A missed delivery in a public health supply chain is never just a logistics problem. It can mean a child misses a vaccine, a patient goes without treatment, or an entire community loses trust in its healthcare system. In this episode of Supply Chain Now, Scott W. Luton welcomes Don Hicks, CEO of Optilogic, and Taylor Wilkerson, Executive Director of Design for Life, for a powerful conversation about using supply chain design to help more people access essential medicines. Don and Taylor explain why many public health supply chains face the same complexity as the world’s largest commercial networks, but must operate with far fewer resources, limited infrastructure, and consequences measured in human lives rather than profit. Taylor shares how outdated systems, manual processes, and limited visibility can prevent medicine from reaching the communities that need it most, while Don explains why managing the existing network is not enough. Meaningful progress requires redesigning the system itself. The conversation explores why resilient supply chains must be built before a crisis hits. Taylor explains how better data, flexible networks, and stronger design can help healthcare systems respond to outbreaks and demand surges. He also shows how a single stockout can lead to…

The Buzz is Supply Chain Now’s regular Monday livestream, held at 12 noon ET each week. This show focuses on some of the leading stories from global supply chain and global business, always with special guests – the most important of which is the live audience! This Digital Transformers edition of the Buzz fell on Martin Luther King, Jr, Day here in the states, and hosts Scott Luton and Kevin L. Jackson kicked off the show with a tribute to the late civil rights leader on what is his actual birthday! Scott and Kevin then shifted over to the normal business of the day, discussing some of the top news stories and trends in supply chain and digital transformation today. Listen in and learn more about: How to overcome challenges by implementing technology in supply chain management The top global risks for supply chains in 2024 How digital transformation increases the value of your supply chain workforce How a rise in recent layoffs may be correlated with the continued rise of AI And more!