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September 17, 2021
This Week In Supply Chain Now: September 13th – September 17th
Stay up to date on all the latest conversations, interviews, and episodes we released this week here at Supply Chain Now! On Monday we started the week off with an episode of Supply Chain Now with Scott Luton and TEKTOK host Karin Bursa! The two welcomed COO of SAPICS, Jenny Froome, and the Business Development Executive at SAPICS, Tonya Lamb. On Tuesday, we published a new episode of This Week In Business History with host Kelly Barner. On Tuesday, Scott reflects on the 2021 global summit with Lora Cecere, Kelly Barner, and Kevin L. Jackson. These four talk about some of the most impactful conversations that happened during the event, including effective leadership and how it goes hand in hand with supply chain planning, and more. On Wednesday we released an episode of Logistics With Purpose. This episode features Henok Berhanu, Founder & CEO of Carry 117, and Ashley Bohinc, Executive Director of Carry 117. On Thursday we published a new episode of the Freight Insider with host Page Siplon. Page welcomed Christian Fischer, President and CEO of Georgia Pacific, to the show. On Friday, we published the podcast version of our Monday Supply Chain Buzz livestream, with special guest,…
AI
December 18, 2025
Coupa’s Nari Viswanathan on Autonomous Spend, AI Accessibility, and the Future of Planning
At the Gartner Supply Chain Planning Summit in Denver, Scott Luton sat down with Nari Viswanathan, a veteran innovator in the planning and procurement technology space and a key leader at Coupa. The two reconnected after several recent collaborations—including webinars, industry sessions, and conversations in Dallas—and discussed the new realities of supply chain planning and how organizations are embracing technology like never before. Coupa and Autonomous Spend Management For those less familiar with Coupa, Viswanathan explained the company as the global leader in autonomous spend management—a framework that brings together direct and indirect spending to help organizations manage total spend more intelligently. Direct spend, of course, is where supply chain operations come into focus, making planning, design, and cost optimization central to the value Coupa delivers. Viswanathan leads Coupa’s global supply chain strategy, shaping how the company positions and scales its solutions across the market. After years spent in supply chain planning technology, he now sits at the intersection of procurement, supply chain, and advanced analytics—an area he believes has never been more exciting or more critical. Old Problems, New Pressures—and a Greater Willingness to Innovate When asked about the biggest challenges facing planners today, Viswanathan emphasized a…