Michael O’Brien

Get Ready to increase your supply chain IQ! We’ve got all the latest episodes, interviews, conversations, and livestreams right here from Supply Chain Now this week. On Saturday, Supply Chain Now hosts Scott Luton, Greg White, and Jamin Alvidrez share their perspective on the industry, top business challenges, and what their priorities are.   On Monday, Fred Tolbert, Principal at Southeast Demand Solutions in Marietta Georgia, joined the Supply Chain Now team for a recent livestream to discuss the pandemic, the latest supply chain industry news, and what new developments we can expect to see going forward.   On Tuesday’s podcast episode, Stephanie Stuckey of Stuckey’s Corporation joined us for our Full Access series to share her professional journey.   On Wednesday, Scott welcomed Shan Muthuvelu and Steffanie Ness with UCBOS to talk about the convergence of retail and eCommerce supply chains as well as the importance of metadata   On Thursday, David Shillingford with Resilience360 joined us on the Supply Chain Buzz to discuss the top news in supply chain with Scott & Greg.   And our final episode this week Polly Mitchell-Guthrie and Patrick Van with Kinaxis join us too talk about what true supply chain resilience looks…

Special Guest Blog Post written by Bart A. De Muynck   The past few years have exposed just how fragile our supply chains can be. From tariff shocks to pandemic disruptions, from inflationary pressures to mounting parcel surcharges, the landscape has shifted beneath our feet. Companies that once managed logistics as a back-office function are now grappling with its role as a front-line business risk.   What’s often missed in this conversation is the role of freight audit and payment (FAP). Long considered a tactical necessity, FAP has quietly become a strategic imperative. And as I explored in the Better Supply Chains Market Radar: Freight Audit & Payment, the companies that treat it that way are the ones best equipped to weather today’s volatility.   Why FAP Has Become Mission-Critical   When tariffs can add 15–20% to input costs almost overnight, or when the elimination of the U.S. de minimis exemption threatens to reshape cross-border e-commerce, companies need more than visibility. They need real-time intelligence and agility.   Traditional FAP approaches—manual audits, siloed spreadsheets, reactive error correction—are no longer sufficient. Modern FAP platforms, powered by AI and advanced analytics, enable shippers to:   Audit with precision at scale, uncovering hidden…