the cultures, uh, how businesses operated. Um, so it wasn’t a specific role, uh, you know, as my career advanced, uh, you know, I did have more as of today have more global roles, but really it started as the company kind of expanded. I started to learn a little bit more, uh, and become a little bit more, uh, understanding on, on how the rest of the world operated.
Greg White (04:57):
Yeah, you, you all had a lot of opportunity. We talked a little bit in the green room about the expansion into Europe and, and other business and role or entities, um, and business lines. And you’ve kind of over the years gone in and out of various lines, but can you share with us a little bit of what Henry shine does today, or, you know, what you’ve done in the past anyway, what the business is about? Um, just to give folks an idea.
Jim Mullins (05:25):
Yeah. You know, I, I like to explain Henry Sean, we’re a healthcare organization. Um, and I think the, the simple way to think about is if you walk into a dentist or a doctor’s office, the chair, you sit in to the anesthetic that they use to the gloves, the masks, the technology, the help support and run their business. That’s what we sell. Uh, we have, uh, five major businesses. We have our, uh, north American, uh, distribution business. We have our international distribution business. Uh, we have our, uh, strategic business unit group, which is manufacturing, uh, along with some other healthcare related, uh, organizations, uh, our global oral reconstruction group, uh, which is, uh, which they make, uh, our dental implants, bone, uh, regeneration type products. And then our, our last, uh, our, our fifth part of the, the, the business is our technology business. So as I mentioned earlier, the software, the technology that integrates all of the equipment, uh, and, uh, all of the technology to help, uh, a practice run more effectively and more efficiently.
Greg White (06:35):
I, I mean, you can actually deliver essentially a dentist office in a box, right. If somebody is just starting out in practice, I, I know that you had in the past basically been able to deliver everything they need except for the four walls. Is, are you still in that business?
Jim Mullins (06:52):
Absolutely. So, you know, uh, put together a startup order for, for, for the, the, the new customers, which, which we do on a daily basis, whether it’s a large institutional customer or a, you know, a single practitioner, uh, and, uh, again, anything from, uh, you know, setting up the business, the, the construction, the design of the office, all the way to getting the products to, uh, to, uh, our customers.
Greg White (07:16):
That’s very, very, uh, that’s very cool. And it, it sounds really challenging. And, you know, of course, I know you’ve faced a lot of those challenges over the year, but when you, when you think about some of those supply chain challenges, right. You’re, you know, when you think about the healthcare industry or your specific industry, um, especially as you think about supply chain, what are some of the things that you all do that are, I mean, aside from that sort of office in a box that might be a surprise to, to our listeners?
Jim Mullins (07:50):
Yeah. I think, you know, we behind every package as a patient, that’s the way we, we look at it, right? The, you know, our customers are the, are the physicians, uh, are the dentist, but we know that at the end of the day, it’s all about the patient, uh, and the patient care. So we help help happen, uh, as one of our, our taglines and, and how we communicate to our customers. I think one of the things that we’re seeing now, Greg is sustainability, uh, is more, is coming more to the forefront. Um, both, you know, well, from our, our suppliers, from our customers and from our investment community as being part of, uh, you know, a fortune 500 organization, right? So our supplier partners, our customers are larger customers, our, and our government, uh, our customers, it’s a prerequisite, uh, to be, uh, to have a sustainability program and to prove it. So, um, you know, sustainability, isn’t just good for the planet, which is critical, but it’s good for business as well. Uh, and also, uh, you
Scott Luton (08:55):
Know, Hey Jim, can I put it in for a second? That is an excellent point. Cause as important as sustainability is for our planet, right? The right thing to do, it’s also really powerful for business, right?
Jim Mullins (09:06):
It, it, it really is. Uh, and, uh, the team has done a very good job on, uh, you know, putting together a plan, a roadmap, uh, for our sustainability process. And it’s a global, it’s a global program, uh, and, uh, absolutely important for both the planet and for, for business as well.
Greg White (09:22):
I, I think that’s, that’s an important distinction, Jim. Sorry, man. All right. Let me do that. Let me do that again. I think that’s an important distinction, Jim, because companies very often think one is a trade off for the other and long ago at Henry shine. And at lots of other companies, companies learned that you can both optimize your inventory and increase your service level, something by the way, Scott, that Henry shine has done with incredible excellence. And I think if we think about sustainability in the same way, you can both improve your business. I think top line, as well as bottom line with sustainable initiatives, um, and, and increase profitability. Of course. So I, I think we have to stop thinking about it as, as a zero sum game. Right. And recognize that there’s abundance there.
Jim Mullins (10:14):
Yeah. I, I, I agree, Greg, I think it needs to be incorporated into the fabric of, of your organization and like anything else. Um, we can’t do everything at once. It needs to be prioritized and what makes sense, you know, from a business perspective, how it’s going to impact the customer. And obviously there’s always budgets involved. Uh, so it’s prioritization on, uh, creating that roadmap and getting to, uh, where we need to get to.
Scott Luton (10:38):
Mm.
Greg White (10:40):
Yeah.
Scott Luton (10:40):
So let’s keep going down the path. We, you know, we’re kind of talking priorities, uh, for the company moving in, you know, now, and moving in 2023, we’re also talking at the same time about some of the things that may surprise some of our listeners about the healthcare industry. Jim, what else would you add to that?
Jim Mullins (10:52):
Yeah, I, I think, you know, besides sustainability, I think maybe what your listen listeners maybe want to know about, uh, you know, the healthcare industry is that there’s several aspects to, to supply chain. Um, there’s the cold chain process, there’s pharmaceuticals, there’s, uh, VA vaccines, which were heavily involved with there’s, you know, regulated type items, whether it’s medical devices control substances. So it’s a complex supply chain that, uh, very several different aspects that the team focuses in on. Um, you know, we also, uh, Scott just started, uh, our three year strategic plan. Uh, so, and part of that strategic plan, uh, when it comes to supply chain, um, a lot of the focus is on technology, um, and, uh, you know, incorporating technology into the supply chain, whether it’s upfront, uh, with software, with our, with our purchasing systems, being able to forecast better than we ever had, um, be able to, uh, make sure we’re acquiring the product at the right time at the right place at the right price.
Jim Mullins (11:58):
So we’re focusing on technology at the inventory management level, as well as, uh, technology within our distribution and manufacturing facilities. Um, we’re not a total robotic, uh, distribution network. Um, we balance our technology with our team, um, and with the war on talent and the challenges with, uh, you know, recruiting, uh, within most industries, um, that balance between technology and, you know, your team, your employees is, is critical. And, and then finally, you know, well, the third aspect of, of, of technology is the visibility software, uh, to, to, to see, you know, your products throughout the entire supply chain. And I think many companies along with us kinda learn the hard way over the last couple of years, that if you lose that visibility, uh, of the product throughout the supply chain, you know, your decision making becomes that more challenging and that more difficult. So, um, those are three areas on the, on the, the fourth area on the strategic plan is, you know, continuing to develop, uh, our team, our team shine members, as, as we call ’em and, uh, both by training and building that succession plan to have a strong bench as we kind of move forward. So the techno technology part of it, as well as, uh, you know, the, uh, the, the talent within our, you know, our internal team.
Scott Luton (13:24):
So great. I’m gonna get you to respond to that. Yeah. Uh, technology, forecasting, talent, visibility, team, shine development, uh, you, it seems like a, a powerful list to me, your response, Greg.
Greg White (13:35):
Yeah. Well, I, you know, um, even a while back, what really impressed me about Henry shine was the fact that, so it, it, um, the way that they deliver to the practitioners in the office, they were essentially an e-commerce business, B2B e-commerce business, selling units, sometimes selling cases, but not distribution as such, right. We it’s called distribution, but really it’s eCommerce for business. Um, and the, the efficiency that’s required to do that, to send someone a, a package of tongue depressors or whatever else, right. Um, is, is incredible. And they attacked that early on and they continue to improve, you know, this is more broad market kind of perspective, but I remember, and it, and it still happens today. People would go, okay, Henry shine, beat earnings again, or increase sales again or whatever. Again, they can’t, they literally, this was happening in the early two thousands.
Greg White (14:34):
They can’t do it again. And clearly they did not see the constant evolution and improvement that was going on within the organization. Probably couldn’t, I think that’s illegal, but, but it’s so obvious. It is so obvious that I think, um, you know, the market took too much of a, I wanna say, um, kind of, uh, speculative view of the company rather than an analytical view. And, um, you could just see the company continuing to improve and it continues to do so. They continue to acquire more companies, as you talked about and increase the efficiency, which is already, I would argue at least market leading, maybe world leading when it comes to supply chain.
Scott Luton (15:17):
Well, thank you for a perfect segue. And by the way, you’re an industry insider in terms like tongue depressor, Greg, you surprised me that man. No, those
Greg White (15:25):
Things. That was the only thing I could think of Jim was,
Jim Mullins (15:29):
I’m proud of you, Greg. Good job.
Greg White (15:30):
Yeah. Thanks man. I know, I, I know there’s a lot of really cool and important stuff that you ship, but, you know, tongue depressors come to mind, don’t they
Jim Mullins (15:38):
They’re just as important as our, our other products. So, absolutely
Scott Luton (15:41):
Excellent, excellent. Uh, segue there. Uh, Jim, so Greg mentioned the acquisitions because that that’s been really amongst the Henry shine story of late, you know, going back last year or two, several acquisitions have been made in recent months. And you also mentioned gem complexity. There’s been no shortage of complexity in supply chain, really global business. Uh, for that matter here lately, what’s a key element or two that you can share from the plan to successfully incorporate or some folks call it the wiring of the, of their supply chain operations into the enterprise.
Jim Mullins (16:11):
Yeah, it’s a, it’s a, it’s a good question. You know, we, we average about 12 to 15 acquisitions a year and that, that that’s going back as far as I can remember. Um, so our strategy, uh, Scott is to grow organically of course, but also to grow through M and a, uh, through our acquisitions. And, you know, we acquire whether it’s organizations or products, uh, that help us differentiate that with, with our, with our customers. And it strengthens our position in certain regions in certain categories. Um, we’ve been successful with M and a in my mind is because we, we have a, a real solid approach starting with the due diligence process, um, all the way to, if we do, we have many standalone, uh, businesses after we acquire them or, or, uh, you know, join partnerships with them. And there’s others that if it, if it makes sense to integrate into our core business, when we have our core competency, we do that as well.
Jim Mullins (17:14):
So we have a good integration plan. Um, the plan itself, it, it it’s, it touches every aspect, whether it’s communication to our customers, whether it’s legal aspects, but also from a supply chain standpoint, to understand where our, these new customers are located, how are we going to get the product to them the same way we get to our current customers? So day one of a, of a, of an integration or for a new customer. It’s like, they, they, they can even provide their old, uh, customer customer number or information. And the due diligence that we did up front brings everything together. At the end of the day, it’s all about, um, the, the, the, the culture of the organization. Again, I’ve been part of many, uh, acquisitions. We have partnered, or I’ve gone to partner with several businesses. It made, it was the right business.
Jim Mullins (18:14):
It was the right location. It was the right thing for our customers until we get to the point of understanding the values and the culture of that company, if that doesn’t fit with ours, we walk away, we’ve walked away. Uh, and it’s the right thing to do at the end of the day, uh, because we know a lot of integrations fail because of, of, of that, uh, component. So yeah, very proud of the way we handle that. And again, as it relates to the supply chain, a lot of diligence, a lot of legwork is done upfront working with our carrier partners, working with our supplier partners to ensure that when we move forward with that, uh, acquisition, that the Iza dot and the T across.
Scott Luton (18:57):
So Greg, uh, man Jim shared a lot in, in that response. And then there’s obviously a lot goes into, uh, an organization that’s able to act on those 12, 15 transactions a year and grow and focus on organ organic growth. Hey, if it’s easy, it’s, it’s probably not difficult of enough of a journey. Rick respond to that, though. What, what did you hear Jim say, especially when it comes to really successfully integrating these new, uh, acquisitions?
Greg White (19:23):
Well, I can verify a lot of it. I mean, the, the culture fit is absolutely critical. So, you know, one of the things that I did way back when, um, was, uh, and I’m having flashbacks Jim, to, uh, you know, working with your team, right? When, when you were in the customer success, I know that’s not the title you guys used, but that in that area, but integrating a lot of those companies and there is, um, the culture was a huge part of it. And you’d have to meet, uh, Stan Bergman. Who’s the CEO at Henry shine to understand how important that is, Jerry Benjamin also. Um, I thought Jerryd be retired by now, Jim <laugh>
Jim Mullins (20:01):
Right. Actually he retired, uh, two months ago, so yeah.
Greg White (20:03):
Oh, he did. Oh, congratulations to him. I, I was afraid he was never gonna stop working. Yeah.
Jim Mullins (20:08):
Oh, well, he’s still, he’s still connected.
Greg White (20:10):
Yeah, of course he is. <laugh> anyway, they’ve tho those two in particular have built a great culture and, and leaders like Jim carry that throughout the organization and they do, they project it into the companies that they acquire. And it’s not only a, um, you know, a, a, a strong culture in terms of valuing people, but balancing that valuing of people with valuing the financials, they’re very, um, very fiscally driven. And I say that in, I mean, you probably need to temper that with, they are very fiscally responsible, very, um, uh, appropriate, um, managers of the shareholders, uh, equity and money, but do so with an incredible balance around the people. It was always a great place to work, a great lot of fun in even in unbelievable, unbelievably stressful times, but, um, the spirit of the place is, is really the thing that I think stands out out for me.
Greg White (21:11):
I mean, obviously they’re a, um, they’re a great organization in terms of integration of, of the acquisitions. They do a fantastic job. They have an entire group of people that focus on that as Jim was talking about, and they’ve made it into something that is a core strength of the company. So, um, gosh, sorry. Fanboy here. <laugh> so well, but, but I mean, it is, I, I really have always thought have thought for 22 years, frankly, that more companies ought to approach business. Generally Buti supply chain specifically the way Henry shine does. They flipped the culture from a sales cultured company to, um, to ex uh, to projecting the culture of the supply chain organization into the rest of, uh, the organization in terms of excellence and efficiency and accountability. So, um, you know, those are probably things Jim you’ve seen evolve over 22 years, but they were still, you know, in their matter of fact for you, but I think they are still new concepts for your, your organization to be kind of a leader in defining the business culture of the company is a really, really rare thing was 22 years ago still is today, even with the rise of prominence of supply chain.
Jim Mullins (22:32):
Yeah. We, we have a special, it’s what well said, Greg, we have a special relationship with our business leaders. Um, you know, it’s, it’s, you know, we, we make it a point with our DC directors to reach out, uh, constantly, uh, to the business leaders within the regions that they support from a distribution standpoint. So it’s not the first time they’re talking with a, uh, you know, a regional or a zone manager when, when there’s an issue they’re reaching out, how are we doing, what are you hearing? So that, that connection, um, creates that, uh, relationship and building that, that building the team, we do that at every level, uh, from a supply chain perspective and that it really showed, um, during the pandemic, when there was challenges with getting products, shipping product, uh, you know, and, you know, the team knew who to go to. Um, and the team knew that they had the trust in us knowing that we’re going to be reaching out and telling them and updating them on how things are going, what’s going well, what the challenges we’re having and what the plan is to correct those mm-hmm <affirmative>. So to your point, Greg, that connection and that, uh, communication between the business leaders and supply chain is critical. It shouldn’t only happen when there’s issues it should happen when things are going well and continue to build that relationship or those relationships.
Scott Luton (23:51):
And that you’re, you’re, you’re speaking to how you can really fully, uh, operate operationalize a competitive advantage that supply chain can be, rather than it just be reactive and problem solving. You’re leveraging. I, I would venture to guess a big part of what’s driven growth for the organization, because it has been proactive relationships between supply chain and, and the business side, uh, or the different business side. Um, and you, gosh, you’ve come a long way. Uh, 34 years, you said on the front end, uh, when you began, it was, you had one distribution, uh, center. Goodness gracious. Um, look at how look at how far we’ve come. So let’s talk about the shift gears as we kind of come down the home stretch, uh, uh, I believe we could probably have a supply chain conversation for a couple hours, uh, with you Jim <laugh>. Um, but I wanna shift gears cause, cause our listeners, oftentimes, especially the segment that maybe they’re still matriculating through some of the leading supply chain universities or, or any university, uh, to break an industry, maybe they’ve already, you know, recently graduated and been working for a year or two.
Scott Luton (24:50):
Now, if you had to you, if you had a captive room of these folks that really wanna break into supply chain and work their way up in senior levels leadership like you have, what advice would you, would you, would you offer them?
Jim Mullins (25:01):
Hmm. Yeah, first I would say, uh, if, if you don’t have one now engage in a mentor, uh, I think, I think all successful, uh, people with whether within supply chain or outside of supply chain really needs a mentor to bounce things off of, uh, to, to, to get advice. Uh, sometimes some tough love there as well, kind of, uh, helps on, on how to make your decisions as you move forward. But also to be curious, and to learn, uh, to be part of, uh, a podcast as supply chain now, uh, to, to, to learn, to read as we know, supply chain, uh, uh, this changes in supply chain are happening faster than, than ever. Um, and it’s, it’s hard even as senior, uh, supply chain executives that to, to keep up with all of the changes what’s happening in, in, in the different industries.
Jim Mullins (25:52):
But, you know, I would also recommend to be part of cross functional initiatives or projects within your organization. Again, supply chain is, is it goes across whether it’s transportation, whether it’s inventory management, whether it’s distribution, when there’s an opportunity to be part of a, cross-functional a cross, uh, cross-functional initiative I would re highly recommend. And I, I, I, I, I kind of preach that to my team as well to be part of it. Uh, and even if it’s outside of the supply chain to get those connections with other parts of your organization to actually promote and really help, um, the rest of the organization understand what the supply chain team does and how it can benefit with those connections. So again, mentoring, uh, be curious and, uh, really get involved with, uh, some cross-functional initiatives I think would be, uh, my recommendation,
Scott Luton (26:51):
Excellent recommendations. There’s been common threads in some of the responses to Greg we’ve heard from, from other leaders that have, uh, done big things like Jim’s been doing Greg really quick before we talk Eureka moment, uh, with Jim out of that list of recommendations, we’ll be one that you’d wanna double down on Greg.
Greg White (27:07):
Well, one that I think is relatively unique is, is getting involved in cross functional initiatives, right? Um, Jim’s a great example of that. I mean, he ran customer service, the, the customer facing people who took the heat when supply chain arguably, or whatever aspect of the company may have created a challenge for those customers. So he is, you know, is uniquely positioned to understand the impact that supply chain had and probably is less of a revelation for you Jim, than it is for a lot of other people who just discovered, oh yeah, it’s just not about getting boxes in the warehouse. We have to get ’em to the customer too, and they have to be happy about it. Um, but I, I think that cross-functional aspect is critical because one of the things that really hinders supply chain is silos and you just can’t have ’em and the culture of sharing and transparency between all of those leaders at Henry shine is, is because of that, cross-functional understanding that intentional initiative to integrate with and, and, and be connected with all of the other departments that, that you touch or impact through in your daily job.
Scott Luton (28:24):
Excellent point, Greg, and, you know, you can’t bust down breakdown silos if you can’t see them. And I think one of the advantages Jim, to your you, and Greg’s both, both your points is if you have experience in those cross-functional areas, some of the silos that do exist and some of the other breakdowns and between the functional areas of an organization will be more visible and you can address them as leaders. Um, okay. So, uh, we’ve all Jim, as we, as we come down to home stretch here, we’ve all had plenty of Eureka moments over the last couple of years. Goodness gracious. Sometimes hourly, but at a minimum typically daily, when you look back, um, with you and your team and what y’all been able to accomplish and persevere through, what’s been one of your strongest Eureka moments from the last year or two.
Jim Mullins (29:06):
Yeah. Um, great question. Um, it, it’s certainly the ability, uh, to, uh, acquire, uh, personal protective equipment. The PPE that many of us, uh, on call, uh, were aware of, again, being a healthcare company, um, you know, to acquire that product, um, to, uh, get it in house and then get it to, to healthcare professionals that needed it, um, to be able to, uh, deal and, and, and, and treat the patients over the last couple of years during the pandemic, uh, was critical. Uh, and I, I, I can say Scott that the team, um, beyond supply chain, but I’m so proud of the supply chain team, the sourcing team, uh, they worked tirelessly, uh, from acquiring product to receiving the product, to picking, packing, shipping the product and getting it to the right parts of the country through the world, uh, to ensure that we were being partners with the healthcare community.
Jim Mullins (30:12):
We were even shipping certain products. A again, a lot of this was allocation as was coming in to non-customers to a certain extent, because we knew it was the right thing to do as an organization to get it to, uh, a group. Uh, we took care of our customers, of course, uh, and, uh, at the end of the day, uh, we did the right thing as an organization, and it goes back to our, uh, you know, uh, you know, our social responsibilities, part of that as well, but that, um, without a doubt and what it did do as well, uh, we, I talked about relationships before having strong relationships with your supplier partners, um, and knowing that as we’re getting product, they know it’s going to be received properly, get to the right place. Everybody was in this together. Um, so having those relationships, uh, helped us acquire a, you know, above our allocation in many cases, right?
Jim Mullins (31:05):
Uh, as well as the importance of the public private partnership, working with the government, um, you know, they’re great, uh, at a lot of things, but, you know, coming, they came to the experts within the industries and said, how can you help us get products to certain places? So that was really, really important, uh, to have those relationships and also data having data was just as important of having product, right? So having data of what we needed to get, where we needed to go to, uh, was really important. So, um, that, that’s, I, I think the Ereka moment for the supply chain organization over the last, uh, year or two,
Scott Luton (31:45):
Thank you, Jim. Uh, and going back to where, where you started your answer and some of the things you’ve touched on earlier, I’ll tell you one of my favorite EKI moments, Greg is how consumers have had their own Eureka moments that come to appreciate our global healthcare professional and community, our global supply chain, professional and community, and how they kept really. And so big, impactful ways, the Mo the world moving forward and protected the psyche of so many as we’ve dealt with what we’ve gone through these last few years. So Jim appreciate what you and your team do there. Um, Greg, I’m gonna circle back to your key takeaway in a second. I wanna make sure folks know how to connect with the growing organization. Um, in many ways, the industry, uh, standard bear that is Henry shine. So Jim appreciate all that you’ve shared here today and letting us, you know, have a chance of, of taking a peek into, um, some of the things that fuels you and your organization’s success. How can our listeners connect with you and Henry shine?
Jim Mullins (32:37):
I, I think the best way Scott is through LinkedIn Henry shine, LinkedIn, or, um, you know, www.henryshine.com, uh, a lot of great information, whether it’s, uh, about the organization, the leadership, uh, opportunities, and, uh, and you know, a little more bit more of, uh, information of, of, of how we operate and how we connect, uh, you know, with society. So, um, I think those are the two key
Scott Luton (32:58):
Areas. Wonderful. And I enjoy some of the, uh, digital media and interviews and fireside chats. You’re all putting out. So a lot of good stuff there. Uh, Jim Mullins, thanks for your time. Senior vice president global supply chain with Henry shine. Thank you, Jim. Um, before Jim leaves us though, Greg, let’s talk about Jim as if he’s not still with us, cause I know you,
Greg White (33:17):
My favorite thing to do
Scott Luton (33:19):
<laugh>. So Jim has really shared, uh, in, in so many different ways, you know, some commonalities that, that some of our supply chain leaders we’ve interviewed have shared, and then some unique differences based on the rapid growth internally and, um, you know, from, uh, acquisition and or organically what’s and then some, but what’s been one of your favorite things Jim has shared with us here today.
Greg White (33:40):
Yeah. I, I would have to say it’s, you know, to go back to the cross-functional aspect of it. I mean that, it probably doesn’t describe it as effectively at cross-functional, from my perspective may not describe it as a, as at the great depth that they do it at Henry shine. I mean, it, it, they actually have intentional initiatives of spending time when you start at Henry shine with, with, uh, people in other departments, right. And constantly communicating that transparency is both internal and external. And I mean, think about the old days of supply chain, um, when the reports were mostly, how did you hurt the company today? Right? And, and, um, and sales people yelling at supply chain, supply chain yelling back at sales, marketing, customer success, whatever, all of that was was very, uh, conflict driven, but the transparency and the education that they share throughout the organization creates an understanding that is Jim, you pointed out earlier, sorry, he’s not here.
Greg White (34:40):
As Jim pointed out earlier, uh, creates an understanding where instead of yelling, you screwed us, they, they come to somebody and go, Hey, this is not the result we wanted to get. How can we work together to, to improve this? And they trust one another at a much, much higher level. And I think that’s a really, really important distinction. I say, all of this, and I’m gonna preface or end this with an apology to Jim, because I have a feeling that all kinds of retailers and distributors and, and B2B companies are gonna be coming to Jim and going, how did you build that? How do you do that? So get ready for some tours from some other supply chain leaders, Jim, because they’re gonna want to know. And I, I think frankly, they should learn as much as they can before you waste James time.
Greg White (35:27):
Jim’s time by the way. But, um, <laugh> but they should kind of model what Henry shine has done because they’ve been doing it for a long time. They were way ahead of, of the curve in terms of things like diversifying sourcing outside of China for PPE. And I think that probably helped them, um, during the, you know, the difficult times of the pandemic, but also operational and, and, uh, in inner enterprise communication and that sort of thing. I just think there’s a lot to learn there still. There’s still, I would argue way ahead of many, many companies in terms of not just supply chain, but, but business and corporate culture.
Scott Luton (36:05):
Thank you, Greg. Uh, I really appreciate that. And Jim, we really appreciate your time here today. Uh, Jim Mullins with Henry shine, we look forward to reconnecting with you again soon. Jim
Jim Mullins (36:14):
Scott, Greg, thank you really much, very much for, for having me today. Um, and, uh, good luck your success with supply chain now and, uh, love listening to you guys. So, uh, all, all the best of luck. Thank you.
Greg White (36:26):
Thanks, Jim.
Scott Luton (36:27):
You have made our day, Jim, thank you so much for that. <laugh> um, Greg really appreciate your insights here and your ne your unique, uh, aspect of your journey and, and your knowledge of what, uh, how Henry Sean is set the bar in so many different ways. Uh, always a pleasure to knock out these conversations with you, Hey, to our listeners. Unfortunately, we’ve gotta leave it here today, but hopefully we’ve enjoy this episode as much as we have a, a, a, a, a master class in many ways, and some difference, uh, some different things you’re gonna hear in this conversation than what you hear in some of our others, but whatever you do, right? It’s about deeds, not words, Scott Lu and Greg white, and our team challenging you to, Hey, do good give forward and be the change that’s needed with that said, we’ll see next time, right back here on supply chain now. Thanks everybody.
Intro/Outro (37:09):
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Jim Mullins Mr. Mullins joined Henry Schein, Inc. in 1988, and is Senior Vice President, Global Supply Chain. He is a Member of the Company’s Executive Management Committee. Mr. Mullins is responsible for leading Global Supply Chain, the U.S. Customer Service function, Acquisitions and Integration activity for Global Services, and partnering with the Company’s Specialty Manufacturing business leaders to share best practices across the organization. Before assuming his current role, Mr. Mullins held a number of key positions with increasing responsibility at Henry Schein, including Global Chief Customer Service Officer. Mr. Mullins earned his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and Management from St. John’s University. Connect with Jim on LinkedIn.
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