Mark Goode

Special Guest Blog Post written by Gary Smith, CPIM-F, CSCP-F, CLTD-F, Author of “The Bridge,” Supply Chain Engineer, and Educator   1. Do Supply Chains exist in the public sector? The short answer is “YES!” I spent the first 25 years of my career in the private sector where I worked in warehouse operations, industrial engineering, and consulting, all in the logistics andsupply chain area. I cut my teeth on retail, automotive, chemical, food and beverage, publishing, and manufacturing. During that time, I also completed projects for the public sector in education and for the Department of Defense. In 2005 I was named Director of Supply Chain Operations for the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA). We operated a 200,000 sq. ft. warehouse that shipped repair material to 335 developments in New York’s five boroughs. In 2013, I was named Vice President of Supply Logistics for New York City Transit, the largest public transportation organization in North America. We operated over 1.5 million sq. ft. of warehouse space covering all of New York City. Several years ago, I was on a national committee for the Association for Supply Chain Management (ASCM). We created this elevator speech to describe Supply Chain…

The top supply chain trends in Africa right now include ecommerce, sustainability, technology and skills development. The e-commerce boom that was fuelled by Covid-19 is showing no signs of slowing. It is predicted that in 2025, e-commerce transactions in South Africa will grow 150% to R225 billion. While African consumers are clearly sold on the speed and convenience of online shopping, they are also increasingly recognising that there is an environmental price to be paid, and they are demanding greener e-commerce supply chains. African businesses also recognise that to compete on the global stage, and for Africa to rise as the supply chain powerhouse that many predict it can be, they must align with global environmental standards. Integrating sustainability into supply chain and logistics is therefore a growing imperative in Africa. African companies are investing in technologies like electric vehicles, renewable energy sources and advanced data analytics to measure, manage and minimise their environmental impact. They are optimising transportation routes to have fewer vehicles on the road and to cut CO2 emissions. They are adopting circular supply chain models, to get more use out of products and move beyond the traditional “take-make-waste” approach. Takealot, which is South Africa’s largest online…