Zack Rutland

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…

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…