Supply Chain Now Radio Episode 215

Episode Summary

Scott Luton and Greg White welcome Scott Auslund onto Supply Chain Now Radio at eft’s Logistics CIO Forum, a Reuter’s Event in Austin, Texas.

Episode Transcript

[00:00:05] It’s time for Supply Chain Now Radio. Broadcasting live Supply chain capital of the country. Atlanta, Georgia. Supply Chain Now Radio spotlights the best in all things supply chain the people. The technology’s the best practices and the critical issues of the day. And now here are your hosts.

 

[00:00:29] Pay your body Scott Luton. Once again, live with your own Supply Chain Now Radio. Welcome back to the show. We’re not broadcasting live today from Atlanta, Georgia, but rather we’re broadcasting down in Austin, Texas, home of E.F. TS Logistics CIO Forum, which is now a Reuters event. We’ve been interviewing some of the most innovative thought leaders that are all doing big things across the End to end Supply chain industry. And really, as we’ve we’ve stated, only each showcase really have enjoyed this partnership. We’re proud to partner and continue our partnership with Nick Asef and the EAF team, Reuters event team. So let’s welcome in my fearless co-host. I can’t believe you have it broken and already with some some shameless. I’ve been trying to be been trying to be responsible. Greg White once again is joining me here in Austin as we as we cover love. Incredible thought leaders at this event. Greg is a serial supply chain tech entrepreneur, chronic disruptor, trusted advisor to some and big growth group guru to.

 

[00:01:31] All right. Let’s do it. I like that. OK, man. It’s like you do it at different every time we try. I’m down with a chronic. All right. Well, you know, we’ve got to create a whole show dedicated that we argue is a hot industry. Let’s just announce that here. Stay tuned. We are going to have a cannabis supply chain show. Yeah. Looking forward to that. Everybody is.

 

[00:01:55] All right. So a big show here today. Looking forward to talking with Scott Auslin, chief operating officer with Golf Relay. Scott. How you doing? Doing great. Really excited to be on the show today. We are, too. I’ve enjoyed our warm up conversations. And yet before we both got here, we were able to jump on the phone and learn more about what you’re doing and what golf relay is doing. It’s great to have you here. And we’re dove into all of that. However, we’re we want to start is we want to make sure our listeners get a chance to better understand who you are. So tell us a bit more about yourself.

 

[00:02:28] Sure. Thanks so much. So I got started in Supply chain about 10 years ago, right out of school, got hired by U.P.S. to actually sell small package solutions over the phone.

 

[00:02:38] U._p._s. I’m going to write that down. We’ll look them up later. Yeah. These brown trucks that drive around, actually, technically they’re package cars aren’t really going to World-Class Supply chain SuperCom better. Yes, right. So is great.

 

[00:02:51] Great job out of college. Yeah. You know, they taught you how to dress up, had a you know, wear a suit filed expense report. You know, all those things that you got to learn as a as a 22 year old, 23 year old kid, Ryder School. The interesting thing was I had no background in Supply chain. I graduate in 2009. It was kind of the bottom of every economic graph in the world. And so all these supply chain kids, now that, you know, they’ve got five different job offers and you know, there are all these fairs and people are trying to tackle them and chase them down.

 

[00:03:18] You. That was not my experience. No, no, not at all.

 

[00:03:22] So I applied and they were like, listen, you have to have any background at all. We’ll put you through six or eight weeks of school on Supply chain and then you’re going to sell small package solutions over the phone. I was like, well, you know, I could probably sell stuff and I’ll try to judge again. Yeah, I need a job. Right. So it’s great. It turned out to be one of the best decisions ever and was with them for several years. Was it inside sales and then transferred to outside sales? And then they bought overnight. And so got to learn about LTL. Ryder is really cool. Let’s not gloat for some for our listeners. Yes, absolutely. So that was great. Spent a couple of years with them. I moved around the country with them in a couple of different roles and then ultimately went to work in Greenville, South Carolina, for a small, really southeastern base. Three people called him 33. And I was there for a couple years, which ultimately got acquired by Tranz Place. Ryder familiar with that. George Abernathy and his great crew bought that company. And I had the pleasure of working directly for the ownership there. And I ended up really growing with that company. I think when I came on, it was probably 60 employees. When we left, it had almost doubled over, you know, four or five years. That was really fun. It was great to kind of get to see what does a three people do? What value do customers see in an outsourced supply chain, management, tech enabled kind of world? That was really, really fun.

 

[00:04:44] So after the acquisition, it translates I stayed on for about 18 months, helped Industrial some customers over to the new technology platform. But ultimately some of the mentors in my life said, listen, if you’re going to really understand supply chain, you work for an asset based company. You know, I had no experience doing that. I mean, u._p._s. Sure, that counts, but that’s a that’s a different world in the parcel world, right, than like a truckload carrier. Not many U.P.S. is in the world. No. Yeah, no, you’re right. So I ended up getting a job with Covenant Transport out of Chattanooga, Tennessee. Great organization. They hire city on. Yes. Chattanooga. Yeah. Yeah. And had never been to Chattanooga until I interviewed there. And so I was living in South Carolina about four hours away. Drove over, interviewed over the course of a couple of weeks. Ultimately took my family out there and had them kind of check it out like this is a great town. Be great. So they hired me to come on and really help them build out a managed transportation group within kind of the confines of the covenant world. And it was a great opportunity, really enjoyed it. Had had a ton of great people here that I worked with. And then ultimately they ended up purchasing land air, which was a great kind of fucking acquisition for them. Yeah. And really got them started in the managed transportation business. You know, we kind of tried to cold start it for a year.

 

[00:05:57] Ltl there’s less than full truckload. It’s got four wheels. How many. Yeah, that’s it.

 

[00:06:04] And so that was a great opportunity to kind of see an acquisition happen. Understand the strategy behind that. That whole kind of build versus buy. Ultimately, as that trend as that transaction was closing, I had the opportunity come join, go freely in really more of a leadership role, which was just a wonderful kind of once in a lifetime opportunity. You join a C.O.O.? I did. I did, yes. Which is which is unusual. Feel very honored to be able to do that.

 

[00:06:30] And just so our listeners know this, Scott is about 22 years old. He is a serious and not 22. But still, you are to accomplish what you’ve accomplished as quickly as you did. Holy cow. And to be involved in some of these transactions and all the operations in the wiring, all that takes place. You have lived lots of chapters already.

 

[00:06:52] It’s been fun. You know, it’s it this is a great industry, right. If you’re willing to work hard and you get the opportunity, it’s it’s it’s so much fun to see it growing and just expanding. And I what I have benefitted from is having wonderful mentors at every single stage of my career. Me when I got hired on with UBS, Maria was my trainer. And Maria had been with UBS for multiple decades and she just mentored me and loved on me. And I was a young 20 year kid, had no idea what I was doing. And she really helped me kind of get to that next level. And then when I reached Im 33, Sammy and the whole crew there that owned and built that company was a huge part of that. And then Covenant, I had some wonderful folks there that mentor me and now I get an opportunity to hopefully pay a little bit of that back. But I still have mentors in my life that that are way smarter and wiser than me that have helped me get there. So it’s totally standing on the shoulders of giants, for sure.

 

[00:07:45] So you joined LLC Bill Golf really again? So a little over a year. So I think officially I joined last August. Okay. Yeah, outstanding. And I love your passion about the mentoring and giving back. That’s really I mean, no one knows at all. And everyone’s got blindspots and we all don’t know what we don’t know. Pick your favorite cliche, but I think the organizations that get it and the organizations that are really deliberate in worldclass in terms of bringing people and developing them and retaining them, they are serious about that stuff, too.

 

[00:08:17] So I love love what you share in their wellness. You’re fortunate to have been around people who cared about that. Right. I mean, organizations can mandate that all they want. They can try to structure it all they want. But ultimately, it takes people to deliver that kind of mentorship. And it has it has to be received as well. Lots of people throughout your life will tell you lots of things that are valuable to you. But if you don’t hear it, you don’t internalize it. It’s kind of wasted. Yeah. Yeah, that’s a good point. Yeah. So that’s a real gift. Okay, I have that. Before you go on to the next question. I have to know this. Two questions. One. Where did you get your degree? So I went to Bob Jones University. Those have gone. Yep. And what in what’s your degree?

 

[00:08:58] My degree is actually in organizational communication, which is basically training and development. I thought I wanted to be a corporate trainer. So I have a great passion for talent development. I guess you would say and that was really part of the reason I pursued that.

 

[00:09:13] I graduate, obviously, 2009 with a a training degree when everybody was laying off trainers and that just was not something people were looking for. But that has served me, I think, somewhat well as we’ve tried to grow in scale. You know, the organizations I’ve been a part of. Yeah.

 

[00:09:28] Yeah. Get, get. That’s great. Be serious about talent these days. And and you can’t be serious about talent unless you’re not just serious about acquiring, but about developing it. All right. So looking forward to what to bring you back on that as you continue to mentor the team. And yea, probably I guess golf relay, which we’re going to learn more about the second. You’re probably hiring, too, right? We are a jazz band and group. Absolutely. Yes. All right. So let’s let’s talk about for our listeners, what does golf really do? Sure.

 

[00:09:55] So golf really started out in 2012 is really an asset. AIST over-the-road truckload carrier mean standard 53 foot box. Put something in it. Pick it up here and deliver here, right. It has since grown. We’re now imes, 300 trucks, just a short seven or so years later. And we’ve really realized over the last two years that we need to transition the business into more of an asset based, tech enabled 15:00. That’s the best way I can describe it. Only Hurley like any of those terms that make sense, but that’s the best amalgamation of terms that seem to fit what we’re trying to do. But ultimately, our customer base has continually come to us and said, we love tech. We love the assets that you guys have in the control and the predictability that provides. And we want you to somehow put that together to manage more of our supply chain. And so we’ve added warehousing this year. We had warehousing in the past. We really made a big effort in that we opened two warehouses in Dallas in addition to one in Mississippi. We have and then we formed strategic partnerships in Chicago, Atlanta and Nashville to provide some overflow warehousing and some cross docking opportunities there. We’re also taking a little bit of of our fleet and we’re moving it into this low deride LTL network who are moving freight between Dallas, Atlanta, Chicago. And we’re we’re we’re taking some of that higher touch, higher value stuff that maybe you don’t want to just put on the back of a regular LTL provider. And we’re doing some specialized stuff there. So we’re we’re we’re not losing the core of who we are, which is moving freight, you know, across the map for people. But at the same time, we are trying to transition that into a little bit more of a broader view on the supply chain bringing more value to the table.

 

[00:11:39] That’s right. What has been what do you see as as you all make this this trend transformation while you continue to grow? He laughed at my pronunciation.

 

[00:11:51] So I was just I was curious. Go into a different word at one point. Shifted.

 

[00:11:55] That’s true. Well, I’ll try to say amalgamation at some point, but I best figure I just did it. I can’t believe it. Congratulations. But all kidding aside, Scott, as you make it, as teams making this transformation while growing and serving your customers, what was the what’s the most challenging part of that?

 

[00:12:14] I think from what you see so most challenging part from the customer perspective or internally, internally, you know, from a team. Sure. So I think change management is really important. Right. It’s hard to do, but it’s so critical. And in places like this and I think, you know, from a challenge standpoint, we have some some folks that have grown with us and grown up with the company, done a great job building it to where it is today. And now we’re looking at, okay, how do we have those folks, Bill, take the next step with us. Right. And that’s that can be scary. You might have done the same job for a couple of years and done it really, really well. And now the company is asking you to do more. And so, you know, I’m pleased. I know they can get the support from that. Are they going to have the training? Are they going to have the time invested in them or are they going to get the technology resources or they need to make that next step? And I think the overwhelming answer from leadership is, yes, you will get that. But you guys need to come with us on that journey. And so, candidly, I think that’s that’s probably the most exciting part of what we’re doing, but it’s also probably the most challenging. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

 

[00:13:15] It’s interesting as you’re describing that. And that makes perfect sense. I think of baseball. We’re on the last show. We’re talking a lot. We had someone in from Toronto as a Braves fan. They broke our heart bad one year back in the early 90s. But think about the fastball, how how it’s evolved. Right. When you when you want to longa, you could do a 95 mile per hour fastball. And that was above league average. That was you’re really bringing it right. And so it was serviceable. Right. You can strike P-plate players out, batters out. You could you could command a game, especially if you had two of the pitches. And Greg knows better, not in the not because he was a pitcher. However, as the game evolved right now, you won’t. Ninety nine, right. You want to hit triple digits on the radar. Get on the radar gun, even though a 95 mile per hour fastball is still serviceable. You want to go the extra mile. And so as I hear you explain it to the folks have been there, been doing a great job. They provide the foundation to get the company where it is. But now that the industry has changed. We’ve got to go to X that, you know, got to go higher. Got to raise the standard, right? Yes, some ways. Yeah, absolutely.

 

[00:14:26] And I was split seam fastball. Yes. All right. I don’t know what that means. It sounds Cummings. It doesn’t come at you straight. That’s all, Guy.

 

[00:14:35] Well, and I think people are really excited about that. And I think that we’ve given them a vision for what this company can be. If you kind of think about like a golf relay 2.0. Right. And they are just so excited to do that. And and I think for us as management now, it’s like, okay, how do we make sure we give them the tools to make sure they’re wildly successful to do that? Yeah.

 

[00:14:55] Now, you you’ve had a lot of experience of people getting you the. To be wildly successful. Right. I mean, you went from phone sales to the C-suite in a decade. That is an impressive climb by any standard. And I know that I know that you want to give credit to the people that mentored you. Right. But I mean, you’ve obviously internalized a lot of that experience and you bring that to to this job today.

 

[00:15:20] I think so. I hope so. But ultimately, if you think of yourself as now, maybe as a as trying to be a coach, it’s a whole nother world to take that. And there’s definitely days when I do not feel equipped to the task at hand. And that’s where some of these mentors that have been with me for so long have still given. I’ve been kind of to give themselves access to me. And I’ve got a Rolodex of people that I can just call and they’ll take my call. And it might be, you know, nine o’clock at night, but it’s, hey, we’re trying to work through this. What what would you do? What did you do that worked? What did you do that didn’t work? And I think what’s come out of that is nobody has all the answers, but they can tell you what questions to ask. And if you can reframe the question to me, that seems where we’ve been able to be most successful, you know, so obviously Chief Operating Officer with golf, really.

 

[00:16:10] But where do you spend in different sea levels? Different leaders spend their time, different places. Where do you spend the bulk of your time?

 

[00:16:17] So the bulk of my time today is really focused on working with our customers to understand what they need from supply chain growth standpoint. Because what you don’t want to do in a scenario like this is get too far out in front of your customer and build things that in an echo chamber we think is a great idea. Yeah, and in reality the customer doesn’t see enough value in it to really pay you a dollar for that. Right. At the end of the day. And so a lot of my time right now, over 50 percent is spent with our customers and saying, listen, we want to build this.

 

[00:16:50] We feel like you would need that. Can you please validate that for me? And they go, we have got 80 percent of it. Right. But you need to change this or this cost example. When I got hired on last last July, I was living in Chattanooga. We were dead set on putting our next terminal in office in Nashville. We were looking at real estate like this where we want to be. And we kind of called a time out after two months and said Wasco to our biggest customers and say, where would they like us to be? No, no, no, no. You got to be in Dallas. We don’t need you in Nashville. Sheer put a terminal there. But if you really want to build something that’s going to transform it, we want you to do. Dallas is where it needs to be, right. So that’s just stuff like that that we may think is a great idea. Just trying to manage that with our customers to make sure that growth is as profitable.

 

[00:17:29] Right. It’s like some of technology conversations we’re having. We don’t want to buy the latest technology for the sake of having the latest technology. We want it. We want to buy and apply in a practical manner where where there’s true value being created or delivered. Right.

 

[00:17:43] Kelly, the headsets here. Yeah, absolutely. Scott’s talking about our new Lu technology here. Well, no.

 

[00:17:52] Well, it’s all about, you know, here on a podcast we try to make our guests as comfortable as possible. Right. And so for the first one hundred ninety episodes, we had these mice that were 3 feet tall and you kind of had to change your posture and make sure you crane your neck a certain way and they could turn your ass and look at anybody.

 

[00:18:12] Right. Because you went away from the mike absoluteness.

 

[00:18:14] They still work, however, always with the North Star of taking care of our guests, making sure they’re comfortable to share their expertise with these integrated headsets. And you might lose a little bit quality, but you gain a lot more in terms of the dynamic of the conversation. So that’s a that’s a lot more than I ever planned to share about.

 

[00:18:33] But, you know, there’s a job here, man. You know, you turn the tables on Scott Lu bad man. But this comment. But you know what?

 

[00:18:42] What’s fun is there’s common threads, whether you can build the podcasts or you deliver and make the customer happy and transportation business or you’re managing this growth change or that. I love how you focus while your time on validating the activities that you and the team are spinning Tomalin and to make sure it’s this value added versus non-value added because you said a great point. We might love what we’re doing and love, and that is a great man as the best thing ever since sliced bread. But the customer don’t care about it. What do we have? Yeah, right. All right. So you gave a keynote earlier today, Scott, which is again, pretty gut. And we’re gonna bring out your resume. It’s can be like 17 pages.

 

[00:19:22] That is not true. Nick and I got connected two years ago, and I’m not I’m real not sure why I’m speaking to the CIO. Well, I’m just that we’re have a good time with you.

 

[00:19:31] You have accomplished a lot in a short amount of time. So let’s talk about the keynote that you gave and the message you gave. Well, if you had if you were to ask or hope for. You know, the folks are here that heard it to remember two or three things, the key takeaways that they need to remember. What would those be?

 

[00:19:51] You know, I think I was on a panel with some wonderful people. And I think the common thread that came out was there’s there’s not enough talent in this. Watching industry to service the demand, that’s their number one. Number two, I think they.

 

[00:20:05] People are looking in places that maybe have traditionally they’ve not looked for that talent. And right. So underrepresented groups, whether that would be women, whether that’s people call or whatever that may be. You know, there’s a huge emphasis on that. I think that’s wonderful. I think it’s great. Last year I was here, we also talked a little bit about veterans and how we get more veterans involved, supply chain. And we have a lot of veterans that go freely, which is just a wonderful privilege that we have. And so I’m thrilled to see the Supply chain world sort of maybe looking out there and saying, how can we bring in people with diverse perspectives to solve this? Because Supply chain is very collaborative. Right. You can’t none of us can do this on our own. I mean, there’s there’s dozens of people that are involved in a single transaction and and some cases across cultures and time zones. And so the more people we get involved in that discussion, I think the better. But I think, you know, the common thread that ran through all of those folks after you sort of take the first two principles for granted is how do we develop the talent we have? Right. You get him in the door and then there’s strategies for doing that. But once you get those people in, how do you make sure that those people stay with you? And they feel like they’re constantly moving forward. Yes. And and I I don’t know if I’m technically a millennial. I guess maybe I am. But ultimately speaking, what we’ve seen is this demographic really wants to know what’s next.

 

[00:21:23] Yes. Right. If you come on with with me and I start, you know, you work for me in six months, where am I going to be in a year where I get out in two years? What does my role look like? And is challenging for a young organization like Golf Relay sometimes because we’re like, look, we’re we’re we’re driving this thing, too. It’s growing fast. We can give you some ideas, but we might not build a say with certainty. You know, versus maybe a big organization of exactly what you’ll be doing in two years. And so I think the thing that I’m really focused on right now is trying to develop our bench strength and really give our people the opportunity to sit in a lot of different seats. So they understand the business as a whole. And I think that’s going to really prepare them to take on more leadership opportunities in the future, because I think, you know, if if you just silo yourself inside of Supply chain and you only do one or two things, you’re not well equipped to take on that next role, especially with how fast our industry is changing. So we’ve got a couple of folks in organization today that, you know, maybe a year ago came on in one role and now they’re in another one. And probably six or eight months from now, they’ll they’ll be in a different one. And we the luxury that we have as a high growth company is the ability to move those people around the organization if they’re willing to kind of take that ride with us.

 

[00:22:34] So let’s take a second here and let’s speak to students. Right. Tech school or four year degree or school or whatever it is. And let’s also speak to young professionals or speak to folks in transition, because I think what you just described there is going to be such an important trait in someone’s candidacy, the willingness to learn and apply but not stop there. It’s it’s a one, two cycle. Right. Keeps it’s a closed loop. You learn a plyler and apply, learn, apply in this in this business environment. Right. Would you agree with that? Hundred percent.

 

[00:23:11] Yes. You know, I think our world used to really be the traffic department. Right. You know, 20 years ago, you know, and now there’s all this tech talent involved. There’s all this venture capital money involved. You see Amazon coming in or some these other folks continuing to push the envelope as far as delivery times.

 

[00:23:30] And customers want those socks in two days. Now, soon to be one day, they’ll get Tom for two weeks or six weeks, pay C.O.D. Or whatever.

 

[00:23:38] But I mean, we live in Dallas now and you get it same day. Yeah. I mean, you order something eight o’clock in the morning. If it’s a stock item, it’s on your porch by 5:00.

 

[00:23:46] Sometimes I do that just for fun. Just for fun to show it. Let’s just see if it makes it actually makes it. Yeah.

 

[00:23:53] Yeah. So I think to your point about having to be flexible and learning. All right. Is the absolute most critical piece to all that. Yeah.

 

[00:24:00] I think an important thing that you have to recognize, a lot of what you’ve talked about is problem solving. Right. Change management and that sort of thing. And I think one of the best lessons that I’ve gotten recently was I met with the great one of the greatest minds in A.I., a guy named Danny Longa. So he has a company that builds the A.I. engines that a lot of gaming systems use to create a virtually real environment right now. And and one of the things that he said that really stuck with me applies not only to A.I., but generally to learning and problem solving. And that is you don’t need smarter minds. You need more minds and you need more minds that look at that problem differently. And if you can do that, you can solve problems more quickly and more effectively. So I know what you’re recognizing, the collaborative spirit of the millennial generation also. And, you know, the the inclusion and diversity is it’s not just. About getting people who deserve to be there, there are some self serving that you can do by doing that. If you can get the perspective of somebody who’s got that blessing of naivete, who didn’t study Supply chain in college and comes to it and goes, why do we do it that way? And you know what the answer is gonna be because we’ve always we’ve always done it that way. Yes, they have somebody if words and business. Yes. If somebody has the you know, if you have people who have enough different points of view, you will get better answers quicker.

 

[00:25:28] Yeah, I completely agree. Absolutely. So. So, again, speaking about your message, speaking about talent development and and and how and you know what you said about kind of the bringing people in from different walks of life in the Supply chain, you know, we had someone come on the show from Southwire. And do you favor Southwire so that their base down in West George Carrolton, Georgia Carol. Goodness gracious. Carrollton, Georgia. Well, it started in the owner’s garage and they make the broader things braided. Wah. Right. Steel there. One the largest world’s largest suppliers. They didn’t employ several thousand people. We brought on their director of talent acquisition and she said there is no war for talent because it’s if you if you try to do it traditionally in hiring practices and you try to stay in those standard channels and the standard candidates, then, yeah. You have a hard time. But if you really, to your point, get creative and get and get deliberately creative, there is no war for talent. And that really you say you’re the second person that really kind of challenge that that Kisha. You hear a lot about.

 

[00:26:42] I think that’s a great perspective to have. And I think that, you know, there’s a lot of people in our industry today that have been in the industry a long time and may not have the formal supply chain background, but they have a tremendous amount of tribal knowledge. And so one of the biggest challenges I think we face, but if we can pull it off successfully, it’s a big opportunity is how do you take the tribal knowledge and all the experience and begin to transfer that to the next group of folks in a non-threatening way. Yeah, right. That that’s the challenge. How do you how do you make people feel comfortable sharing that tribal knowledge? I’m not gonna get replaced, but if I share this. But make sure that that knowledge transfer happens successfully. And then to your point, vise versa. How do you take that new person that does have some, you know, just naivety around it and say, how did they ask that person questions and challenge what they do in a way that doesn’t make that first person, you know, feel demeaned, but gets us to a better solution? And I I I’m really interested to see how that goes as we move forward, because I think there’s such a huge challenge there as an industry. How do we do that successfully?

 

[00:27:47] You. One quick question. You wish you were talking about the growth. You’re one of the things you’re talking about. Fleet size Chili’s numbers again. So we’re we’re about 300 trucks now. We started with about six in 2012. Could I ask Krishna? Okay. Good stuff. All right. So let’s make sure our listeners know how to get back in touch with you. I’m sure they’re we want to compare notes and pick your brain and learn more about golf relay or check into golf Hurley. So how the folks learn more Sherkin.

 

[00:28:18] Go to our Web site at golf relay dot com.

 

[00:28:21] Feel free to reach out to me on LinkedIn or if you want to e-mail me directly, it’s just Scott at Gilfry Life.com outstanding and you’re out on the event circuit. I know you’re going to be up in Chicago next week or two and we’re gonna get you down mutex in March. That’s the plan. Afford to get to 35000 people are coming to Atlanta. You’re our closest friends and neighbors.

 

[00:28:43] So Atlanta is just not even going to feel it. Our traffic, Zimbabwes will probably be a lot of it.

 

[00:28:50] So it’s gonna stay right downtown and walk to the Georgia War Congress Center. We’re broadcast throughout the four days and which is pretty cool if you’ll have any operations in Atlanta. You can submit your nomination or run to the 2020 Atlanta Supply chain Awards at Madox. Cool. Our second year event. We hope to grow something like your fleet size. We’re not quite be there. We’re going a little bit bigger than last year. But but partner with Moto X, which is a been an outstanding partner. But what to get you out? Moto X get you all on the interview floor too. Okay, so golf relay dot com. And also you can check out Scott Auslin, C.O.O. of golf relay only 10 and stay tuned. You might see a new podcast being rolled out, right? That’s right. You want Sheer anything or that Sheer? No, I can share a little bit.

 

[00:29:35] Yeah. So. So really passion about this whole leadership development, talent development in the supply chain space. And so I am launching a podcast called Bringing the Chain. It’ll probably come out sometime in January. We’re interviewing Best in Class. Supply chain organizations and the leaders that have built them talking about talent. How do we do that? Well.

 

[00:29:55] What does that look like? I love it. So stay tuned for January. And so you’re already in production. You’re already in production or recording sessions now. Yeah. We’ve got to connect him with Jimmy G. Oh, got to. Yes. OK. We’ll talk more about Shep. Yep. But Scott, thanks for carbon time out, especially as you’re you’re doing keynotes and I’m sure you got plenty of interesting conversations, hopefully close and some business here. Alan, thank you guys for having me on. You bet. Great conversation. I wish we had three more hours to sit down because clearly get a lot of passion and experience and making the stuff happen. So we’ll have you back on. Scott Osland, C.O.O. With golf relayed in, you can learn more about the company at golf relay dot com. So sit tight for one second here as we wrap up to our listeners. Stay tuned as we continue our coverage of the E T Logistics CIO forum, which is now what, Greg? It’s now a Reuters event. That’s right. Right here in beautiful Austin, Texas. To our listeners. Also, be sure to check us out our upcoming events, replays of our interviews, other resources at Supply Chain Now Radio dot com. And you can find us on Apple podcast, SoundCloud and Greg’s favorite channel, which is YouTube, all alleven sites where podcasts can be found. Appreciate you joining us on behalf of the entire team. Scott Luton here wishing you a wonderful week ahead and we will see you next time. ω Supply Chain Now Radio. Thanks, everybody.

Featured Guests

Scott Auslund is the Chief Operating Officer for Gulf Relay. As a member of the executive team, Scott oversees the strategic development of the non-asset portion of the company, including technology solutions, freight brokerage, managed transportation, sales and M&A. Scott has led high-performing teams across multiple disciplines in the supply chain and logistics space. With hands-on experience in sales, operations, business intelligence, and strategic planning, Scott has produced outsized results for the companies he has partnered with to date. Scott has a passion for the supply chain industry and has worked alongside world-class educators to develop curriculum aimed at accelerating working professional’s knowledge of logistics. Scott volunteers his professional time as a Board Member with the Council of Supply Chain Professionals (CSCMP). He is especially focused on engaging college students and young professionals as they enter supply chain careers. Learn more about Gulf Relay here: https://gulfrelay.com/

Hosts

Scott W. Luton

Founder, CEO, & Host

Greg White

Principal & Host

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Kristi Porter

Host, Logistics with Purpose

Kristi Porter is VP of Sales and Marketing at Vector Global Logistics, a company that is changing the world through supply chain. In her role, she oversees all marketing efforts and supports the sales team in doing what they do best. In addition to this role, she is the Chief Do-Gooder at Signify, which assists nonprofits and social impact companies through copywriting and marketing strategy consulting. She has almost 20 years of professional experience, and loves every opportunity to help people do more good.

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Kim Reuter

Host

From humble beginnings working the import docks, representing Fortune 500 giants, Ford, Michelin Tire, and Black & Decker; to Amazon technology patent holder and Nordstrom Change Leader, Kimberly Reuter has designed, implemented, and optimized best-in-class, highly scalable global logistics and retail operations all over the world. Kimberly’s ability to set strategic vision supported by bomb-proof processes, built on decades of hands-on experience, has elevated her to legendary status. Sought after by her peers and executives for her intellectual capital and keen insights, Kimberly is a thought leader in the retail logistics industry.

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Sofia Rivas Herrera

Host, Supply Chain Now en Espanol

Sofia Rivas Herrera is a Mexican Industrial Engineer from Tecnologico de Monterrey class 2019. Upon graduation, she earned a scholarship to study MIT’s Graduate Certificate in Logistics and Supply Chain Management and graduated as one of the Top 3 performers of her class in 2020. She also has a multicultural background due to her international academic experiences at Singapore Management University and Kühne Logistics University in Hamburg. Sofia self-identifies as a Supply Chain enthusiast & ambassador sharing her passion for the field in her daily life.

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Demo Perez

Host, Supply Chain Now en Espanol

Demo Perez started his career in 1997 in the industry by chance when a relative asked him for help for two just weeks putting together an operation for FedEx Express at the Colon Free Zone, an area where he was never been but accepted the challenge. Worked in all roles possible from a truck driver to currier to a sales representative, helped the brand introduction, market share growth and recognition in the Colon Free Zone, at the end of 1999 had the chance to meet and have a chat with Fred Smith ( FedEx CEO), joined another company in 2018 who took over the FedEx operations as Operations and sales manager, in 2004 accepted the challenge from his company to leave the FedEx operations and business to take over the operation and business of DHL Express, his major competitor and rival so couldn’t say no, by changing completely its operation model in the Free Zone. In 2005 started his first entrepreneurial journey by quitting his job and joining two friends to start a Freight Forwarding company. After 8 months was recruited back by his company LSP with the General Manager role with the challenge of growing the company and make it fully capable warehousing 3PL. By 2009 joined CSCMP and WERC and started his journey of learning and growing his international network and high-level learning. In 2012 for the first time joined a local association ( the Panama Maritime Chamber) and worked in the country’s first Logistics Strategy plan, joined and lead other associations ending as president of the Panama Logistics Council in 2017. By finishing his professional mission at LSP with a company that was 8 times the size it was when accepted the role as GM with so many jobs generated and several young professionals coached, having great financial results, took the decision to move forward and start his own business from scratch by the end of 2019. with a friend and colleague co-founded IPL Group a company that started as a boutique 3PL and now is gearing up for the post-Covid era by moving to the big leagues.

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Kim Winter

Host, Supply Chain Now

The founder of Logistics Executive Group, Kim Winter delivers 40 years of executive leadership experience spanning Executive Search & Recruitment, Leadership Development, Executive Coaching, Corporate Advisory, Motivational Speaking, Trade Facilitation and across the Supply Chain, Logistics, 3PL, E-commerce, Life Science, Cold Chain, FMCG, Retail, Maritime, Defence, Aviation, Resources, and Industrial sectors. Operating from the company’s global offices, he is a regular contributor of thought leadership to industry and media, is a professional Master of Ceremonies, and is frequently invited to chair international events.

He is a Board member of over a dozen companies throughout APAC, India, and the Middle East, a New Zealand citizen, he holds formal resident status in Australia and the UAE, and is the Australia & New Zealand representative for the UAE Government-owned Jebel Ali Free Zone (JAFZA), the Middle East’s largest Economic Free Zone.

A triathlete and ex-professional rugby player, Kim is a qualified (IECL Sydney) executive coach and the Founder / Chairman of the successful not for profit humanitarian organization, Oasis Africa (www. oasisafrica.org.au), which has provided freedom from poverty through education to over 8000 mainly orphaned children in East Africa’s slums. Kim holds an MBA and BA from Massey & Victoria Universities (NZ).

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Adrian Purtill

Host, Logistics with Purpose

Adrian Purtill serves as Business Development Manager at Vector Global Logistics, where he consults with importers and exporters in various industries to match their specific shipping requirements with the most effective supply chain solutions. Vector Global Logistics is an asset-free, multi-modal logistics company that provides exceptional sea freight, air freight, truck, rail, general logistic services and consulting for our clients. Our highly trained and professional team is committed to providing creative and effective solutions, always exceeding our customer’s expectations and fostering long-term relationships. With more than 20+ years of experience in both strategy consulting and logistics, Vector Global Logistics is your best choice to proactively minimize costs while having an exceptional service level.

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Kevin Brown

Host, Logistics with Purpose

Kevin Brown is the Director of Business Development for Vector Global Logistics.  He has a dedicated interest in Major Account Management, Enterprise Sales, and Corporate Leadership. He offers 25 years of exceptional experience and superior performance in the sales of Logistics, Supply Chain, and Transportation Management. Kevin is a dynamic, high-impact, sales executive and corporate leader who has consistently exceeded corporate goals. He effectively coordinates multiple resources to solution sell large complex opportunities while focusing on corporate level contacts across the enterprise. His specialties include targeting and securing key accounts by analyzing customer’s current business processes and developing solutions to meet their corporate goals. Connect with Kevin on LinkedIn.

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Jose Miguel Irarrazaval

Host, Logistics with Purpose

Jose Manuel Irarrazaval es parte del equipo de Vector Global Logistics Chile. José Manuel es un gerente experimentado con experiencia en finanzas corporativas, fusiones y adquisiciones, financiamiento y reestructuración, inversión directa y financiera, tanto en Chile como en el exterior. José Manuel tiene su MBA de la Universidad de Pennsylvania- The Wharton School. Conéctese con Jose Manuel en LinkedIn.

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Nick Roemer

Host, Logistics with Purpose

Nick Roemer has had a very diverse and extensive career within design and sales over the last 15 years stretching from China, Dubai, Germany, Holland, UK, and the USA. In the last 5 years, Nick has developed a hawk's eye for sustainable tech and the human-centric marketing and sales procedures that come with it. With his far-reaching and strong network within the logistics industry, Nick has been able to open new avenues and routes to market within major industries in the USA and the UAE. Nick lives by the ethos, “Give more than you take." His professional mission is to make the logistics industry leaner, cleaner and greener.

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Allison Giddens

Host

Allison Krache Giddens has been with Win-Tech, a veteran-owned small business and aerospace precision machine shop, for 15 years, recently buying the company from her mentor and Win-Tech’s Founder, Dennis Winslow. She and her business partner, John Hudson now serve as Co-Presidents, leading the 33-year old company through the pandemic.

She holds undergraduate degrees in psychology and criminal justice from the University of Georgia, a Masters in Conflict Management from Kennesaw State University, a Masters in Manufacturing from Georgia Institute of Technology, and a Certificate of Finance from the University of Georgia. She also holds certificates in Google Analytics, event planning, and Cybersecurity Risk Management from Harvard online. Allison founded the Georgia Chapter of Women in Manufacturing and currently serves as Treasurer. She serves on the Chattahoochee Technical College Foundation Board as its Secretary, the liveSAFE Resources Board of Directors as Resource Development Co-Chair, and on the Leadership Cobb Alumni Association Board as Membership Chair and is also a member of Cobb Executive Women. She is on the Board for the Cobb Chamber of Commerce’s Northwest Area Councils. Allison runs The Dave Krache Foundation, a non-profit that helps pay sports fees for local kids in need.

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Billy Taylor

Host

Billy Taylor is a Proven Business Excellence Practitioner and Leadership Guru with over 25 years leading operations for a Fortune 500 company, Goodyear. He is also the CEO of LinkedXL (Excellence), a Business Operating Systems Architecting Firm dedicated to implementing sustainable operating systems that drive sustainable results. Taylor’s achievements in the industry have made him a Next Generational Lean pacesetter with significant contributions.

An American business executive, Taylor has made a name for himself as an innovative and energetic industry professional with an indispensable passion for his craft of operational excellence. His journey started many years ago and has worked with renowned corporations such as The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. (GT) leading multi-site operations. With over 3 decades of service leading North America operations, he is experienced in a deeply rooted process driven approach in customer service, process integrity for sustainability.

A disciple of continuous improvement, Taylor’s love for people inspires commitment to helping others achieve their full potential. He is a dynamic speaker and hosts "The Winning Link," a popular podcast centered on business and leadership excellence with the #1 rated Supply Chain Now Network. As a leadership guru, Taylor has earned several invitations to universities, international conferences, global publications, and the U.S. Army to demonstrate how to achieve and sustain effective results through cultural acceptance and employee ownership. Leveraging the wisdom of his business acumen, strong influence as a speaker and podcaster Taylor is set to release "The Winning Link" book under McGraw Hill publishing in 2022. The book is a how-to manual to help readers understand the management of business interactions while teaching them how to Deine, Align, and Execute Winning in Business.

A servant leader, Taylor, was named by The National Diversity Council as one of the Top 100 Diversity Officers in the country in 2021. He features among Oklahoma's Most Admired CEOs and maintains key leadership roles with the Executive Advisory Board for The Shingo Institute "The Nobel Prize of Operations" and The Association of Manufacturing Excellence (AME); two world-leading organizations for operational excellence, business development, and cultural learning.  He is also an Independent Director for the M-D Building Products Board, a proud American manufacturer of quality products since 1920.

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Tandreia Bellamy

Host

Tandreia Bellamy retired as the Vice President of Industrial Engineering for UPS Supply Chain Solutions which included the Global Logistics, Global Freight Forwarding and UPS Freight business units. She was responsible for operations strategy and planning, asset management, forecasting, and technology tool development to optimize sustainable efficiency while driving world class service.

Tandreia held similar positions at the business unit level for Global Logistics and Global Freight forwarding. As the leader of the Global Logistics engineering function, she directed all industrial engineering activies related to distribution, service parts logistics (post-sales support), and mail innovations (low cost, light weight shipping partnership with the USPS). Between these roles Tandreia helped to establish the Advanced Technology Group which was formed to research and develop cutting edge solutions focused on reducing reliance on manual labor.

Tandreia began her career in 1986 as a part-time hourly manual package handling employee. She spent the great majority of her career in the small package business unit which is responsible for the pick-up, sort, transport and delivery of packages domestically. She held various positions in Industrial Engineering, Marketing, Inside and On-road operations in Central Florida before transferring to Atlanta for a position in Corporate Product Development and Corporate Industrial Engineering. Tandreia later held IE leadership roles in Nebraska, Minnesota and Chicago. In her final role in small package she was an IE VP responsible for all aspects of IE, technology support and quality for the 25 states on the western half of the country.
Tandreia is currently a Director for the University of Central Florida (UCF) Foundation Board and also serves on their Dean’s Advisory Board for the College of Engineering and Computer Science. Previously Tandreia served on the Executive Advisory Board for Virginia Tech’s IE Department and the Association for Supply Chain Management. She served on the Board of Trustees for ChildServ (a Chicago child and family services non-profit) and also served on the Texas A&M and Tuskegee Engineering Advisory Boards. In 2006 she was named Business Advisor of the Year by INROADS, in 2009 she was recognized as a Technology All-Star at the Women of Color in STEM conference and in 2019 she honored as a UCF Distinguished Aluma by the Department of Industrial Engineering and Management Systems.

Tandreia holds a bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering from Stanford University and a master’s degree in Industrial Engineering and Management Systems from UCF. Her greatest accomplishment, however, is being the proud mother of two college students, Ruby (24) and Anthony (22).

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Marty Parker

Host

Marty Parker serves as both the CEO & Founder of Adæpt Advising and an award-winning Senior Lecturer (Teaching Professor) in Supply Chain and Operations Management at the University of Georgia. He has 30 years of experience as a COO, CMO, CSO (Chief Strategy Officer), VP of Operations, VP of Marketing and Process Engineer. He founded and leads UGA’s Supply Chain Advisory Board, serves as the Academic Director of UGA’s Leaders Academy, and serves on multiple company advisory boards including the Trucking Profitability Strategies Conference, Zion Solutions Group and Carlton Creative Company.

Marty enjoys helping people and companies be successful. Through UGA, Marty is passionate about his students, helping them network and find internships and jobs. He does this through several hundred one-on-one zoom meetings each year with his students and former students. Through Adæpt Advising, Marty has organized an excellent team of affiliates that he works with to help companies grow and succeed. He does this by helping c-suite executives improve their skills, develop better leaders, engage their workforce, improve processes, and develop strategic plans with detailed action steps and financial targets. Marty believes that excellence in supply chain management comes from the understanding the intersection of leadership, culture, and technology, working across all parts of the organization to meet customer needs, maximize profit and minimize costs.

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Laura Lopez

Marketing Coordinator

Laura Lopez serves as our Supply Chain Now Marketing Coordinator. She graduated from Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Occidente in Mexico with a degree in marketing. Laura loves everything digital because she sees the potential it holds for companies in the marketing industry. Her passion for creativity and thinking outside the box led her to pursue a career in marketing. With experience in fields like accounting, digital marketing, and restaurants, she clearly enjoys taking on challenges. Laura lives the best of both worlds - you'll either catch her hanging out with her friends soaking up the sun in Mexico or flying out to visit her family in California!

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Jake Barr

Host

An acknowledged industry leader, Jake Barr now serves as CEO for BlueWorld Supply Chain Consulting, providing support to a cross section of Fortune 500 companies such as Cargill, Caterpillar, Colgate, Dow/Dupont, Firmenich, 3M, Merck, Bayer/Monsanto, Newell Brands, Kimberly Clark, Nestle, PepsiCo, Pfizer, Sanofi, Estee Lauder and Coty among others. He's also devoted time to engagements in public health sector work with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. At P&G, he managed the breakthrough delivery of an E2E (End to End) Planning Transformation effort, creating control towers which now manage the daily business globally. He is recognized as the architect for P&G’s demand driven supply chain strategy – referenced as a “Consumer Driven Supply Chain” transformation. Jake began his career with P&G in Finance in Risk Analysis and then moved into Operations. He has experience in building supply network capability globally through leadership assignments in Asia, Latin America, North America and the Middle East. He currently serves as a Research Associate for MIT; a member of Supply Chain Industry Advisory Council; Member of Gartner’s Supply Chain Think Tank; Consumer Goods “League of Leaders“; and a recipient of the 2015 - 2021 Supply Chain “Pro’s to Know” Award. He has been recognized as a University of Kentucky Fellow.

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Marcia Williams

Host

Marcia Williams, Managing Partner of USM Supply Chain, has 18 years of experience in Supply Chain, with expertise in optimizing Supply Chain-Finance Planning (S&OP/ IBP) at Large Fast-Growing CPGs for greater profitability and improved cash flows. Marcia has helped mid-sized and large companies including Lindt Chocolates, Hershey, and Coty. She holds an MBA from Michigan State University and a degree in Accounting from Universidad de la Republica, Uruguay (South America). Marcia is also a Forbes Council Contributor based out of New York, and author of the book series Supply Chains with Maria in storytelling style. A recent speaker’s engagement is Marcia TEDx Talk: TEDxMSU - How Supply Chain Impacts You: A Transformational Journey.

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Luisa Garcia

Host, Logistics with Purpose

Luisa Garcia is a passionate Marketer from Lagos de Moreno based in Aguascalientes. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing from Universidad Autonoma de Aguascalientes, Mexico. She specializes in brand development at any stage, believing that a brand is more than just a name or image—it’s an unforgettable experience. Her expertise helps brands achieve their dreams and aspirations, making a lasting impact. Currently working at Vector Global Logistics in the Marketing team and as podcast coordinator of Logistics With Purpose®. Luisa believes that purpose-driven decisions will impact results that make a difference in the world.

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Astrid Aubert

Host, Logistics with Purpose

Astrid Aubert was born in Guadalajara, she is 39 years old and has had the opportunity to live in many places. She studied communication and her professional career has been in Trade Marketing for global companies such as Pepsico and Mars. She currently works as Marketing Director Mexico for Vector Global Logistics. She is responsible for internal communications and marketing strategy development for the logistics industry. She is a mother of two girls, married and lives in Monterrey. She defines herself as a creative and innovative person, and enjoys traveling and cooking a lot.

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Sofia Rivas

Host, Supply Chain Now en Espanol

Sofia self-identifies as Supply Chain Ambassador, her mission is to advocate for the field and inspire young generations from diverse backgrounds and cultures to join the industry so that thought diversity is increased and change accelerated. Recognized as Linkedin Top Voice and Linkedin Community Top Voice in Supply Chain Management, as well as Emerging Leader in Supply Chain by CSCMP 2024, Top Women in Supply Chain by Supply & Demand Executive 2023, and Coup de Coeur Global Women Leaders in Supply Chain by B2G Consulting in 2021

Public speaker at multiple international events from keynotes and panels, to webinars and guest lectures for bachelor's and master's degrees, discussing topics such as sustainability, women in the industry, technology and innovation. Writer at different online magazines on logistics, supply chain and technology. Podcast host and guest on different recognized programs in the industry. Sofia has more than 5 years of experience from academic research and field studies to warehouse operations, demand planning and network design. She has worked in manufacturing, airport operations, e-commerce retail, and technology hardware across Latin America, North America and Europe

Currently working as Supply Chain Network Design and Optimization Manager at HP within their Global Supply Chain and Logistics team

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Karin Bursa

Host

Karin Bursa is the 2020 Supply Chain Pro to Know of the Year and the Host of the TEKTOK Digital Supply Chain Podcast powered by Supply Chain Now. With more than 25 years of supply chain and technology expertise (and the scars to prove it), Karin has the heart of a teacher and has helped nearly 1,000 customers transform their businesses and share their success stories. Today, she helps B2B technology companies introduce new products, capture customer success and grow global revenue, market share and profitability. In addition to her recognition as the 2020 Supply Chain Pro to Know of the Year, Karin has also been recognized as a 2019 and 2018 Supply Chain Pro to Know, 2009 Technology Marketing Executive of the Year and a 2008 Women in Technology Finalist. 

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Vin Vashishta

Host

Vin Vashishta is the author of ‘From Data To Profit’ (Wiley 2023). It’s the playbook for monetizing data and AI. Vin is the Founder of V-Squared and built the business from client 1 to one of the world’s oldest data and AI consulting firms. His background combines nearly 30 years in strategy, leadership, software engineering, and applied machine learning.

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Amanda Luton

Vice President, Production

Amanda is a production and marketing veteran and entrepreneur with over 20 years of experience across a variety of industries and organizations including Von Maur, Anthropologie, AmericasMart Atlanta, and Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. Amanda currently manages, produces, and develops modern digital content for Supply Chain Now and their clients. Amanda has previously served as the VP of Information Systems and Webmaster on the Board of Directors for APICS Savannah, and founded and managed her own successful digital marketing firm, Magnolia Marketing Group. When she’s not leading the Supply Chain Now production team, you can find Amanda in the kitchen, reading, listening to podcasts, or enjoying time with family.

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Scott W. Luton

Founder, CEO, & Host

As the founder and CEO of Supply Chain Now, you might say Scott is the voice of supply chain – but he’s too much of a team player to ever claim such a title. One thing’s for sure: he’s a tried and true supply chain expert. With over 15 years of experience in the end-to-end supply chain, Scott’s insights have appeared in major publications including The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and CNN. He has also been named a top industry influencer by Thinkers360, ISCEA and more.

From 2009-2011, Scott was president of APICS Atlanta, and he continues to lead initiatives that support both the local business community and global industry. A United States Air Force Veteran, Scott has also regularly led efforts to give back to his fellow veteran community since his departure from active duty in 2002.

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Greg White

Principal & Host

When rapid-growth technology companies, venture capital and private equity firms are looking for advisory, they call Greg – a founder, board director, advisor and catalyst of disruptive B2B technology and supply chain. An insightful visionary, Greg guides founders, investors and leadership teams in creating breakthroughs to gain market exposure and momentum – increasing overall company esteem and valuation.

Greg is a founder himself, creating Blue Ridge Solutions, a Gartner Magic Quadrant Leader in cloud-native supply chain applications, and bringing to market Curo, a field service management solution. He has also held leadership roles with Servigistics (PTC) and E3 Corporation (JDA/Blue Yonder). As a principal and host at Supply Chain Now, Greg helps guide the company’s strategic direction, hosts industry leader discussions, community livestreams, and all in addition to executive producing and hosting his original YouTube channel and podcast, TEChquila Sunrise.

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Chris Barnes

Principal, Supply Chain Now
Host of Supply Chain is Boring

Talk about world-class: Chris is one of the few professionals in the world to hold CPIM-F, CLTD-F and CSCP-F designations from ASCM/APICS. He’s also the APICS coach – and our resident Supply Chain Doctor. When he’s not hosting programs with Supply Chain Now, he’s sharing supply chain knowledge on the APICS Coach Youtube channel or serving as a professional education instructor for the Georgia Tech Supply Chain & Logistic Institute’s Supply Chain Management (SCM) program and University of Tennessee-Chattanooga Center for Professional Education courses.

Chris earned a BS in Industrial Engineering from Bradley University, an MBA with emphasis in Industrial Psychology from the University of West Florida, and is a Doctoral in Supply Chain Management candidate.

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Tyler Ward

Director of Sales

Tyler Ward serves as Supply Chain Now's Director of Sales. Born and raised in Mid-Atlantic, Tyler is a proud graduate of Shippensburg University where he earned his degree in Communications. After college, he made his way to the beautiful state of Oregon, where he now lives with his wife and daughter.

With over a decade of experience in sales, Tyler has a proven track record of exceeding targets and leading high-performing teams. He credits his success to his ability to communicate effectively with customers and team members alike, as well as his strategic thinking and problem-solving skills.

When he's not closing deals, you can find Tyler on the links or cheering on his favorite football and basketball teams. He also enjoys spending time with his family, playing pick-up basketball, and traveling back to Ocean City, Maryland, his favorite place!

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Kevin L. Jackson

Host of Digital Transformers

Kevin L. Jackson is a globally recognized Thought Leader, Industry Influencer and Founder/Author of the award winning “Cloud Musings” blog.  He has also been recognized as a “Top 5G Influencer” (Onalytica 2019, Radar 2020), a “Top 50 Global Digital Transformation Thought Leader” (Thinkers 360 2019) and provides strategic consulting and integrated social media services to AT&T, Intel, Broadcom, Ericsson and other leading companies. Mr. Jackson’s commercial experience includes Vice President J.P. Morgan Chase, Worldwide Sales Executive for IBM and SAIC (Engility) Director Cloud Solutions. He has served on teams that have supported digital transformation projects for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the US Intelligence Community.  Kevin’s formal education includes a MS Computer Engineering from Naval Postgraduate School; MA National Security & Strategic Studies from Naval War College; and a BS Aerospace Engineering from the United States Naval Academy. Internationally recognizable firms that have sponsored articles authored by him include CiscoMicrosoft, Citrix and IBM.  Books include “Click to Transform” (Leaders Press, 2020), “Architecting Cloud Computing Solutions” (Packt, 2018), and “Practical Cloud Security: A Cross Industry View” (Taylor & Francis, 2016). He also delivers online training through Tulane UniversityO’Reilly MediaLinkedIn Learning, and Pluralsight.  Mr. Jackson retired from the U.S. Navy in 1994, earning specialties in Space Systems EngineeringCarrier Onboard Delivery Logistics and carrier-based Airborne Early Warning and Control. While active, he also served with the National Reconnaissance Office, Operational Support Office, providing tactical support to Navy and Marine Corps forces worldwide.

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Enrique Alvarez

Host of Logistics with Purpose and Supply Chain Now en Español

Enrique serves as Managing Director at Vector Global Logistics and believes we all have a personal responsibility to change the world. He is hard working, relationship minded and pro-active. Enrique trusts that the key to logistics is having a good and responsible team that truly partners with the clients and does whatever is necessary to see them succeed. He is a proud sponsor of Vector’s unique results-based work environment and before venturing into logistics he worked for the Boston Consulting Group (BCG). During his time at BCG, he worked in different industries such as Telecommunications, Energy, Industrial Goods, Building Materials, and Private Banking. His main focus was always on the operations, sales, and supply chain processes, with case focus on, logistics, growth strategy, and cost reduction. Prior to joining BCG, Enrique worked for Grupo Vitro, a Mexican glass manufacturer, for five years holding different positions from sales and logistics manager to supply chain project leader in charge of five warehouses in Colombia.

He has an MBA from The Wharton School of Business and a BS, in Mechanical Engineer from the Technologico de Monterrey in Mexico. Enrique’s passions are soccer and the ocean, and he also enjoys traveling, getting to know new people, and spending time with his wife and two kids, Emma and Enrique.

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Kelly Barner

Host of Dial P for Procurement

Kelly is the Owner and Managing Director of Buyers Meeting Point and MyPurchasingCenter. She has been in procurement since 2003, starting as a practitioner and then as the Associate Director of Consulting at Emptoris. She has covered procurement news, events, publications, solutions, trends, and relevant economics at Buyers Meeting Point since 2009. Kelly is also the General Manager at Art of Procurement and Business Survey Chair for the ISM-New York Report on Business. Kelly has her MBA from Babson College as well as an MS in Library and Information Science from Simmons College and she has co-authored three books: ‘Supply Market Intelligence for Procurement Professionals’, ‘Procurement at a Crossroads’, and ‘Finance Unleashed’.

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Mary Kate Soliva

Host, Veteran Voices

Mary Kate Soliva is a veteran of the US Army and cofounder of the Guam Human Rights Initiative. She is currently in the Doctor of Criminal Justice program at Saint Leo University. She is passionate about combating human trafficking and has spent the last decade conducting training for military personnel and the local community.

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Constantine Limberakis

Host

Constantine Limberakis is a thought leader in the area of procurement and supply management. He has over 20 years of international experience, playing strategic roles in a wide spectrum of organizations related to analyst advisory, consulting, product marketing, product development, and market research.Throughout his career, he's been passionate about engaging global business leaders and the broader analyst and technology community with strategic content, speaking engagements, podcasts, research, webinars, and industry articles.Constantine holds a BA in History from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and an MBA in Finance & Marketing / Masters in Public & International Affairs from the University of Pittsburgh.

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Clay Phillips

Business Development Manager

Clay is passionate about two things: supply chain and the marketing that goes into it. Recently graduated with a degree in marketing at the University of Georgia, Clay got his start as a journalism major and inaugural member of the Owl’s football team at Kennesaw State University – but quickly saw tremendous opportunity in the Terry College of Business. He’s already putting his education to great use at Supply Chain Now, assisting with everything from sales and brand strategy to media production. Clay has contributed to initiatives such as our leap into video production, the guest blog series, and boosting social media presence, and after nearly two years in Supply Chain Now’s Marketing Department, Clay now heads up partnership and sales initiatives with the help of the rest of the Supply Chain Now sales team.

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Trisha Cordes

Administrative Assistant

Trisha is new to the supply chain industry – but not to podcasting. She’s an experienced podcast manager and virtual assistant who also happens to have 20 years of experience as an elementary school teacher. It’s safe to say, she’s passionate about helping people, and she lives out that passion every day with the Supply Chain Now team, contributing to scheduling and podcast production.

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Chantel King

Social Media Manager

My name is Chantel King and I am the Social Media Specialist at Supply Chain Now. My job is to make sure our audience is engaged and educated on the abundant amount of information the supply chain industry has to offer.

Social Media and Communications has been my niche ever since I graduated from college at The Academy of Art University in San Francisco. No, I am not a West Coast girl. I was born and raised in New Jersey, but my travel experience goes way beyond the garden state. My true passion is in creating editorial and graphic content that influences others to be great in whatever industry they are in. I’ve done this by working with lifestyle, financial, and editorial companies by providing resources to enhance their businesses.

Another passion of mine is trying new things. Whether it’s food, an activity, or a sport. I would like to say that I am an adventurous Taurus that never shies away from a new quest or challenge.

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Lori Sofian

Marketing Coordinator

Lori is currently completing a degree in marketing with an emphasis in digital marketing at the University of Georgia. When she’s not supporting the marketing efforts at Supply Chain Now, you can find her at music festivals – or working toward her dream goal of a fashion career. Lori is involved in many extracurricular activities and appreciates all the learning experiences UGA has brought her.

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Katherine Hintz

Director, Customer Experience

Katherine is a marketing professional and MBA candidate who strives to unite her love of people with a passion for positive experiences. Having a diverse background, which includes nonprofit work with digital marketing and start-ups, she serves as a leader who helps people live their most creative lives by cultivating community, order, collaboration, and respect. With equal parts creativity and analytics, she brings a unique skill set which fosters refining, problem solving, and connecting organizations with their true vision. In her free time, you can usually find her looking for her cup of coffee, playing with her puppy Charlie, and dreaming of her next road trip.

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Mary Kate Love

Chief of Staff & Host

Mary Kate Love is currently the VP of marketing at Supply Chain Now focused on brand strategy and audience + revenue growth. Mary Kate’s career is a testament to her versatility and innovative spirit: she has experience in start-ups, venture capital, and building innovation initiatives from the ground up: she previously helped lead the build-out of the Supply Chain Innovation Center at Georgia-Pacific and before that, MxD (Manufacturing times Digital): the Department of Defense’s digital manufacturing innovation center. Mary Kate has a passion for taking complicated ideas and turning them into reality: she was one of the first team members at MxD and the first team member at the Supply Chain Innovation Center at Georgia-Pacific.

Mary Kate dedicates her extra time to education and mentorship: she was one of the founding Board Members for Women Influence Chicago and led an initiative for a city-wide job shadow day for young women across Chicago tech companies and was previously on the Board of Directors at St. Laurence High School in Chicago, Young Irish Fellowship Board and the UN Committee for Women. Mary Kate is the founder of National Supply Chain Day and enjoys co-hosting podcasts at Supply Chain Now. Mary Kate is from the south side of Chicago, a mom of two baby boys, and an avid 16-inch softball player. She holds a BS in Political Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

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Joshua Miranda

Marketing Specialist

Joshua is a student from Institute of Technology and Higher Education of Monterrey Campus Guadalajara in Communication and Digital Media. His experience ranges from Plug and Play México, DearDoc, and Nissan México creating unique social media marketing campaigns and graphics design. Joshua helps to amplify the voice of supply chain here at Supply Chain Now by assisting in graphic design, content creation, asset logistics, and more.  In his free time he likes to read and write short stories as well as watch movies and television series.

Donna Krache

Director of Communications and Executive Producer

Donna Krache is a former CNN executive producer who has won several awards in journalism and communication, including three Peabodys.  She has 30 years’ experience in broadcast and digital journalism. She led the first production team at CNN to convert its show to a digital platform. She has authored many articles for CNN and other media outlets. She taught digital journalism at Georgia State University and Arizona State University. Krache holds a bachelor’s degree in government from the College of William and Mary and a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction from the University of New Orleans. She is a serious sports fan who loves the Braves. She is president of the Dave Krache Foundation. Named in honor of her late husband, this non-profit pays fees for kids who want to play sports but whose parents are facing economic challenges.

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Vicki White

Controller

Vicki has a long history of rising to challenges and keeping things up and running. First, she supported her family’s multi-million dollar business as controller for 12 years, beginning at the age of 17. Then, she worked as an office manager and controller for a wholesale food broker. But her biggest feat? Serving as the chief executive officer of her household, while her entrepreneur husband travelled the world extensively. She fed, nurtured, chaperoned, and chauffeured three daughters all while running a newsletter publishing business and remaining active in her community as a Stephen’s Minister, Sunday school teacher, school volunteer, licensed realtor and POA Board president (a title she holds to this day). A force to be reckoned with in the office, you might think twice before you meet Vicki on the tennis court! When she’s not keeping the books balanced at Supply Chain Now or playing tennis matches, you can find Vicki spending time with her husband Greg, her 4 fur babies, gardening, cleaning (yes, she loves to clean!) and learning new things.

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Katherine Hintz

Creative Director, Producer, Host

Katherine Hintz, MBA is a marketing professional who strives to unite her love of people with a passion for positive experiences. Having a diverse background, which includes nonprofit work with digital marketing and start-ups, she serves as a leader who helps people live their most creative lives by cultivating community, order, collaboration, and respect. With equal parts creativity and analytics, she brings a unique skill set which fosters refining, problem solving, and connecting organizations with their true vision. In her free time, you can usually find her looking for her cup of coffee, playing with her puppy Charlie, and dreaming of her next road trip.

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