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PODCAST EPISODE: Preparing for a Better Journey to Transformation feat. Vanessa Wieners, Topcon Positioning Systems
Digital Transformers
Episode 69

Most people know GPS as the technology that allows them to plot driving directions or locate a friend. But the technology is far more sophisticated than that and has many more applications as well. For example, in construction, geospatial technology makes it possible to visualize a building site using sensors that can ‘read’ the ground, alleviating the requirement for project managers to be on site. Vanessa Wieners is the SAP IT Operations Manager at Topcon Positioning Systems, a leading manufacturer for the construction, geospatial, and agriculture markets. Listen in as she describes the current applications of this exciting technology and her own company’s ongoing digital transformation journey with host Kevin L. Jackson.

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Preparing for a Better Journey to Transformation feat. Vanessa Wieners, Topcon Positioning Systems

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Intro/Outro (00:01):

Welcome to Digital Transformers, the show that connects you with what you need to build, manage, and operate your digital supply chain. Join your host in a timely discussion on new and future business models with industry leading executives. The show will reveal global customer expectations, real world deployment challenges, and the value of advanced business technologies like artificial intelligence, blockchain, and robotic process engineering. And now we bring you Digital Transformers.

Kevin L. Jackson (00:32):

Hello, everyone. Kevin L. Jackson here, and I am here to get the opportunity to interview yet another leader in digital transformation. And, I tell you, this is really sweet to my heart. Okay. Many of you may not know is I did a lot of work in the intelligence community around geospatial data, GPS. And this interview is really with Vanessa Wieners. Right?

Vanessa Wieners (01:03):

You got it.

Kevin L. Jackson (01:05):

She had to give me some lessons there, IT SAP Operations Manager at Topcon Positioning System. And their company is all about GPS. Is that true?

Vanessa Wieners (01:19):

GPS and some more, yes.

Kevin L. Jackson (01:22):

GPS and more. So, you are a leading manufacturer in construction.

Vanessa Wieners (01:27):

Yes.

Kevin L. Jackson (01:27):

Geospatial and agriculture, and known for being innovative that enhances your technology, enhances workflows. Tell me more.

Vanessa Wieners (01:37):

Yeah. Well, you know, for example, in the construction world, you know, we are supporting and giving technology to our customers where they can visualize the construction site through, you know, sensors that are able to read the ground. Now, you know, the, I don’t know, project managers don’t have to be on site. You know, they can see it all through screen and find out how much the dozers, how much the amount of dirt they had taken out.

Kevin L. Jackson (02:05):

They don’t have to – okay.

Vanessa Wieners (02:05):

And they’re tracking down, yeah, the activity of all their equipment and what’s going on onsite. So that’s one tiny example of the kind of thing –

Kevin L. Jackson (02:15):

I guess that actually reduces the cost ‘cause you can plan much better ahead.

Vanessa Wieners (02:22):

Yeah. You can plan. You can, you know, determine the amount of dirt that you can recycle and take to other sites.

Kevin L. Jackson (02:29):

Oh, you recycle dirt.

Vanessa Wieners (02:30):

Well, we don’t recycle the dirt. You know, we help the customer to determine the amount of dirt they’re extracting and then to take it to other sites.

Kevin L. Jackson (02:39):

They can make –

Vanessa Wieners (02:39):

Yeah.

Kevin L. Jackson (02:40):

Take it to other sites. So, reuse the dirt. That’s a real – no, I mean, that’s a really important thing. You see these big construction sites and you actually wonder where does all the dirt go?

Vanessa Wieners (02:50):

Yes. Yes.

Kevin L. Jackson (02:51):

No, that seems like a very important aspect that people wouldn’t even think about.

Vanessa Wieners (02:55):

Right.

Kevin L. Jackson (02:57):

But you actually bring a lot of experience to leveraging SAP.

Vanessa Wieners (03:06):

Right.

Kevin L. Jackson (03:07):

But what’s your background and make you, you know, IT operations for SAP? That’s a huge responsibility.

Vanessa Wieners (03:15):

It is. I have a great team, though. You know, I have a team of 11, 12 between contractors and internal resources. I started with SAP like 20 years ago, not till this – this calls my age.

Kevin L. Jackson (03:30):

[Inaudible] You can strike that. Well, [inaudible] say that part.

Vanessa Wieners (03:36):

Yeah. Twenty or so years, you know, I started as a user essentially, you know, and slowly transitioned to a leader position. And here I am, you know, in charge of the ERP at Topcon, our main ERP, which is SAP, with all its modules to support the operation.

Kevin L. Jackson (03:54):

Wow. Yeah. So, you said all – which modules do you use at Topcon?

Vanessa Wieners (04:00):

Yes. Well, I guess if our audience is an IT audience, they will understand if I just say SD or do I need to say sales and distribution?

Kevin L. Jackson (04:09):

Yeah. You probably need to say sales and distribution.

Vanessa Wieners (04:11):

Yeah. Probably.

Kevin L. Jackson (04:11):

‘Cause a lot of my audience is a lot of decision makers, but in every industry vertical not just IT also.

Vanessa Wieners (04:19):

Okay. So, sales and distribution, materials management, you know, covers all the purchasing, planning, production planning. We have quality management, FICO. We have finance and controlling.

Kevin L. Jackson (04:31):

Okay.

Vanessa Wieners (04:31):

I don’t know if I’m leaving any out, but, yeah, that’s – whereas management, I think I missed that one.

Kevin L. Jackson (04:37):

So, you are using quite a bit of the suite.

Vanessa Wieners (04:41):

Yes. Of SAP, yes. Quite a bit.

Kevin L. Jackson (04:44):

So, you weren’t involved in the implementation of SAP at Topcon, right?

Vanessa Wieners (04:49):

Topcon. No. I joined I think five years after they had implemented it. Yeah.

Kevin L. Jackson (04:56):

How has it been when you got there? Were they pulling their hair out over SAP or were they happy with it? Or did you straighten them out? What was the culture around SAP?

Vanessa Wieners (05:06):

Well, I hope I had been helping to make it better. It was already good.

Kevin L. Jackson (05:10):

Okay.

Vanessa Wieners (05:10):

And, you know, people like it. I think SAP is, in my opinion, a good system to have and to be running at, in our case, manufacturing company. So, it was already in a good state. You know, I’m just helping to bring a little bit of structure on how we support it, right, and how we do other implementations or other projects related to SAP, right, to bring efficiency to the processes.

Kevin L. Jackson (05:37):

So, a little more on your role, your operations.

Vanessa Wieners (05:41):

Yes.

Kevin L. Jackson (05:41):

What does that encompass?

Vanessa Wieners (05:44):

A lot, I guess.

Kevin L. Jackson (05:45):

Everything. Everything.

Vanessa Wieners (05:47):

Everything. You know, we’re not Google obviously, right? So, my team, I mean, I mentioned it was 12 or 11 people, so I’m not sure to the eyes of many if that’s small or big, but we cover a lot, right. We do operations means. You know, we do the support, the daily support. If somebody cannot transact or there’s an error message in the system, we are immediately reacting to it and fixing it. We do change management. We do, you know, any enhancements or improvements to a process that requires a system change. We also do that. And we do strategic projects, right? We implement new modules like quality management. That’s a new one that we implemented maybe a year and a half ago or two. So that’s a little bit of a description of what my role means.

Kevin L. Jackson (06:36):

What’s your geographic scope to Topcon?

Vanessa Wieners (06:40):

Well, I cover the ERP system in Netherlands, Europe, a piece of Europe, and United States.

Kevin L. Jackson (06:48):

But Topcon itself is a global company, or?

Vanessa Wieners (06:50):

It is a global company. You know, our parent company is based in Japan.

Kevin L. Jackson (06:55):

Okay.

Vanessa Wieners (06:55):

But they have acquired subsidiaries across the globe. So, it’s about between 90, 93, 95 companies, subsidiaries.

Kevin L. Jackson (07:07):

Oh, okay.

Vanessa Wieners (07:07):

Yeah. Topcon Positioning.

Kevin L. Jackson (07:13):

So, it is really huge.

Vanessa Wieners (07:09):

It is big. It’s about 5000 employees.

Kevin L. Jackson (07:13):

Wow.

Vanessa Wieners (07:14):

Yeah.

Vanessa Wieners (07:15):

It is one of those companies you really never heard of, but it’s foundational to just about everything, isn’t it?

Vanessa Wieners (07:22):

Yes. Yes.

Kevin L. Jackson (07:22):

You must like working there.

Vanessa Wieners (07:24):

I do. I do. The culture is also very nice. You know, it’s family-oriented. You know, they care about the employees. So, I’m really enjoying it. And I have a – like I said, I have a great team and a great boss. That’s also helpful.

Kevin L. Jackson (07:38):

I will make sure it is – yeah. We’ll make sure to get them a copy of this.

Vanessa Wieners (07:43):

Please.

Kevin L. Jackson (07:47):

So, what is your real business model of Topcon? Who do you sell to? Who do you support? I mean –

Vanessa Wieners (07:55):

Yeah. You know, the customer base I would say it’s also some, you know, you wouldn’t think of, farmers. We have our dealers. You know, there’s a dealer base, but we have the end customer, which are the farmers who are actually using, you know, the tractors on the field and they have to interact with the technology and the construction base, as I was explaining earlier. You know, we have those construction sites, or, you know, if I tell my kids because they’re asking me like, what do you do, mom? What do you do?

Kevin L. Jackson (08:26):

Yeah. What did mommy do?

Vanessa Wieners (08:28):

We’re, you know, driving on the road, and, you know, I see those engineers, right, doing measurements with those tripods. And I tell, you see that? That’s what I do. Yeah.

Kevin L. Jackson (08:39):

But you never come home dirty.

Vanessa Wieners (08:42):

Exactly, right? You’re not wearing the helmet. Yeah.

Kevin L. Jackson (08:47):

Wow. That’s huge. And when you talk about culture, I mean, your parent company is Japanese.

Vanessa Wieners (08:55):

Yes.

Kevin L. Jackson (08:55):

You cover the Netherlands and the United States.

Vanessa Wieners (08:58):

Yes.

Kevin L. Jackson (08:59):

So, I imagine culture, differences in culture –

Vanessa Wieners (09:04):

Yeah.

Kevin L. Jackson (09:04):

As an important aspect of your business.

Vanessa Wieners (09:08):

Yes. Yeah. We have, you know – it’s a multicultural company, right, as you mentioned, Japanese. Now we have Europeans. And within Europe we have a diversity, you know, right? We have the Netherlands. We have Germany as well. They have a little, another ERP system, but, you know, we have different cultures. And then, you know, in the United States by itself, it’s already diverse, right? So, in that sense, there’s a lot of, you know – forgot the word – inclusion.

Kevin L. Jackson (09:44):

Inclusion, okay.

Vanessa Wieners (09:44):

Yes. Yes. And diversity rights in that company.

Kevin L. Jackson (09:47):

That’s an important part of any business – diversity and inclusion.

Vanessa Wieners (09:49):

Oh, yeah.

Kevin L. Jackson (09:50):

And equity.

Vanessa Wieners (09:52):

Yes. Yes. Diversity can, believe it or not, support on revenue as well.

Kevin L. Jackson (09:56):

Oh, but, okay. Well, speaking about that you said that you joined Topcon after they had already sort of implemented SAP. But in your business, you work in sort of a different area. So, what does digital transformation mean to you in your business?

Vanessa Wieners (10:22):

Well, for me, in specific, I think it has two meanings, you know, from an internal point of view. Like I said, we drive the operation of the company where we have to, or part of my job as well is to try to find technology that will support the business, right, and now talking about transitioning from ECC to S4 HANA, right, that’s a digital transformation for us where we are looking into bringing efficiency to a lot of the processes that we are currently having. So that’s an aspect of digital transformation. On the other hand, we also bring maybe, well, it is intentional. I don’t know if the customer will see it that way.

Kevin L. Jackson (11:06):

Okay.

Vanessa Wieners (11:07):

But we bring digital transformation to them, right? Let’s go back to the example of the farmer. You know, who would’ve ever thought that they can now with sensors to scan, you know, the field and find out if the crops are ready or they need more fertilizer, you know? And now they’re able to use that technology. So, they, by themselves, are also in a digital transformation, right, incorporating our products to their daily job.

Kevin L. Jackson (11:37):

So, you threw out an acronym there, ECC, that is the previous version of SAP.

Vanessa Wieners (11:40):

Yes. Yes.

Kevin L. Jackson (11:47):

So, now you’re transitioning from that to S4 HANA, the cloud based.

Vanessa Wieners (11:49):

Right.

Kevin L. Jackson (11:50):

Any issues with that? Is that –

Vanessa Wieners (11:53):

Not yet.

Kevin L. Jackson (11:55):

Well, I mean, just getting started, a lot of people are scared to go to the cloud. I mean, most, I don’t know about Topcon, but most companies have on premise, keep all their data on premise. And now going to the cloud, is that – did you have your own data centers and now you’re transitioning to the cloud?

Vanessa Wieners (12:15):

Right. Part of that, yes. We are already running a part of our business in S4 HANA cloud. The portion that I am running right now is the one that is in transition, right, to go to the cloud.

Kevin L. Jackson (12:28):

Okay.

Vanessa Wieners (12:29):

Yeah. So, yes, there’s still a lot of decisions to be made. We’re in that process. I think we are now in a good place of understanding what that means, right? We have started a few activities internally such as, you know, cleaning our core ERP, trying to look into options for master data management, you know, looking into options for archiving, everything that can prepare us, you know, for a better journey to that transformation.

Kevin L. Jackson (13:02):

So, in the end, it’s all about the data, right? And you mentioned cleaning the data so that you can leverage it better in the cloud. That’s a lot of hard work, isn’t it?

Vanessa Wieners (13:18):

It is.

Kevin L. Jackson (13:19):

Wouldn’t be scared to do that?

Vanessa Wieners (13:22):

I think it’s – yeah. You know, when you talk about it, it can be daunting. Yeah. Right? Like, “Oh, my God, that’s a big effort.” We’re not executing that exercise yet. You know, we’re planning to get there. But so far, again, with the research that you have to, you know, start doing, you get to understand what steps you need to follow, right, to get there.

Kevin L. Jackson (13:46):

Oh, so it’s a lot of education.

Vanessa Wieners (13:49):

It’s a lot of education.

Kevin L. Jackson (13:49):

Across your organization.

Vanessa Wieners (13:51):

Yeah.

Kevin L. Jackson (13:51):

This is really change management. How did it affect your culture?

Vanessa Wieners (13:56):

Well, you know, I think we are in the process of learning, you know, including change management, right? Everybody is – and again, you know, that’s where the transformation is happening, right? Because I think with a digital transformation, you have to have change management, right? You have to get your stakeholders involved so that they can support this. And we are in the process of, you know, doing that. So how is it changing right now? I think we will see the change in the coming months or when the project is being executed, right, the efforts that we are doing right now to pull them in and to explain what this journey is about.

Kevin L. Jackson (14:35):

I imagine the executives are important to this. What is their role in your viewpoint?

Vanessa Wieners (14:43):

Yeah. In my point of view, everything starts from up to down, right?

Kevin L. Jackson (14:46):

Okay.

Vanessa Wieners (14:47):

Yeah. So, if they’re not buying in, you know, then it’s not going to work. So, I think, you know, that’s part of the transformation as well, having their buy-in and support the project.

Kevin L. Jackson (15:00):

And education. I guess that’s –

Vanessa Wieners (15:02):

And education. Yeah. There’s a lot of education.

Kevin L. Jackson (15:04):

How do that? How do you do that?

Vanessa Wieners (15:05):

Well, the approach that we’re trying to do right now is socializing what this means. You know, bringing it – learning about tools ourselves, right, my team and myself, learning what’s out there. SAP has been very helpful, right, in providing some of those tools so that we can start learning and also bringing our user base to experience that. Right?

Kevin L. Jackson (15:31):

Oh, so this is really a journey. And it’s not just Topcon. You have to teach your customers.

Vanessa Wieners (15:39):

Yeah.

Kevin L. Jackson (15:39):

How is that going? Is that easy? Is it easy for them to accept? Do you have to force it on them?

Vanessa Wieners (15:47):

At this point, I guess the customer is not impacted, and I don’t think that they will ever, ever, well, right?

Kevin L. Jackson (15:53):

Oh, okay.

Vanessa Wieners (15:55):

This is more a digital transformation internally for us to be able to deliver those products, you know, to the customer.

Kevin L. Jackson (16:02):

So, but there’s a whole ecosystem around it, right? You have, I guess, suppliers –

Vanessa Wieners (16:10):

Right.

Kevin L. Jackson (16:10):

That you have to link to. Does it affect them in any way?

Vanessa Wieners (16:14):

Potentially.

Kevin L. Jackson (16:16):

You laugh.

Vanessa Wieners (16:17):

Yes. Yeah. Because, you know, somehow, they have to follow our journey, right? The technology, the evolution, you know, has to evolve. You know, the technology has to evolve. So yes, absolutely, it’s going to have an impact. And we will have to include them in this journey, right?

Kevin L. Jackson (16:38):

Okay. That’s really important. And SAP is helping you with that. How do they help you? This is an important relationship to you.

Vanessa Wieners (16:47):

It is, it is. We started to have more often conversations, you know, what tools are out there. I am lucky to have a very good customer support. So, they’re helping us, you know, like I said, providing tools, links to information. There’s a lot of reading that needs to happen.

Kevin L. Jackson (17:06):

A lot of reading.

Vanessa Wieners (17:08):

Yeah. Yeah. But it’s very useful so far. You know, they’re helping us in the journey.

Kevin L. Jackson (17:13):

So are you working with an SAP partner in the journey and implementation and –

Vanessa Wieners (17:18):

Not yet.

Kevin L. Jackson (17:19):

In transition.

Vanessa Wieners (17:19):

Not yet, not at this point, not at the phase that we are in. We don’t have a partner yet.

Kevin L. Jackson (17:25):

So what do you see as your journey? You know, what’s next?

Vanessa Wieners (17:30):

Well, we are in a, what we call, like the first phase of the project where we are preparing our system, preparing our people, preparing our teams to start that journey. So, I guess the next step, we’ll actually execute it right to get into project mode and transition to the new technology, right, SAP to S4 HANA.

Kevin L. Jackson (17:53):

Well, great. So, do you see this as a competitive move? Is it helping you? You know, clearly other companies in your industry are seeing this and wonder if it’s something that they should do. But do you see it as something that’s making you distinct within your industry? Or is it just something that you have to do?

Vanessa Wieners (18:25):

A little bit of both, I guess.

Kevin L. Jackson (18:25):

Ah, okay.

Vanessa Wieners (18:27):

Yeah. We have to transition to S4 HANA at some point. You know, the question is when and I think the when for us is almost now, right, and we’re doing that at this moment. Right? We’re planning on how to get there.

Kevin L. Jackson (18:43):

Okay. So, if someone, another company is in a similar position, what would be your recommendations to them? I mean, you have, you know, a lot of experience with SAP and many may be actually afraid of taking these big steps. You know, what’s your recommendation? How should a company look towards their journey in this digital transformation in SAP? I mean, it’s – what would you say?

Vanessa Wieners (19:20):

I would say start doing research. Start reaching out to your SAP account executive, asking questions. You know, what can they do for you? How can they help you? And again, it’s a lot of reading, right? Understanding what the change means, what it will bring to your company, and also socializing it with your business stakeholders. Because at the end of the day, you know, they have to be on board. They have to understand what the system is, how the system is going to change, and what the system, the new system will bring so that they can feel comfortable. Right? It’s not an easy journey, especially when there’s change. And that’s a lot of work that needs to happen. I’m here, you know, in stop fire. I’m not sure if I’m supposed to say.

Kevin L. Jackson (20:10):

No. Absolutely. That’s fine.

Vanessa Wieners (20:11):

I’m here in [inaudible], and I’m trying – that’s one of the ways of our company to support that we get more educated on, you know, what’s coming. You get to meet customers, other customers, other companies that have gone through the journey or are going through the journey. And you sit down and listen and take notes and see what can work for our company and for our team, right, and try to apply it.

Kevin L. Jackson (20:42):

So it’s really an education opportunity.

Vanessa Wieners (20:44):

Oh, yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Definitely it is.

Kevin L. Jackson (20:47):

So, as you go through the journey and dealing with this ERP digital transformation, how is it really affecting your other business processes?

Vanessa Wieners (21:04):

Within the company you meant?

Kevin L. Jackson (21:05):

Yeah, within the company.

Vanessa Wieners (21:06):

Well, you know, that’s a part that you have to analyze, right? You have to understand where are your pain points and try to tackle those as much as possible before you start a journey, right? Because that’s part of the preparation, you know, not only system-wise, but also process-wise, where you have to check your old practices, you know, what you used to do and you still doing. Is it, you know, a better way to do it? Almost all the time, there is a better way to do things. We just need to, you know, be a little bit more open and understanding what can be changed to make it better. So, it does impact the business processes.

Kevin L. Jackson (21:51):

Well, we’re coming to the end. We don’t have a lot of time, but one thing I’m very interested in sort of pulling the string on in this transition are templates. I mean, SAP talks about how they provide templates on industry best practice. But sometimes these templates aren’t what you did before. They’re different than what you did before. And you have to, I guess, convince people to either change or, you know, it’s my way at a highway. Is that what you do? How do you get people to change?

Vanessa Wieners (22:30):

Well, that’s a lot of education, and I think it has to come from the top and down, right, to support it. Not that they are the ones implementing the change, but to support it, to say, okay, we’re going to follow best practices. We are going to follow, you know, what the industry out there is doing whenever possible, right? Because every industry has their own, and companies’, uniqueness, right? So, Topcon doesn’t escape from that, right? We have our uniqueness and we have to adapt to that uniqueness. But wherever we can apply best practices, then, you know, that should be the direction, right? And then everybody needs to be on board to make it work, otherwise it will not work.

Kevin L. Jackson (23:09):

Great. Great. So as we come to a close, how could people learn more about Topcon and maybe even reach out to you?

Vanessa Wieners (23:18):

Yes, I do have a LinkedIn profile.

Kevin L. Jackson (23:20):

Okay.

Vanessa Wieners (23:20):

I guess that’s the where, you know, to go. And of course, you can find Topcon Solutions – Positioning, sorry, in LinkedIn as well, and topconpositioningsystems.com. You can find it there.

Kevin L. Jackson (23:34):

Did we miss anything? Any secrets?

Vanessa Wieners (23:36):

No. I don’t think so.

Kevin L. Jackson (23:37):

No. No secrets.

Vanessa Wieners (23:38):

No secrets.

Kevin L. Jackson (23:37):

Oh, thank you very much, Vanessa, for spending the time with us, and thank you for joining Digital Transformers once again and learning how the GPS industry is being changed, digitally changed from the viewpoint of ERP and SAP. So, thank you very much, and we’ll see you on the next Digital Transformers.

Intro/Outro (24:06):

Thank you for supporting Digital Transformers and for being a part of our global Supply Chain Now community. Please check out all of our programming at supplychainnow.com. Make sure you subscribe to Digital Transformers anywhere you listen to or view the show, and follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram. See you next time on Digital Transformers.

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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Tevon Taylor is a dynamic leader at Pegasus Logistics, where he has made significant contributions to the company’s growth and innovation in the logistics industry. With a background in supply chain management and operations, Tevon combines strategic thinking with hands-on experience to streamline processes and enhance efficiency.  Since joining Pegasus Logistics, Tevon has been instrumental in implementing cutting-edge technologies and sustainable practices, driving the company toward a more eco-friendly approach. His leadership style fosters collaboration and empowers teams to excel, making him a respected figure among colleagues and industry peers.  Outside of work, Tevon is passionate about mentorship and actively engages in community initiatives, sharing his expertise to inspire the next generation of logistics professionals. His commitment to excellence and continuous improvement has positioned him as a key player in shaping the future of logistics at Pegasus.

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Vin Vashishta is the author of ‘From Data To Profit’ (Wiley 2023). It’s the playbook for monetizing data and AI. Vin is the Founder of V-Squared and built the business from client 1 to one of the world’s oldest data and AI consulting firms. His background combines nearly 30 years in strategy, leadership, software engineering, and applied machine learning.

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Karin Bursa

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Karin Bursa is the 2020 Supply Chain Pro to Know of the Year and the Host of the TEKTOK Digital Supply Chain Podcast powered by Supply Chain Now. With more than 25 years of supply chain and technology expertise (and the scars to prove it), Karin has the heart of a teacher and has helped nearly 1,000 customers transform their businesses and share their success stories. Today, she helps B2B technology companies introduce new products, capture customer success and grow global revenue, market share and profitability. In addition to her recognition as the 2020 Supply Chain Pro to Know of the Year, Karin has also been recognized as a 2019 and 2018 Supply Chain Pro to Know, 2009 Technology Marketing Executive of the Year and a 2008 Women in Technology Finalist. 

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Sofia Rivas

Host, Supply Chain Now en Espanol

Sofia self-identifies as Supply Chain Ambassador, her mission is to advocate for the field and inspire young generations from diverse backgrounds and cultures to join the industry so that thought diversity is increased and change accelerated. Recognized as Linkedin Top Voice and Linkedin Community Top Voice in Supply Chain Management, as well as Emerging Leader in Supply Chain by CSCMP 2024, Top Women in Supply Chain by Supply & Demand Executive 2023, and Coup de Coeur Global Women Leaders in Supply Chain by B2G Consulting in 2021. 

Public speaker at multiple international events from keynotes and panels, to webinars and guest lectures for bachelor's and master's degrees, discussing topics such as sustainability, women in the industry, technology and innovation. Writer at different online magazines on logistics, supply chain and technology. Podcast host and guest on different recognized programs in the industry. Sofia has more than 5 years of experience from academic research and field studies to warehouse operations, demand planning and network design. She has worked in manufacturing, airport operations, e-commerce retail, and technology hardware across Latin America, North America and Europe. 

Currently working as Supply Chain Network Design and Optimization Manager at HP within their Global Supply Chain and Logistics team. 

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Marcia Williams

Host

Marcia Williams, Managing Partner of USM Supply Chain, has 18 years of experience in Supply Chain, with expertise in optimizing Supply Chain-Finance Planning (S&OP/ IBP) at Large Fast-Growing CPGs for greater profitability and improved cash flows. Marcia has helped mid-sized and large companies including Lindt Chocolates, Hershey, and Coty. She holds an MBA from Michigan State University and a degree in Accounting from Universidad de la Republica, Uruguay (South America). Marcia is also a Forbes Council Contributor based out of New York, and author of the book series Supply Chains with Maria in storytelling style. A recent speaker’s engagement is Marcia TEDx Talk: TEDxMSU - How Supply Chain Impacts You: A Transformational Journey.

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Jake Barr

Host

An acknowledged industry leader, Jake Barr now serves as CEO for BlueWorld Supply Chain Consulting, providing support to a cross section of Fortune 500 companies such as Cargill, Caterpillar, Colgate, Dow/Dupont, Firmenich, 3M, Merck, Bayer/Monsanto, Newell Brands, Kimberly Clark, Nestle, PepsiCo, Pfizer, Sanofi, Estee Lauder and Coty among others. He's also devoted time to engagements in public health sector work with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. At P&G, he managed the breakthrough delivery of an E2E (End to End) Planning Transformation effort, creating control towers which now manage the daily business globally. He is recognized as the architect for P&G’s demand driven supply chain strategy – referenced as a “Consumer Driven Supply Chain” transformation. Jake began his career with P&G in Finance in Risk Analysis and then moved into Operations. He has experience in building supply network capability globally through leadership assignments in Asia, Latin America, North America and the Middle East. He currently serves as a Research Associate for MIT; a member of Supply Chain Industry Advisory Council; Member of Gartner’s Supply Chain Think Tank; Consumer Goods “League of Leaders“; and a recipient of the 2015 - 2021 Supply Chain “Pro’s to Know” Award. He has been recognized as a University of Kentucky Fellow.

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Laura Lopez

Marketing Coordinator

Laura Lopez serves as our Supply Chain Now Marketing Coordinator. She graduated from Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Occidente in Mexico with a degree in marketing. Laura loves everything digital because she sees the potential it holds for companies in the marketing industry. Her passion for creativity and thinking outside the box led her to pursue a career in marketing. With experience in fields like accounting, digital marketing, and restaurants, she clearly enjoys taking on challenges. Laura lives the best of both worlds - you'll either catch her hanging out with her friends soaking up the sun in Mexico or flying out to visit her family in California!

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Marty Parker

Host

Marty Parker serves as both the CEO & Founder of Adæpt Advising and an award-winning Senior Lecturer (Teaching Professor) in Supply Chain and Operations Management at the University of Georgia. He has 30 years of experience as a COO, CMO, CSO (Chief Strategy Officer), VP of Operations, VP of Marketing and Process Engineer. He founded and leads UGA’s Supply Chain Advisory Board, serves as the Academic Director of UGA’s Leaders Academy, and serves on multiple company advisory boards including the Trucking Profitability Strategies Conference, Zion Solutions Group and Carlton Creative Company.

Marty enjoys helping people and companies be successful. Through UGA, Marty is passionate about his students, helping them network and find internships and jobs. He does this through several hundred one-on-one zoom meetings each year with his students and former students. Through Adæpt Advising, Marty has organized an excellent team of affiliates that he works with to help companies grow and succeed. He does this by helping c-suite executives improve their skills, develop better leaders, engage their workforce, improve processes, and develop strategic plans with detailed action steps and financial targets. Marty believes that excellence in supply chain management comes from the understanding the intersection of leadership, culture, and technology, working across all parts of the organization to meet customer needs, maximize profit and minimize costs.

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Tandreia Bellamy

Host

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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Billy Taylor

Host

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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Allison Giddens

Host

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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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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Kim Reuter

Host

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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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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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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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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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.

Mary Kate Love

VP, Strategy & Operations & Host

Mary Kate Love is currently the VP of Strategy and Operations 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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Katherine Hintz

Director, Customer Experience

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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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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Amanda Luton

Vice President, Production

Amanda is a seasoned production and marketing professional with over 20 years of experience across diverse industries, including retail, healthcare, and digital marketing. Throughout her career, she has worked with notable organizations such as Von Maur, Anthropologie, AmericasMart Atlanta, and Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. Currently, Amanda manages, produces, and develops digital content for Supply Chain Now and its clients, delivering modern, engaging solutions for a wide range of audiences.

A former Vice President of Information Systems and Webmaster on the Board of Directors for APICS Savannah, Amanda also founded and led Magnolia Marketing Group, a successful digital marketing firm. Outside of her professional life, she enjoys experimenting in the kitchen, reading, listening to podcasts, and spending time with her family.

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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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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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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 Cisco, Microsoft, 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 University, O’Reilly Media, LinkedIn Learning, and Pluralsight.  Mr. Jackson retired from the U.S. Navy in 1994, earning specialties in Space Systems Engineering, Carrier 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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Scott W. Luton

Founder, CEO, & Host

Scott W. Luton is the Founder and CEO of Supply Chain Now, the #1 voice of Supply Chain. Supply Chain Now is an award-winning global digital content platform dedicated to the global supply chain industry and its robust community. At the heart of the platform, is the almost daily Supply Chain Now podcast, which has hit podcast leadership charts in over 60 countries. With over 20 years of extensive experience in the end-to-end supply chain, Scott has become a recognized global thought leader in the industry. His insights have been featured in major publications such as The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and CNN. In 2024, Thinkers360 named him the #1 Global Thought Leader and Supply Chain Influencer. Additionally, Supply & Demand Chain Executive recognized him as a Supply Chain Pro to Know in both 2019 and 2025, and he has also been recognized by RateLinx, ISCEA, and other organizations for his industry leadership. 

Scott is a proud United States Air Force veteran, having served on active duty from 1994 to 2002. Since transitioning to civilian life, he has been committed to supporting the veteran community through various initiatives.

Under Scott's leadership, Supply Chain Now has grown into the premier source of industry insights, offering a variety of content including podcasts, livestreams, webinars, and virtual events that engage a global audience. His passion for fostering collaboration and knowledge sharing continues to drive the platform's success.

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