Steve Britt

In a recent conversation, Supply Chain Now’s Scott Luton gained perspective from Sylvia Wilks, Chief Supply Chain Officer at Lamb Weston, who shared a powerful point of view on what it takes to lead in today’s increasingly complex, high-stakes supply chain environment. Her journey, from leading transformative initiatives at Starbucks to shaping global operations at Kimberly-Clark and REI, offers a consistent message: Success in supply chain isn’t just about systems or strategy. It’s about people, integration, and clarity of purpose. Wilks’ passion for supply chain was sparked during her time at Starbucks, where she led a bold initiative to insource instant coffee production. What began as a business case evolved into a transformative opportunity. “Seeing the entire chain, from strategy through operations, work seamlessly toward a common goal reinforced how much value organizations unlock when supply chain subfunctions operate collaboratively rather than in silos,” she explained. The idea of breaking down silos to create an integrated value chain has remained a central theme throughout Wilks’ leadership career.   The Power of People and Integration Across organizations of all sizes, Wilks sees a common thread: The challenges may be similar, but outcomes depend on how well teams work together. “My passion…

At the jampacked MODEX 2026 in Atlanta, Scott Luton sat down with Brian Devine, President & CEO of Ignite Industrial Professionals, for a grounded and timely conversation about one of the most pressing issues in global supply chain: the workforce. While automation continues to dominate headlines, Devine makes one thing clear: people are still at the center of it all. And finding them is getting harder by the day.   “Fingerprints on Every Box” Despite rapid advancements in robotics and automation, Devine emphasizes a fundamental truth that often gets overlooked. “There’s still… fingerprints on boxes. Somebody’s putting their fingerprints on tons of boxes to move it to the next phase of the supply chain,” he explains. Even in many highly automated environments, human labor remains essential. Devine shares an example of a cutting-edge facility where autonomous forklifts handle part of the process, but still rely on human operators to complete the job. The takeaway? Automation is largely augmenting, rather than replacing, the workforce. And that makes the labor shortage even more critical to address.   A Shrinking Labor Pool One of the most compelling parts of the discussion centers on simple supply-and-demand economics. The labor pool isn’t just tight. It’s…