Tony Spielberg

Special Guest Blog Post written by Bernadine Henderson Ms. Henderson, senior director of procurement at Protolabs, lifts the lid on buying in manufacturing and why relationships are central to it.   Simply put, the job of a buyer is really about buying the right thing at the right time for the right price. It sounds simple, but it really is very complicated because everything that’s going on in the world impacts the timing, the availability, and the price of the product. This means that buying has recently got a lot more complicated. World events have very real consequences on global supply chains. Just one example is the way in which buyers have responded to tariffs in the U.S. by re-routing sourcing locations. It takes a certain amount of agility to be a buyer in 2025, and this quick responsiveness is helped along by one key ingredient, and that is strong relationships with suppliers. Relationships Built on Trust A widely held misconception is that buyers are only interested in getting to the lowest price possible. In fact, the most important thing to a buyer is for suppliers to bring solutions that deliver overall value. In my experience, a really strong supplier…

Another busy week full of new episodes and livestreams at Supply Chain Now! If you missed an episode, get a quick summary and listen here. On Monday, our very own Clay “The Dawg” Phillips gives some insight on his job at Supply Chain Now. Supply Chain Now · “Recent Key Takeaways with Clay “The Dawg” Phillips”   On Tuesday, Scott & Greg welcomed Shannon Vaillancourt with RateLinx and Tim Judge with Agillitics to the show to share about optimizing supply chain decision making.   Supply Chain Now · “Optimizing Decision-Making in Supply Chain in 2020 & Beyond”   On Wednesday, we published this week’s Supply Chain Buzz, complete with the Retail Rundown and with special guest Chris Lingamfelter with 6 River Systems.   Supply Chain Now · “The Supply Chain Buzz for August 31st: The Retail Rundown & Chris Lingamfelter”   On Thursday, Scott and Greg welcomed co-host Paul Noble with Verusen to the show and featured Scott Armstrong with CONA Services LLC as their special guest.   Supply Chain Now · ” A View from the CFO’s Office: Scott Armstrong with CONA Services LLC”   And we wrapped up the week with Greg’s TECHquila Sunrise as he gives some…