Brittney Richardson

At the Gartner Supply Chain Planning Summit in Denver, Scott Luton sat down with Caglar Ozdag, a supply chain leader at ZS. Known for its deep analytics and technology expertise across industries such as life sciences, airlines, consumer goods, and agriculture, ZS has become a trusted partner for organizations looking to elevate their planning and manufacturing performance. Ozdag leads the firm’s supply chain practice with a focus on planning from detailed forecasting through detailed scheduling. As a former practitioner himself—having led planning operations at large global enterprises—he brings a grounded, real-world perspective to the challenges facing today’s supply chain leaders.   Old Problems Persist—and New Ones Are Emerging When asked about classic and emerging challenges in planning, Ozdag didn’t hesitate: firefighting isn’t going away. From supply planning disruptions to last-minute schedule changes, firefighting remains a daily reality. “Life happens,” Ozdag noted. Plans rarely match reality, and organizations must constantly adjust. But today, a new layer has been added: AI uncertainty. Everywhere he goes, leaders are asking the same questions: “Is AI the right investment?” “Will the ROI materialize?” “Are we adopting the right tools, or just chasing hype?” This blend of enduring complexity and emerging skepticism has become a defining…

This week at Supply Chain Now has been full of great conversations and key takewaways you don’t want to miss. Check out all the latest episodes, interviews, conversations, and livestreams right here! On Saturday, Scott & Greg Chat Automotive & Leadership with Jim Liegghio & Elba Pareja-Gallagher   On Monday, Scott and Greg welcome SAP business leaders that are fueling industry 4.0, Mike Lackey and Robert Merlo, who share key takeaways from a wide variety of initiatives right here.   On Tuesday, Scott and featured guest Jonathon Karelse, CEO of Northfind Management, lead the conversation surrounding the next big idea for decision making and planning in most companies: Behavioral Economics.   On Wednesday, Scott and Greg hosted welcomed Kara Brown and Will Haraway from LeadCoverage to Supply Chain Buzz where they discussed recent developments in supply chain, key takeaways surrounding customer experience, democratization in the TMS space and technology trends.   On Thursday, Scott and Greg welcomed two business leaders from OMNIA Partners, Lisa Wittmer and Dan Grant, for a discussion on how modern GPO is future-proofing the global supply chain.   And we ended the week with an episode of TECHquila Sunrise. Featured guest Jason Perez, CEO of YARDZ,…