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Breaking Down Silos and Gaining Speed: Manhattan Associates on Unifying Planning and Execution

At the Gartner Supply Chain Planning Summit in Denver, Scott Luton sat down with two leaders from Manhattan Associates—Brett Lindner, Director of Product for Supply Chain Planning, and Ryan Gifford—Senior Director of Strategic Business Development. Together, the conversations painted a clear picture of one of the most persistent challenges in supply chain—and one of the biggest opportunities ahead: unifying planning and execution to drive agility, visibility, and better outcomes.

 

A Unified View of the Supply Chain

Manhattan Associates is widely known for its strength in supply chain execution, spanning warehouse management, transportation management, labor management, and order management. As both Lindner and Gifford emphasized, what differentiates Manhattan today is its unified platform that brings execution and planning together—not as loosely connected systems, but as a single, cohesive foundation.

Lindner explained that Manhattan helps companies model and design their future supply chains, enabling better planning decisions that directly inform execution. Gifford echoed that point, describing Manhattan’s approach as “two formerly siloed applications now dancing in unison”—all driven by a shared inventory and decision framework.

 

The Old Problem That Won’t Go Away: Silos

When asked about old and new challenges in supply chain planning, both leaders pointed to the same core issue: silos.

Despite advances in technology, many organizations still generate plans that never meaningfully connect to execution. Critical information—such as purchase commitments, promotional intent, or allocation priorities—often fails to travel downstream. As a result, warehouses, transportation teams, and stores are forced to make decisions without the context planners already have.

Lindner noted that this disconnect leads to missed opportunities and unnecessary costs. Promotional inventory may be secured and funded, but if it doesn’t reach the right location at the right time, companies lose sales and carry excess inventory longer than planned. Worse, when execution systems don’t provide feedback upstream, planners may never realize that product is sitting idle in a warehouse.

 

From Integration to True Unification

One of the most important distinctions Lindner made was between integration and unification. Integration often means sharing limited data between systems after decisions are made. Manhattan’s approach—building execution and planning on a single platform—allows far richer information sharing and collaboration.

This unified architecture enables organizations to align on a single strategy from end to end: from purchasing and supplier commitments, to warehouse prioritization, to delivery at the customer’s doorstep. The result is fewer blind spots, faster decision-making, and a supply chain that operates as one system rather than a collection of disconnected parts.

 

Speed, Agility, and Time as a Competitive Weapon

Gifford highlighted another recurring theme from customer conversations: speed. Today’s supply chains operate in an environment where commerce moves faster than ever, and disruptions emerge constantly. Poor visibility, slow reactions, and unclear data are no longer tolerable weaknesses.

Manhattan’s focus, he explained, is enabling customers to see what’s happening in near real time—and respond just as quickly. Agility becomes the differentiator. The sooner a company can identify a potential issue or opportunity, the sooner it can mitigate risk or capture value.

Gifford described time as a currency: the faster an organization can act, the greater its advantage. Using a sports analogy, he likened Manhattan’s approach to a “bend, don’t break” defense—providing structure and flexibility so companies can absorb shocks without giving up the big play.

 

Connecting With Manhattan Associates

Both leaders encouraged supply chain professionals to continue the conversation via LinkedIn: Brett Lindner and Ryan Gifford. They also encouraged listeners to check out Manhattan Associates’ company website at manh.com.

As the summit underscored, the future of supply chain planning isn’t just smarter plans—it’s plans that move, adapt, and execute in real time, powered by a truly unified platform.

We invite you to check out the full audio interviews of Scott Luton’s chats with Brett Lindner and Ryan Gifford (click here).

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