Ulrich Mast

At the Gartner Supply Chain Planning Summit in Denver, Scott Luton sat down with two leaders from Manhattan Associates—Brett Lindner, Director of Product for Supply Chain Planning, and Ryan Gifford—Senior Director of Strategic Business Development. Together, the conversations painted a clear picture of one of the most persistent challenges in supply chain—and one of the biggest opportunities ahead: unifying planning and execution to drive agility, visibility, and better outcomes.   A Unified View of the Supply Chain Manhattan Associates is widely known for its strength in supply chain execution, spanning warehouse management, transportation management, labor management, and order management. As both Lindner and Gifford emphasized, what differentiates Manhattan today is its unified platform that brings execution and planning together—not as loosely connected systems, but as a single, cohesive foundation. Lindner explained that Manhattan helps companies model and design their future supply chains, enabling better planning decisions that directly inform execution. Gifford echoed that point, describing Manhattan’s approach as “two formerly siloed applications now dancing in unison”—all driven by a shared inventory and decision framework.   The Old Problem That Won’t Go Away: Silos When asked about old and new challenges in supply chain planning, both leaders pointed to the same…

Lean manufacturing is all about reducing waste and increasing efficiency. Manufacturers have been implementing lean practices for decades and have stood the test of time. Now, with technological advancements, lean methodologies can be more transformative than ever before. “Integrating automation into lean manufacturing is a powerful strategy. Unlike traditional automation, which often aims to increase production capacity without considering real needs, lean automation focuses on the smart and selective application of technologies to meet specific continuous improvement goals and eliminate inefficiencies,” the Kaizen Institute said. “Digital transformation provides an unprecedented opportunity for implementing lean,” it continued. “When applied within lean, tools like the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI), and data analytics can revolutionize how organizations detect and eliminate waste.” What is Lean Manufacturing? In “The Machine That Changed The World,” published in 1990, lean production is hailed as “Toyota’s secret weapon in the global car wars.” The Toyota Production System was developed following World War II from “a series of simple innovations … to provide both continuity in process flow and a wide variety in product offerings,” according to the Lean Enterprise Institute. In “Lean Thinking,” a 1996 follow-up to “The Machine That Changed The World,” authors James…