Supply Chain Now
Episode 1192

The thing that lean does most in my experience is it brings structure. It brings a structured approach to answering very difficult questions. A root cause analysis. How do we map a complex process and remove waste and inefficiencies? How do we go about change management with a structured approach? To me, those lean tools, lean methodologies, and a lean approach are very powerful.

-Dale McClung

Episode Summary

In this episode of Supply Chain Now, host Scott W. Luton welcomes Dale McClung, Vice President of Supply Chain Services at CLX Logistics, to the show. Listen in as Scott and Dale discuss the future of data-driven supply chains and CLX’s focus on providing the best in supply chain services for their global audience.

Scott and Dale’s conversation highlights:

  • the importance of understanding and working with probability in forecasting and planning for change
  • the unique challenges and opportunities in the chemical industry, emphasizing the importance of data-driven decision making
  • CLX’s LaneLogix program, which combines rate and service benchmarking with procurement to help clients save money and improve efficiency
  • Supply chain disruption predictions for 2024

Episode Transcript

Intro/Outro (00:03):

Welcome to Supply Chain. Now the voice of global supply chain supply chain now focuses on the best in the business for our worldwide audience, the people, the technologies, the best practices, and today’s critical issues, the challenges and opportunities. Stay tuned to hear from Those Making Global Business happen right here on supply chain now.

Scott Luton (00:33):

Hey. Hey. Good morning, good afternoon, good evening, wherever you may be. Scott Luton here with you on Supply Chain. Now welcome to today’s show. We have an outstanding conversation teed up as we’re gonna be talking with a business leader doing big things out in the industry, especially in the chemicals industry. So, with that said, we’re gonna dive right in. I’m gonna introduce our featured guest here today. Our guest has a deep background in chemical and biochemical engineering, well above my pay grade, lemme tell you, as well as over 20 years of experience in strategic supply chain innovation. He specializes in global supply chain network design amongst many other things. And what Mike just talked about, what he does when he puts his inventor hat on, that he wears from time to time. So, with that said, let’s welcome in the Vice President of Supply Chain Services at CLX Logistics Dale McClung. Dale, how you doing?

Dale McClung (01:23):

Hey Scott. I’m doing great. Thanks for having me.

Scott Luton (01:26):

You bet. And I gotta go back to your chemical and biochemical engineering background. Sure. I knew and when I was in college, that was too much math amongst other things for my intellect. So you’ve put it to work in across the global business landscape, huh?

Dale McClung (01:44):

Yeah, yeah. I’ve been in the chemical industry, my whole professional, uh, career.

Scott Luton (01:48):

Really. Okay, we’re gonna dive into that. We’re gonna dive into why, what really makes chemical supply chain logistics, the chemical industry unique and and challenging at times. So you gotta look for those good partners. But where I wanna start with Dale, we’re talking pre-show a little bit because you’ve got two degrees from the West Virginia University Institute of Technology. So I’m assuming, is it right that you grew up in that part of the world?

Dale McClung (02:15):

Yeah, I sure did. I grew up in Southern West Virginia on a horse farm.

Scott Luton (02:20):

Really? What’s the name of the town?

Dale McClung (02:24):

The small town is named Wynnwood. The town down the street is a little more popular is Rainelle. And yeah, it’s a very, very small town. Okay.

Scott Luton (02:33):

Wynwood and a horse farm, no less, I guess. Were you working long days as a kid on a horse farm?

Dale McClung (02:39):

You do everything on the farm. Right. And we had Tennessee walkers. So between the horses, the upkeep, the hayfield and everything else, it, it consumed a biggest r of your day yet?

Scott Luton (02:50):

Oh, it’s a lot of work. When I was a kid, once or twice, my uncle had a couple of horses. And folks may think that since hay is so light, they may think like hay, hay bales are light. But you stack up, you know, you stack a bunch of hay bales in a barn. You’re good to sleep for a few days, huh?

Dale McClung (03:09):

You sure are. And we never could afford those big round bailers. So we were, we were working with the short square bear bales and no, they’re not light. Mm.

Scott Luton (03:18):

Quinn wood, West Virginia. All right. One more question about where you grew up. Food. I love talking food, especially regionally. What’s one food dish that may be more prevalent in that, you know, in your hometown that you really miss these days?

Dale McClung (03:32):

Yeah. Um, I, I’ll give you two. One on the farm, the prevalent food on the farm is brown beans and cornbread.

Scott Luton (03:39):

Okay. Right. Brown beans and cornbread.

Dale McClung (03:42):

That’s it. Maybe you had it for lunch and then you had it, had it for dinner and it tasted good. Mom knew how to fix it. Now, if we got a special treat, there was a small lack of better term, a beer joint, a tavern down the road, and they made the best hot dogs I have ever tasted. They were so greasy, they had to, you got two paper bags and a piece of wax paper and you were lucky to get home before the grease got all the way through all of that. And on the car seat,

Scott Luton (04:14):

oh, those sound like world class hotdog to me.

Dale McClung (04:16):

They were,

Scott Luton (04:17):

you had me at hot, you had me at hot. And I’ll tell you what. Alright, so let’s talk about this. I hate to leave the food subject because I think there’s so much more we can talk about, but we got a lot more to get to. And I wanna start with patent, this big patent Mm-Hmm. <affirmative> that you have pending that I think is gonna be helpful in terms of improving forecasting. What can you share with us about that?

Dale McClung (04:38):

Yeah, yeah. So it is a, a pretty novel approach to demand forecasting. And it uses a couple of things. Spectral analysis. So in the optics, real and waveform analysis in the sound waveform,

Scott Luton (04:53):

yeah.

Dale McClung (04:53):

So the idea is that you map data to acoustic and optical realms, and then you use the tools that they use every day in those two areas. You know, noise cancellation, image clarification to forecast, to basically create a better forecasting engine. And what we’ve found is you’re not really forecasting the data as so much as you’re forecasting the person creating the data. That is, that’s the interesting part.

Scott Luton (05:27):

That’s fascinating. I cannot wait. So is there a timeframe associated where you’ll be able to really lay it out to our audience? When will it be official?

Dale McClung (05:35):

Yeah, so we’re, we’re hoping to, to make some pretty big strides next year in the development. It’s still pretty embryonic, but promising, very promising. And start to get a little bit more of a real world application later in next year.

Scott Luton (05:50):

Okay. Spectral analysis and waveform analysis in terms of you leveraging those to improve demand forecasting. And I love how you put it beyond the numbers, really forecasting the people behind the data. I love that.

Dale McClung (06:03):

Yeah.

Scott Luton (06:04):

All right. We’re gonna stay tuned on that, on the edge of our chair. ’cause I wanna bring y’all back and we’ll talk more when it becomes official, perhaps next year. So as we’ve established, you’ve been in industry for quite some time, Dale, if you’ve listened to any of our shows, we’ve got this two decade where we try not to break, right? So we don’t age ourselves <laugh>. But n needless to say, you’ve seen a ton of change and evolution during your time in industry. So I want to ask you this because we do, we know like everything else, you know, the craft supply chain management continues to evolve. You know, I would argue not only is it here in 2023, not what it was 10 years ago, but it’s hardly what it was maybe even two years ago. So what is one skillset in your view that the modern supply chain practitioner must embrace?

Dale McClung (06:51):

I think the skillset that confines data and communications. So you have to be a good analyst that it can’t stop there. You have to communicate well with the people you’re working with, and you have to apply a real world aspect to the analysis. In our world, the analysis is the easy first step. The work comes in the so what now, what question that comes out of that analysis,

Scott Luton (07:21):

Dale? Well, well said. The, and I like how you put the analysis is the easy part. The tougher part is convincing the hearts and minds of folks across the board, on the team and the c-suite of what the analysis is really telling us and what we should do based on what it’s telling us. Would you agree?

Dale McClung (07:39):

Exactly.

Scott Luton (07:39):

Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>. Okay. So another thing I wanna ask you about, uh, before we get into some of the cool things you’re doing at CLX logistics is you and I both, who knows, we could be third cousins. We’ve established some of the things that we love. We both love like good hotdog, but <laugh> we’re also big, very passionate, I think both of us about the lean mindset, right?

Dale McClung (08:01):

Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>.

Scott Luton (08:02):

and the lean continuous improvement methodology. So throughout much of your career, based on the homework we’ve done, be it at Bayer Material Science or now at CLX, you know, tried and true improvement mindsets like lean, have been a big part of your work. And it goes without saying, of course, many of these things have been around, like lean’s been around for decades. But would you think, would you agree rather that they’re more relevant today than perhaps ever before due to how we’re all trying to manage change and complexity and surprises and a lot more, so much so here today?

Dale McClung (08:35):

Yeah, I, I totally agree with you. And then the, the thing that Lean does most for me and the team here and in my experience is it brings structure. It brings a structured approach to, uh, answering very difficult questions most of the time. A root cause analysis. How do we map a complex process and even attempt to look at removing waste and inefficiencies, and how do we go about change management and, you know, what’s a structured approach to that? To me, those lean tools, lean methodologies, and a lean approach or our very powerful in those areas. Yeah, well said. And the, the structure, I mean, when I think when I’m thinking through as you’re, you are sharing as we are all going through some degree based on where you are, some degree of uncertainty, right? And when you’re doing that, especially when the stakes are so big, you really look for that structure, that foundation that you can anchor yourself to as you deal with everything else.

Scott Luton (09:36):

That’s so fluid. So that’s very, very well put. And I love how you dropped like a lean guru would, you know, root cause analysis, the values, re mapping the waste, because, you know, one last thought here, this just came up in, in a couple of shows in the last few weeks, lean really has gotten a bad rap because it’s been misused and mislabeled and misapplied through so many different organizations who’ve wanted to do things that were not true lean things to do, but they kind of put that banner over it. Have you seen some of that, Dale?

Dale McClung (10:06):

Yeah. Yeah. In my experience, there’s hardly ever one silver bullet. Lean is not a silver bullet. It’s a very powerful tool that if combined with other tools, it could be a silver bullet. But, you know, there’s not one software package, it’s a silver bullet. So people I think put too much stock in silver bullets and then they get disappointed. It’s the people matching the, you know, the talent of the people and the experience matching the tool sets that brings the most value.

Scott Luton (10:37):

Dale, well said. And folks out there listening or watching, that’s what you want to hear from the guru’s nest. It means you turn to, if anyone’s sitting you down to a one singular option, kick the tires on that. ’cause it, it, it, it’s gotta fit. Options are a great thing. And there’s all, you think about the continuous improvement or the technology or the supply chain management tool, belt Dell, there’s lots of things in there, so, very well said. All right. So let’s do this. I bet if some of our folks tuned into, uh, a great interview we had with, uh, Mike Skinner, your colleague at COLX logistics, we had a lot of fun. He brought a lot to the table and it’s great to have you here. But for the folks that may have missed that first one or may not be paying attention to the movers and shakers out there in industry, in a nutshell, what does CLX logistics do, Dale?

Dale McClung (11:27):

Yeah, well, you know, Scott, we’re a, we’re a global third party logistics provider. We have specialized in transportation management systems, but we do, we have a core competency in managed services and obviously in supply chain consulting and continuous improvement and benchmarking. And we serve customers globally. Most of our customers are in the chemical industry and we have offices in the US and in Europe now. Just opened a new office in Houston, by the way.

Scott Luton (11:56):

Really?

Dale McClung (11:57):

Yeah.

Scott Luton (11:58):

Okay. I bet there’s some disappointed Astros fans, uh, down there in Houston, but Houston’s was such a getting aside, Houston’s such a, an outstanding market, so that’s pretty exciting.

Dale McClung (12:07):

Yeah, yeah. Yeah. We’re excited about it too.

Scott Luton (12:10):

And you can find all kinds of delicious food dishes on your first visit down to New Houston Branch Dale.

Dale McClung (12:16):

Absolutely. Yeah. <laugh>,

Scott Luton (12:18):

before I ask you about what makes the chemicals industry more unique than others, anything else you wanna add about, uh, as you were describing what CLX logistics does? I didn’t mean to cut you off there.

Dale McClung (12:28):

No, no, I think that’s, uh, at the core, that’s who we are. Yep.

Scott Luton (12:33):

So let’s talk about the chemicals industry. And I know y’all do a ton of work globally, and while you do a lot of work, as you mentioned in the chemical space, you also do a lot of other work. And we’ve also established your background, your highfalutin background, if I may, highly technical term. So let’s, let’s, in your view, what makes a chemicals industry, if you were speaking to a room full of folks that never had, you know, set foot in the chemical space, what makes it so more unique than many other sectors in the, in the, in industry,

Dale McClung (13:03):

We know it’s got, one of the unique aspects of the chemical industry is it touches everybody. There’s no de denying that even though you’re not buying a, a drone of chemicals, your life is impacted significantly by the chemical industry, from packaging to health, to food on the table to your home. It’s all being impacted by the chemical network, chemical manufacturing network. And another thing that makes it unique is that chemical manufacturing network in the US is core to the financial health of our economy. And third way that it’s unique is in transportation of the cargo itself. You know, in our world, we may talk to customer one about handling a cargo of, you know, rocket fuel and how to safely transport it. What’s the, the cost involved and how, what to expect in terms of service and hang up the phone and talk to another customer about, uh, a coating that’s coated on undercoats ships that’s completely different. And then another customer, we might be talking about tomato saw <laugh> with the stuff. It’s really a unique industry from that standpoint.

Scott Luton (14:19):

Well, you can, you can solve a lot of world’s ills between rocket fuel and tomato sauce. Just saying Dale. And it’s also so funny, you know, a lot of folks talk about rocket fuel, whether they’re referencing the book or they’re referencing, um, you know, what’s behind growth or whatever. You’re literally talking about moving rocket fuel. That is fascinating.

Dale McClung (14:38):

Yeah, yeah, no jokes.

Scott Luton (14:41):

One other thing I, I’ve kind of picked up from previous conversations is the special tanks that are involved due to global standards when you’re moving stuff like rocket fuel. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>. And when I was on y’all’s website the other day, I came across, y’all offer like a ISO tank capacity guide right over@clxlogistics.com that a bunch of folks may find helpful. So do you, do you feel like a big part of y’all’s role is educating not just your customers, but really the market?

Dale McClung (15:07):

Yeah, absolutely. The crosspollination of knowledge is something that is of core competency for us. You know, some customers may be getting into a new market with their products and don’t quite understand what’s required or how to safety or even how to budget for the transportation part, we’re, we’re there to help other customers may be just the opposite. They’ve been knowing this for a long time, they have a lot of experience and they’re looking at how do we improve, how do we make it better? And so, yeah, it’s, this best way to describe it is, you know, cross pollination of knowledge and, and learning.

Scott Luton (15:46):

I love that. One of the phrases that comes to my mind is you shared that, and I can’t remember who shared this with me, but uninformed people make uninformed decisions and that’s when you really can get in trouble as an organization. Alright, I wanna ask you something else about the CLX kind of portfolio of things y’all do. Tell me about Lean Logics. What does the CLX Lean Logics do?

Dale McClung (16:07):

Yeah. Lane Logics is a program that we offer clients that combines rate and service benchmarking with procurement and how to buy transportation procurement. You know, if you think of a benchmark, it’s knowing the answers to the test before you go to the market. And in procurement it’s how do you buy using best practices? But then a third step is, okay, after you got the new contracts and implemented, how do you make sure that you’re using the new contracts and you’re leveraging all the benefits you got from that procurement event throughout the year? Things change, customers are added, customers are take away volumes change. And as that’s happening, this is a continuous look at, okay, here’s a lane that’s tripled in volume.

Dale McClung (17:03):

It didn’t have enough volume to be contracted in the beginning, but it’s a long haul and, uh, now it’s a very expensive lane if you’re paying tariffs for rates for that. So being able to tell the client, Hey, you, you know, you’ve got an opportunity here to save some money on contracting this lane, you have to take everything out. So it’s that continuous cycle of execution, buying, measuring yourself to the market process that really defines is at the heart of Lane Logics.

Scott Luton (17:35):

Dale, I I, I appreciate you sharing that, uh, about all the different advantages that Lane Logics brings to the table from the team at CLX. And one of the things that you mentioned, two, two of the things in particular you mentioned that speak to me is not only the ability to save money through the benchmarking and procurement tools and, and expertise and whatever, but it helps create a better and easier day for the people out there that are in the seats that are in the trenches. Do you see that time and time again?

Dale McClung (18:04):

Absolutely. Yeah.

Scott Luton (18:06):

And it’s so important. I mean, we need to make as much as we can leadership across organizations, we’ve gotta put them and our people in position to win and succeed and overcome all these challenges we were talking about a little earlier. Right?

Dale McClung (18:21):

Yeah, absolutely. It’s a lot of change management, the goods into helping our customers understand how to do things better, not only cheaper, but also more efficiently.

Scott Luton (18:32):

Right. And I like how you put it with benchmarking, knowing the answers before you get in to have to take the test.

Dale McClung (18:38):

Yeah.

Scott Luton (18:39):

I really wish I had a lot of that in earlier my academic career. Maybe I could’ve done a biochemical engineering and I probably not. Probably not, yeah. Wasn’t in the cards for me. Okay. I wanna, if, if we can, based on what you shared about Lane Logics, I wanna get into just a couple of examples in terms of where you’ve seen it really make powerful done some powerful things for some of your customers. Can you share a story or two?

Dale McClung (19:02):

Yeah, yeah. You know, uh, one story, we were doing a Lane Logics, uh, benchmarking event and we were looking at line haul and accessorial charges, and we noticed the ratio of accessorial, the total cost was way off for this client. And when we started getting into the data and looking, we found that there was a provider, a series of providers that was charging them an address change fee to the tune of like 20, $30,000 a month.

Scott Luton (19:32):

Wow.

Dale McClung (19:33):

And they knew where to go, but the address, the customer address and SAP several addresses were raw. So they kept charging them these fees and not telling them. So that was, that was an aha moment for the client and, and for us as well. And at first we thought it was a glitch in the data, but then, you know, more we looked, the more we saw it was real. That was one example of Lane Logic. The other example of Lane Logic is not necessarily cost savings, but knowing what you’re paying for the service you’re getting. So a very specialty chemical company who were at the top of the top of the scale in terms of cost, but that was a differentiator for them from their competitors, is the ability to offer expedited shipments, rush shipments. And so when we showed them that, we said, this isn’t a bad thing based on your business model, this is just the reality of your business model and the cost of operating this way. And so for them, it was good to see what the cost of service was for them and to make a rational decision based on that. So $30,000 a month, going back to your first example off a needless address change fee, I bet you made the team, but the CFO’s day in particular, and then secondly, and probably if not more powerful than the savings, is what I heard you share there in that second example, allowing for teams and leaders and managers to be in the know, so they know their business better.

Scott Luton (21:12):

Yeah. They make better decisions and ultimately they can optimize service levels and give their customers options. That’s, that’s some powerful rocket fuel in my book.

Dale McClung (21:20):

Yeah, exactly. And it’s all about these findings are, are based on the data and the information. So when you bring something like we, you’re, there’s really something broken here and here’s the data to prove it, it’s really important from a confidence level for the client that they’re able to see that data and truly understand that this isn’t conjectural, this is like, this is based on fact, here are the facts, here are the invoices. And, uh, that really helps in the change management and the emotion part of what you’re dealing with here. Well, people work hard and, and in generally people are very smart, but asking them to change or do something different without data is pretty dangerous.

Scott Luton (22:02):

Agreed. You, so what you’re saying is you can take it to the bank, it’s rooted in data, it’s not gut or instinct or hunches or assumptions, but you can take it to the bank and lean on it. I love that. And because the other thing that we’ve talked a ton about in recent years is when you can truly depend on the information and the data you’re getting and knowing that it’s rooted there in the numbers, you can make not only better decisions, but more confident decisions quicker. And that is so powerful on a variety of different levels and it’s truly a force multiplier when you’re trying to maximize the performance of any team, but certainly your your supply chain organization. Alright, so I wanna uh, shift gears here. We were just talking about some of the teams that you and, and the CLX logistics team has been helping, uh, this year. Uh, a variety of places from a geography standpoint, a variety of sectors, of course a lot in the chemicals industry. But when you think about and reflect on the year that 2023 was goodness gracious, what is one eureka moment that you might’ve had, especially as it pertains to leadership or innovation?

Dale McClung (23:11):

Yeah, yeah. We work a lot with descriptive analytics with customers, which is looking at historical data and then in predicting it, predictive analytics is what it sounds like, forecasting and everything. The aha moment was the need to understand and work with probability. When you’re talking about the future, this is going to happen and there’s an 85% probability that it’s going to happen, not a hundred percent. So the aha moment was for us, was explaining that our predictions in the context of probability with the customers and having them understand that aspect of, of this forecasting system. And oddly enough, <laugh>, you talk about probability man, every time 63% shows up, what do you do with a 63% probability that this is gonna happen? And he said, so having worked through that, the post aha moment is okay, how do we deal with the 63% probability? What do we tell customers?

Scott Luton (24:17):

Your thoughts bring a lot of thoughts to my mind. And I think one of them is, despite what everyone’s saying, no one truly knows with a hundred percent certainty what the future holds, whether in the micro or the macro. So that’s where these data-driven probability conversations are so important. And then a second thought that comes my mind, Dale, is I want you to accompany me on my next visit to Las Vegas and I want to <laugh>, I wanna apply your smarts and your probability, your data-driven probability to my poor betting. Alright, good stuff. I love it. So let’s also, speaking of the future, we’re gonna blink in just a moment and it’s gonna be 2024. It’s amazing. This phrase that I’ve said a thousand times goes something like, the days are long, but the years are short. And I bet a lot of our, a lot of parents out there or practitioners can probably relate to that. So when you think about 2024, Dale, what is one bold prediction in global supply chain that your crystal ball, which I bet is more accurate than many others, what’s it telling you?

Dale McClung (25:25):

I’ll, I’ll start it off with a warning and uh, that warning would be beware the bull whip.

Scott Luton (25:32):

Okay.

Dale McClung (25:33):

Uh, bullwhip has haunted us as supply chain professionals ever since somebody named it Bull Whipp <laugh>, everybody knew it. Somebody put a name in it, process behind it. But the bull whipp now we saw what happened to the transportation enter industry and when Covid hit, and so as a community, we demonstrated the capability of creating a giant bull whipp. And well, I don’t think that is going to be re that level is gonna be repeated in 2024. There could be a pretty good possibility as inventories somebody realize a lot of industries realize their inventories are too low, that we create another bullwhip in transportation industry. And one thing, a bold prediction is don’t expect to pay next year what you’re paying this year for transportation.

Scott Luton (26:26):

Hmm. So buyer beware, it’s gonna be a different market in the months ahead, Dale, is that right?

Dale McClung (26:34):

Yeah, yeah. I’m not saying stock apple on toilet paper, but I’m saying beware of how quickly we can snap back in the industry and the repercussions I could have on spend,

Scott Luton (26:48):

Dale. Well said. One thought that that kind of brings to my mind is after all we’ve been through in recent years, right. Especially the pandemic, right. ’cause the pandemic was probably a once in a lifetime, hopefully goodness notes Yeah. Experience for all of us. So many of us as humans really were just hoping and praying that once you get into the post pandemic environment, everything will go back to what it was, what it has been or what the good old days for lack of better phrased. But that’s just not the case. And I think what you’re speaking to there is whatever shred of normalcy that you may have, you and your organizations may have found today, it’s not permanent. And we’ve gotta bake that mindset and that that truth into how we’re planning for the months and the years ahead. Would you agree, Dale?

Dale McClung (27:40):

Yeah. Yeah. If you’re not planning for change, then you’re gonna fail.

Scott Luton (27:46):

without a doubt. A hundred percent probability on that. Uh, I really appreciate your perspective and you, one of my favorite things I like talking about, especially for our listeners that may still be in school right? And they’re still kind of figuring out this global supply chain world is, I think you’re a good testimony to that. Our global supply chain industry needs people from all walks of life.

Dale McClung (28:08):

Absolutely.

Scott Luton (28:08):

Whether they’re from high biochemical engineering, right. Highly technical, or whether they’re artists, whether they’re communicators, whatever. And that’s how the industry is gonna be better and, and, and be better prepared for the change and the disruption that certainly lies ahead. Would you agree with that, Dale?

Dale McClung (28:29):

Absolutely. A hundred percent. It, it takes the, the collaboration of people and the combination of different skills and aptitudes creates the strength. You know, you don’t get superpowers from an all the, all a group of chemical engineers sitting in a room trying to solve out problems. You know, because they, they only look at things in an analytical way. But when you sit back and you bring in, actually did this for Penn State, okay, we brought in mathematicians, music majors and together to start solving some problems. When you do that, then these perspectives, you’re just amazed at the ideas that come to the surface and it’s real exciting stuff. So yeah.

Dale McClung (29:12):

Dale it is. Next time we have you back, we’re gonna talk about your patent. We’ll probably talk about brown beans and hopefully savory cornbread, not sweet cornbread, but I’d love to learn more about, sounds like some real powerful experiments at Penn State with the power of diversity is kind of what I heard you exactly. Uh, just speak to. Okay Dale, I bet you’re gonna have some folks that wanna sit down with you and talk about some of these topics we have worked through. Congrats again to your team over at CLX Logistics. Y’all have been on quite a role helping groups and, and organizations and folks across the globe. How can folks connect with you and the CLX logistics team?

Dale McClung (29:49):

Yeah, yeah. They can head on over to clx logistics.com and write on that front page is a way that you can reach out to us and you can get me on LinkedIn as well too. Says send me a message on LinkedIn. I’ll be good.

Scott Luton (30:03):

Perfect. And folks, of course, we’re gonna include those two links in the show notes. So you’re one click away. We’re trying to make it really easy to connect with Dell and the team. And then also check out all those resources I mentioned over@clxlogistics.com. Okay. Dale McClung, vice president of Supply Chain Services at CLX Logistics. Dell, pleasure to get to know you here today.

Dale McClung (30:25):

Yeah, thanks Scott. Thanks. Thanks for having me.

Scott Luton (30:28):

I look forward to doing it again soon. All right. To our listeners, hopefully you enjoyed this episode as much as I have. I wish I had three or four more hours to spend with Dale because we had to talk, we got a lot more talk about in supply chain and I’d love to get his data-driven. Thoughts on who’s gonna win the big game at the end of the National Football League season. But we’ll save that for another episode. Folks, take something. Dale dropped a truckload of good stuff here today. Take something he talked about. Take something they’re doing at CLX and put it in action. It’s all about deeds, not words. Your team, your people, your customers, your suppliers will all be grateful and thankful that you did. So with that said, Scott Luton here from Supply Chain now challenging you to do good, to give forward and to be the chain just needed. And we’ll see next time right back here at Supply Chain now. Thanks everybody.

Intro/Outro (31:17):

Thanks for being a part of our supply chain now community. Check out all of our programming@supplychainnow.com and make sure you subscribe to Supply Chain now, anywhere you listen to podcasts. And follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram. See you next time on Supply Chain. Now.

Featured Guests

Dale McClung, With a background in chemical and biochemical engineering and over 20 years of experience in strategic supply chain innovation, Dale McClung specializes in global supply chain network design and leads the Design Solutions team at CLX Logistics. Delivering innovative and disruptive design solutions for the most complex global supply chain challenges is what we do best. By using a unique blend of descriptive, predictive, and prescriptive analytics coupled with trajectory forecasting we give clients remarkable insight into the performance of their supply chains as it relates to their financial bottom line, their customers, and suppliers. We use the latest stochastic and multi-variant modeling techniques coupled with fundamental Lean Six Sigma principles to drive comprehensive and sustainable solutions. Connect with Dale on LinkedIn.

Hosts

Scott W. Luton

Founder, CEO, & Host

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Kim Winter

Host, Supply Chain Now

The founder of Logistics Executive Group, Kim Winter delivers 40 years of executive leadership experience spanning Executive Search & Recruitment, Leadership Development, Executive Coaching, Corporate Advisory, Motivational Speaking, Trade Facilitation and across the Supply Chain, Logistics, 3PL, E-commerce, Life Science, Cold Chain, FMCG, Retail, Maritime, Defence, Aviation, Resources, and Industrial sectors. Operating from the company’s global offices, he is a regular contributor of thought leadership to industry and media, is a professional Master of Ceremonies, and is frequently invited to chair international events.

He is a Board member of over a dozen companies throughout APAC, India, and the Middle East, a New Zealand citizen, he holds formal resident status in Australia and the UAE, and is the Australia & New Zealand representative for the UAE Government-owned Jebel Ali Free Zone (JAFZA), the Middle East’s largest Economic Free Zone.

A triathlete and ex-professional rugby player, Kim is a qualified (IECL Sydney) executive coach and the Founder / Chairman of the successful not for profit humanitarian organization, Oasis Africa (www. oasisafrica.org.au), which has provided freedom from poverty through education to over 8000 mainly orphaned children in East Africa’s slums. Kim holds an MBA and BA from Massey & Victoria Universities (NZ).

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Joshua Miranda

Marketing Specialist

Joshua is a student from Institute of Technology and Higher Education of Monterrey Campus Guadalajara in Communication and Digital Media. His experience ranges from Plug and Play México, DearDoc, and Nissan México creating unique social media marketing campaigns and graphics design. Joshua helps to amplify the voice of supply chain here at Supply Chain Now by assisting in graphic design, content creation, asset logistics, and more.  In his free time he likes to read and write short stories as well as watch movies and television series.

Donna Krache

Director of Communications and Executive Producer

Donna Krache is a former CNN executive producer who has won several awards in journalism and communication, including three Peabodys.  She has 30 years’ experience in broadcast and digital journalism. She led the first production team at CNN to convert its show to a digital platform. She has authored many articles for CNN and other media outlets. She taught digital journalism at Georgia State University and Arizona State University. Krache holds a bachelor’s degree in government from the College of William and Mary and a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction from the University of New Orleans. She is a serious sports fan who loves the Braves. She is president of the Dave Krache Foundation. Named in honor of her late husband, this non-profit pays fees for kids who want to play sports but whose parents are facing economic challenges.

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Vicki White

Controller

Vicki has a long history of rising to challenges and keeping things up and running. First, she supported her family’s multi-million dollar business as controller for 12 years, beginning at the age of 17. Then, she worked as an office manager and controller for a wholesale food broker. But her biggest feat? Serving as the chief executive officer of her household, while her entrepreneur husband travelled the world extensively. She fed, nurtured, chaperoned, and chauffeured three daughters all while running a newsletter publishing business and remaining active in her community as a Stephen’s Minister, Sunday school teacher, school volunteer, licensed realtor and POA Board president (a title she holds to this day). A force to be reckoned with in the office, you might think twice before you meet Vicki on the tennis court! When she’s not keeping the books balanced at Supply Chain Now or playing tennis matches, you can find Vicki spending time with her husband Greg, her 4 fur babies, gardening, cleaning (yes, she loves to clean!) and learning new things.

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Katherine Hintz

Creative Director, Producer, Host

Katherine Hintz, MBA is a marketing professional who strives to unite her love of people with a passion for positive experiences. Having a diverse background, which includes nonprofit work with digital marketing and start-ups, she serves as a leader who helps people live their most creative lives by cultivating community, order, collaboration, and respect. With equal parts creativity and analytics, she brings a unique skill set which fosters refining, problem solving, and connecting organizations with their true vision. In her free time, you can usually find her looking for her cup of coffee, playing with her puppy Charlie, and dreaming of her next road trip.

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Kim Reuter

Host, The Freight Insider

From humble beginnings working the import docks, representing Fortune 500 giants, Ford, Michelin Tire, and Black & Decker; to Amazon technology patent holder and Nordstrom Change Leader, Kimberly Reuter has designed, implemented, and optimized best-in-class, highly scalable global logistics and retail operations all over the world. Kimberly’s ability to set strategic vision supported by bomb-proof processes, built on decades of hands-on experience, has elevated her to legendary status. Sought after by her peers and executives for her intellectual capital and keen insights, Kimberly is a thought leader in the retail logistics industry.

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Kristi Porter

Host, Logistics with Purpose

Kristi Porter is VP of Sales and Marketing at Vector Global Logistics, a company that is changing the world through supply chain. In her role, she oversees all marketing efforts and supports the sales team in doing what they do best. In addition to this role, she is the Chief Do-Gooder at Signify, which assists nonprofits and social impact companies through copywriting and marketing strategy consulting. She has almost 20 years of professional experience, and loves every opportunity to help people do more good.

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Sofia Rivas Herrera

Host, Supply Chain Now en Espanol

Sofia Rivas Herrera is a Mexican Industrial Engineer from Tecnologico de Monterrey class 2019. Upon graduation, she earned a scholarship to study MIT’s Graduate Certificate in Logistics and Supply Chain Management and graduated as one of the Top 3 performers of her class in 2020. She also has a multicultural background due to her international academic experiences at Singapore Management University and Kühne Logistics University in Hamburg. Sofia self-identifies as a Supply Chain enthusiast & ambassador sharing her passion for the field in her daily life.

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Demo Perez

Host, Supply Chain Now en Espanol

Demo Perez started his career in 1997 in the industry by chance when a relative asked him for help for two just weeks putting together an operation for FedEx Express at the Colon Free Zone, an area where he was never been but accepted the challenge. Worked in all roles possible from a truck driver to currier to a sales representative, helped the brand introduction, market share growth and recognition in the Colon Free Zone, at the end of 1999 had the chance to meet and have a chat with Fred Smith ( FedEx CEO), joined another company in 2018 who took over the FedEx operations as Operations and sales manager, in 2004 accepted the challenge from his company to leave the FedEx operations and business to take over the operation and business of DHL Express, his major competitor and rival so couldn’t say no, by changing completely its operation model in the Free Zone. In 2005 started his first entrepreneurial journey by quitting his job and joining two friends to start a Freight Forwarding company. After 8 months was recruited back by his company LSP with the General Manager role with the challenge of growing the company and make it fully capable warehousing 3PL. By 2009 joined CSCMP and WERC and started his journey of learning and growing his international network and high-level learning. In 2012 for the first time joined a local association ( the Panama Maritime Chamber) and worked in the country’s first Logistics Strategy plan, joined and lead other associations ending as president of the Panama Logistics Council in 2017. By finishing his professional mission at LSP with a company that was 8 times the size it was when accepted the role as GM with so many jobs generated and several young professionals coached, having great financial results, took the decision to move forward and start his own business from scratch by the end of 2019. with a friend and colleague co-founded IPL Group a company that started as a boutique 3PL and now is gearing up for the post-Covid era by moving to the big leagues.

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Mary Kate Love

VP, Marketing

Mary Kate Love is currently the VP of marketing at Supply Chain Now focused on brand strategy and audience + revenue growth. Mary Kate’s career is a testament to her versatility and innovative spirit: she has experience in start-ups, venture capital, and building innovation initiatives from the ground up: she previously helped lead the build-out of the Supply Chain Innovation Center at Georgia-Pacific and before that, MxD (Manufacturing times Digital): the Department of Defense’s digital manufacturing innovation center. Mary Kate has a passion for taking complicated ideas and turning them into reality: she was one of the first team members at MxD and the first team member at the Supply Chain Innovation Center at Georgia-Pacific.

Mary Kate dedicates her extra time to education and mentorship: she was one of the founding Board Members for Women Influence Chicago and led an initiative for a city-wide job shadow day for young women across Chicago tech companies and was previously on the Board of Directors at St. Laurence High School in Chicago, Young Irish Fellowship Board and the UN Committee for Women. Mary Kate is the founder of National Supply Chain Day and enjoys co-hosting podcasts at Supply Chain Now. Mary Kate is from the south side of Chicago, a mom of two baby boys, and an avid 16-inch softball player. She holds a BS in Political Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

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Adrian Purtill

Host, Logistics with Purpose

Adrian Purtill serves as Business Development Manager at Vector Global Logistics, where he consults with importers and exporters in various industries to match their specific shipping requirements with the most effective supply chain solutions. Vector Global Logistics is an asset-free, multi-modal logistics company that provides exceptional sea freight, air freight, truck, rail, general logistic services and consulting for our clients. Our highly trained and professional team is committed to providing creative and effective solutions, always exceeding our customer’s expectations and fostering long-term relationships. With more than 20+ years of experience in both strategy consulting and logistics, Vector Global Logistics is your best choice to proactively minimize costs while having an exceptional service level.

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Kevin Brown

Host, Logistics with Purpose

Kevin Brown is the Director of Business Development for Vector Global Logistics.  He has a dedicated interest in Major Account Management, Enterprise Sales, and Corporate Leadership. He offers 25 years of exceptional experience and superior performance in the sales of Logistics, Supply Chain, and Transportation Management. Kevin is a dynamic, high-impact, sales executive and corporate leader who has consistently exceeded corporate goals. He effectively coordinates multiple resources to solution sell large complex opportunities while focusing on corporate level contacts across the enterprise. His specialties include targeting and securing key accounts by analyzing customer’s current business processes and developing solutions to meet their corporate goals. Connect with Kevin on LinkedIn.

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Jose Miguel Irarrazaval

Host, Logistics with Purpose

Jose Manuel Irarrazaval es parte del equipo de Vector Global Logistics Chile. José Manuel es un gerente experimentado con experiencia en finanzas corporativas, fusiones y adquisiciones, financiamiento y reestructuración, inversión directa y financiera, tanto en Chile como en el exterior. José Manuel tiene su MBA de la Universidad de Pennsylvania- The Wharton School. Conéctese con Jose Manuel en LinkedIn.

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Nick Roemer

Host, Logistics with Purpose

Nick Roemer has had a very diverse and extensive career within design and sales over the last 15 years stretching from China, Dubai, Germany, Holland, UK, and the USA. In the last 5 years, Nick has developed a hawk's eye for sustainable tech and the human-centric marketing and sales procedures that come with it. With his far-reaching and strong network within the logistics industry, Nick has been able to open new avenues and routes to market within major industries in the USA and the UAE. Nick lives by the ethos, “Give more than you take." His professional mission is to make the logistics industry leaner, cleaner and greener.

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Allison Giddens

Host, Logistics with Purpose

Allison Krache Giddens has been with Win-Tech, a veteran-owned small business and aerospace precision machine shop, for 15 years, recently buying the company from her mentor and Win-Tech’s Founder, Dennis Winslow. She and her business partner, John Hudson now serve as Co-Presidents, leading the 33-year old company through the pandemic.

She holds undergraduate degrees in psychology and criminal justice from the University of Georgia, a Masters in Conflict Management from Kennesaw State University, a Masters in Manufacturing from Georgia Institute of Technology, and a Certificate of Finance from the University of Georgia. She also holds certificates in Google Analytics, event planning, and Cybersecurity Risk Management from Harvard online. Allison founded the Georgia Chapter of Women in Manufacturing and currently serves as Treasurer. She serves on the Chattahoochee Technical College Foundation Board as its Secretary, the liveSAFE Resources Board of Directors as Resource Development Co-Chair, and on the Leadership Cobb Alumni Association Board as Membership Chair and is also a member of Cobb Executive Women. She is on the Board for the Cobb Chamber of Commerce’s Northwest Area Councils. Allison runs The Dave Krache Foundation, a non-profit that helps pay sports fees for local kids in need.

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Billy Taylor

Host of Dial P for Procurement

Billy Taylor is a Proven Business Excellence Practitioner and Leadership Guru with over 25 years leading operations for a Fortune 500 company, Goodyear. He is also the CEO of LinkedXL (Excellence), a Business Operating Systems Architecting Firm dedicated to implementing sustainable operating systems that drive sustainable results. Taylor’s achievements in the industry have made him a Next Generational Lean pacesetter with significant contributions.

An American business executive, Taylor has made a name for himself as an innovative and energetic industry professional with an indispensable passion for his craft of operational excellence. His journey started many years ago and has worked with renowned corporations such as The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. (GT) leading multi-site operations. With over 3 decades of service leading North America operations, he is experienced in a deeply rooted process driven approach in customer service, process integrity for sustainability.

A disciple of continuous improvement, Taylor’s love for people inspires commitment to helping others achieve their full potential. He is a dynamic speaker and hosts "The Winning Link," a popular podcast centered on business and leadership excellence with the #1 rated Supply Chain Now Network. As a leadership guru, Taylor has earned several invitations to universities, international conferences, global publications, and the U.S. Army to demonstrate how to achieve and sustain effective results through cultural acceptance and employee ownership. Leveraging the wisdom of his business acumen, strong influence as a speaker and podcaster Taylor is set to release "The Winning Link" book under McGraw Hill publishing in 2022. The book is a how-to manual to help readers understand the management of business interactions while teaching them how to Deine, Align, and Execute Winning in Business.

A servant leader, Taylor, was named by The National Diversity Council as one of the Top 100 Diversity Officers in the country in 2021. He features among Oklahoma's Most Admired CEOs and maintains key leadership roles with the Executive Advisory Board for The Shingo Institute "The Nobel Prize of Operations" and The Association of Manufacturing Excellence (AME); two world-leading organizations for operational excellence, business development, and cultural learning.  He is also an Independent Director for the M-D Building Products Board, a proud American manufacturer of quality products since 1920.

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Tandreia Bellamy

Host, Supply Chain Now

Tandreia Bellamy retired as the Vice President of Industrial Engineering for UPS Supply Chain Solutions which included the Global Logistics, Global Freight Forwarding and UPS Freight business units. She was responsible for operations strategy and planning, asset management, forecasting, and technology tool development to optimize sustainable efficiency while driving world class service.

Tandreia held similar positions at the business unit level for Global Logistics and Global Freight forwarding. As the leader of the Global Logistics engineering function, she directed all industrial engineering activies related to distribution, service parts logistics (post-sales support), and mail innovations (low cost, light weight shipping partnership with the USPS). Between these roles Tandreia helped to establish the Advanced Technology Group which was formed to research and develop cutting edge solutions focused on reducing reliance on manual labor.

Tandreia began her career in 1986 as a part-time hourly manual package handling employee. She spent the great majority of her career in the small package business unit which is responsible for the pick-up, sort, transport and delivery of packages domestically. She held various positions in Industrial Engineering, Marketing, Inside and On-road operations in Central Florida before transferring to Atlanta for a position in Corporate Product Development and Corporate Industrial Engineering. Tandreia later held IE leadership roles in Nebraska, Minnesota and Chicago. In her final role in small package she was an IE VP responsible for all aspects of IE, technology support and quality for the 25 states on the western half of the country.
Tandreia is currently a Director for the University of Central Florida (UCF) Foundation Board and also serves on their Dean’s Advisory Board for the College of Engineering and Computer Science. Previously Tandreia served on the Executive Advisory Board for Virginia Tech’s IE Department and the Association for Supply Chain Management. She served on the Board of Trustees for ChildServ (a Chicago child and family services non-profit) and also served on the Texas A&M and Tuskegee Engineering Advisory Boards. In 2006 she was named Business Advisor of the Year by INROADS, in 2009 she was recognized as a Technology All-Star at the Women of Color in STEM conference and in 2019 she honored as a UCF Distinguished Aluma by the Department of Industrial Engineering and Management Systems.

Tandreia holds a bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering from Stanford University and a master’s degree in Industrial Engineering and Management Systems from UCF. Her greatest accomplishment, however, is being the proud mother of two college students, Ruby (24) and Anthony (22).

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Mary Kate Soliva

Host, Veteran Voices

Mary Kate Soliva is a veteran of the US Army and cofounder of the Guam Human Rights Initiative. She is currently in the Doctor of Criminal Justice program at Saint Leo University. She is passionate about combating human trafficking and has spent the last decade conducting training for military personnel and the local community.

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Scott W. Luton

Founder, CEO, & Host

As the founder and CEO of Supply Chain Now, you might say Scott is the voice of supply chain – but he’s too much of a team player to ever claim such a title. One thing’s for sure: he’s a tried and true supply chain expert. With over 15 years of experience in the end-to-end supply chain, Scott’s insights have appeared in major publications including The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and CNN. He has also been named a top industry influencer by Thinkers360, ISCEA and more.

From 2009-2011, Scott was president of APICS Atlanta, and he continues to lead initiatives that support both the local business community and global industry. A United States Air Force Veteran, Scott has also regularly led efforts to give back to his fellow veteran community since his departure from active duty in 2002.

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Greg White

Principal & CMO, Supply Chain Now
Host of Supply Chain Now and TECHquila Sunrise

When rapid-growth technology companies, venture capital and private equity firms are looking for advisory, they call Greg – a founder, board director, advisor and catalyst of disruptive B2B technology and supply chain. An insightful visionary, Greg guides founders, investors and leadership teams in creating breakthroughs to gain market exposure and momentum – increasing overall company esteem and valuation.

Greg is a founder himself, creating Blue Ridge Solutions, a Gartner Magic Quadrant Leader in cloud-native supply chain applications, and bringing to market Curo, a field service management solution. He has also held leadership roles with Servigistics (PTC) and E3 Corporation (JDA/Blue Yonder). As a principal and host at Supply Chain Now, Greg helps guide the company’s strategic direction, hosts industry leader discussions, community livestreams, and all in addition to executive producing and hosting his original YouTube channel and podcast, TEChquila Sunrise.

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Chris Barnes

Principal, Supply Chain Now
Host of Supply Chain is Boring

Talk about world-class: Chris is one of the few professionals in the world to hold CPIM-F, CLTD-F and CSCP-F designations from ASCM/APICS. He’s also the APICS coach – and our resident Supply Chain Doctor. When he’s not hosting programs with Supply Chain Now, he’s sharing supply chain knowledge on the APICS Coach Youtube channel or serving as a professional education instructor for the Georgia Tech Supply Chain & Logistic Institute’s Supply Chain Management (SCM) program and University of Tennessee-Chattanooga Center for Professional Education courses.

Chris earned a BS in Industrial Engineering from Bradley University, an MBA with emphasis in Industrial Psychology from the University of West Florida, and is a Doctoral in Supply Chain Management candidate.

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Tyler Ward

Director of Sales

Tyler Ward serves as Supply Chain Now's Director of Sales. Born and raised in Mid-Atlantic, Tyler is a proud graduate of Shippensburg University where he earned his degree in Communications. After college, he made his way to the beautiful state of Oregon, where he now lives with his wife and daughter.

With over a decade of experience in sales, Tyler has a proven track record of exceeding targets and leading high-performing teams. He credits his success to his ability to communicate effectively with customers and team members alike, as well as his strategic thinking and problem-solving skills.

When he's not closing deals, you can find Tyler on the links or cheering on his favorite football and basketball teams. He also enjoys spending time with his family, playing pick-up basketball, and traveling back to Ocean City, Maryland, his favorite place!

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Kevin L. Jackson

Host of Digital Transformers

Kevin L. Jackson is a globally recognized Thought Leader, Industry Influencer and Founder/Author of the award winning “Cloud Musings” blog.  He has also been recognized as a “Top 5G Influencer” (Onalytica 2019, Radar 2020), a “Top 50 Global Digital Transformation Thought Leader” (Thinkers 360 2019) and provides strategic consulting and integrated social media services to AT&T, Intel, Broadcom, Ericsson and other leading companies. Mr. Jackson’s commercial experience includes Vice President J.P. Morgan Chase, Worldwide Sales Executive for IBM and SAIC (Engility) Director Cloud Solutions. He has served on teams that have supported digital transformation projects for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the US Intelligence Community.  Kevin’s formal education includes a MS Computer Engineering from Naval Postgraduate School; MA National Security & Strategic Studies from Naval War College; and a BS Aerospace Engineering from the United States Naval Academy. Internationally recognizable firms that have sponsored articles authored by him include CiscoMicrosoft, Citrix and IBM.  Books include “Click to Transform” (Leaders Press, 2020), “Architecting Cloud Computing Solutions” (Packt, 2018), and “Practical Cloud Security: A Cross Industry View” (Taylor & Francis, 2016). He also delivers online training through Tulane UniversityO’Reilly MediaLinkedIn Learning, and Pluralsight.  Mr. Jackson retired from the U.S. Navy in 1994, earning specialties in Space Systems EngineeringCarrier Onboard Delivery Logistics and carrier-based Airborne Early Warning and Control. While active, he also served with the National Reconnaissance Office, Operational Support Office, providing tactical support to Navy and Marine Corps forces worldwide.

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Enrique Alvarez

Host of Logistics with Purpose and Supply Chain Now en Español

Enrique serves as Managing Director at Vector Global Logistics and believes we all have a personal responsibility to change the world. He is hard working, relationship minded and pro-active. Enrique trusts that the key to logistics is having a good and responsible team that truly partners with the clients and does whatever is necessary to see them succeed. He is a proud sponsor of Vector’s unique results-based work environment and before venturing into logistics he worked for the Boston Consulting Group (BCG). During his time at BCG, he worked in different industries such as Telecommunications, Energy, Industrial Goods, Building Materials, and Private Banking. His main focus was always on the operations, sales, and supply chain processes, with case focus on, logistics, growth strategy, and cost reduction. Prior to joining BCG, Enrique worked for Grupo Vitro, a Mexican glass manufacturer, for five years holding different positions from sales and logistics manager to supply chain project leader in charge of five warehouses in Colombia.

He has an MBA from The Wharton School of Business and a BS, in Mechanical Engineer from the Technologico de Monterrey in Mexico. Enrique’s passions are soccer and the ocean, and he also enjoys traveling, getting to know new people, and spending time with his wife and two kids, Emma and Enrique.

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Kelly Barner

Host of Dial P for Procurement

Kelly is the Owner and Managing Director of Buyers Meeting Point and MyPurchasingCenter. She has been in procurement since 2003, starting as a practitioner and then as the Associate Director of Consulting at Emptoris. She has covered procurement news, events, publications, solutions, trends, and relevant economics at Buyers Meeting Point since 2009. Kelly is also the General Manager at Art of Procurement and Business Survey Chair for the ISM-New York Report on Business. Kelly has her MBA from Babson College as well as an MS in Library and Information Science from Simmons College and she has co-authored three books: ‘Supply Market Intelligence for Procurement Professionals’, ‘Procurement at a Crossroads’, and ‘Finance Unleashed’.

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Constantine Limberakis

Host

Constantine Limberakis is a thought leader in the area of procurement and supply management. He has over 20 years of international experience, playing strategic roles in a wide spectrum of organizations related to analyst advisory, consulting, product marketing, product development, and market research.Throughout his career, he's been passionate about engaging global business leaders and the broader analyst and technology community with strategic content, speaking engagements, podcasts, research, webinars, and industry articles.Constantine holds a BA in History from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and an MBA in Finance & Marketing / Masters in Public & International Affairs from the University of Pittsburgh.

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Amanda Luton

Vice President, Production

Amanda is a production and marketing veteran and entrepreneur with over 20 years of experience across a variety of industries and organizations including Von Maur, Anthropologie, AmericasMart Atlanta, and Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. Amanda currently manages, produces, and develops modern digital content for Supply Chain Now and their clients. Amanda has previously served as the VP of Information Systems and Webmaster on the Board of Directors for APICS Savannah, and founded and managed her own successful digital marketing firm, Magnolia Marketing Group. When she’s not leading the Supply Chain Now production team, you can find Amanda in the kitchen, reading, listening to podcasts, or enjoying time with family.

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Clay Phillips

Business Development Manager

Clay is passionate about two things: supply chain and the marketing that goes into it. Recently graduated with a degree in marketing at the University of Georgia, Clay got his start as a journalism major and inaugural member of the Owl’s football team at Kennesaw State University – but quickly saw tremendous opportunity in the Terry College of Business. He’s already putting his education to great use at Supply Chain Now, assisting with everything from sales and brand strategy to media production. Clay has contributed to initiatives such as our leap into video production, the guest blog series, and boosting social media presence, and after nearly two years in Supply Chain Now’s Marketing Department, Clay now heads up partnership and sales initiatives with the help of the rest of the Supply Chain Now sales team.

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Trisha Cordes

Administrative Assistant

Trisha is new to the supply chain industry – but not to podcasting. She’s an experienced podcast manager and virtual assistant who also happens to have 20 years of experience as an elementary school teacher. It’s safe to say, she’s passionate about helping people, and she lives out that passion every day with the Supply Chain Now team, contributing to scheduling and podcast production.

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Chantel King

Social Media Manager

My name is Chantel King and I am the Social Media Specialist at Supply Chain Now. My job is to make sure our audience is engaged and educated on the abundant amount of information the supply chain industry has to offer.

Social Media and Communications has been my niche ever since I graduated from college at The Academy of Art University in San Francisco. No, I am not a West Coast girl. I was born and raised in New Jersey, but my travel experience goes way beyond the garden state. My true passion is in creating editorial and graphic content that influences others to be great in whatever industry they are in. I’ve done this by working with lifestyle, financial, and editorial companies by providing resources to enhance their businesses.

Another passion of mine is trying new things. Whether it’s food, an activity, or a sport. I would like to say that I am an adventurous Taurus that never shies away from a new quest or challenge.

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Lori Sofian

Marketing Coordinator

Lori is currently completing a degree in marketing with an emphasis in digital marketing at the University of Georgia. When she’s not supporting the marketing efforts at Supply Chain Now, you can find her at music festivals – or working toward her dream goal of a fashion career. Lori is involved in many extracurricular activities and appreciates all the learning experiences UGA has brought her.

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Katherine Hintz

Sales and Marketing Coordinator

Katherine is a marketing professional and MBA candidate who strives to unite her love of people with a passion for positive experiences. Having a diverse background, which includes nonprofit work with digital marketing and start-ups, she serves as a leader who helps people live their most creative lives by cultivating community, order, collaboration, and respect. With equal parts creativity and analytics, she brings a unique skill set which fosters refining, problem solving, and connecting organizations with their true vision. In her free time, you can usually find her looking for her cup of coffee, playing with her puppy Charlie, and dreaming of her next road trip.

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