Charu Thomas

Written by Karin Bursa, Founder and CEO of NIRAKIO and Supply Chain Now Host If you know me, you know I’m a supply chain nerd. I love talking about it, thinking about what’s next, and sharing success stories to inspire others who may feel overwhelmed or unsure where to start. So, when I stepped into the moderator’s chair for our recent Supply Chain Now livestream, I knew we were in for a powerful conversation. Five extraordinary women — each leading global supply chains at some of the world’s most iconic brands — came together to share how they are navigating disruption, embracing innovation, and shaping the future of supply chain leadership. As a fellow Woman in Supply Chain for over 30 years, I had to resist acting like a true ‘Fan Girl’ — I could have talked with them for hours. The world we live in is the “Never Normal.” Volatility is constant. Technology is advancing faster than our operating models. Yet, what struck me most during our panel was the optimism and resilience each leader displayed. These women are proof that even in the face of complexity, supply chains can be transformed into engines of business growth, agility, and…

Inventory audits may be one of retail’s most overlooked revenue opportunities. Every large retailer has invested in software that predicts demand, triggers replenishment, and manages shelf space with precision. Almost none of that software questions whether the inventory number it’s reading is actually correct. A recent study in the Journal of Business Logistics suggests that blind spot is expensive, and that fixing it is one of the more overlooked levers a retailer has for growing sales. The researchers, working with a major UK grocery chain, examined roughly 24,000 products across 11 stores to understand why inventory records drift from what’s physically on the shelf, a problem known in the industry as inventory record inaccuracy. They then ran a field experiment to measure what happens to sales when a store corrects those records through a full audit. The results reframe a task most retailers treat as a nuisance into something closer to a growth strategy. Start with why the records go wrong in the first place. The study found that products carrying more inventory and products replenished more often were significantly more prone to inaccuracy. That makes intuitive sense: every case broken down, every unit moved from backroom to shelf, is…