The SupplyChainBrain Podcast

For transportation providers in the e-commerce era, the choice is clear: disrupt, or be disrupted. The motivating force is, of course, Amazon.com, which has shown distinct signs in recent years of desiring to take over multiple transportation and logistics functions in support of its dominant e-commerce business. Existing transportation providers will either have to respond, or get out of the way. Like it or not, disruption is in their future. On this episode, we speak with Timothy Leonard, executive vice president of operations and technology with TMW Systems, about how transportation and logistics providers can wake up and respond to the Amazon challenge. It's not just small carriers that are threatened. They need to take an innovative approach to accessing and managing data, and band together into communities that will protect their business from absorption by the Amazon behemoth. The age of sedate, contract-driven transportation is dead. Time for a new strategy that aims, not just at survival, but dominance.

E-commerce retailers today aren't just focusing on the products they sell. They're also paying close attention to the boxes they come in. The term ''unboxing experience'' describes how consumers feel when they open the carton that contains an online order. Sellers used to be content with shipping items in plain brown boxes, their priority being to keep costs down. Now, however, they're looking for ways to differentiate themselves from the competition, and burnish their brands. So it only makes sense that they would turn their attention to the box and its accompanying packaging materials. On this episode, we learn of the innovative approaches that e-tailers are taking toward the once-overlooked shipping box. Our guest is Ken Chrisman, president of the product care division of Sealed Air. He explains why unboxing has become so vital to brand identity, and he explains how retailers are measuring consumer reaction (and, most importantly, emotion) to the experience of opening the box. It's all about eliciting ''mood boosts'' on the part of the buyer.

The Northern American Free Trade Agreement is 25 years old, but whether it lives to see another year is an open question. Nafta came under intense fire from both major candidates during the 2016 U.S. presidential campaign. But it was candidate Trump - and now President Trump - who was most critical of the treaty. Depending on the day, he has sworn to repeal it, walk away from it, renegotiate it or modernize it. But whatever the Administration ends up doing, Nafta is unlikely to survive in its current form. So what might a Nafta 2.0 look like? On this episode, we get some idea of its future from Alex Koff, partner in the Venable LLP law firm. He offers insights into how changes to the agreement might impact manufacturers, law and consumers. And he discusses how Nafta might be revised to account for technology that didn't exist at the time it was first ratified.

It takes more than deep water to accommodate a modern-day containership. Sometimes you have to raise a bridge as well. The Bayonne Bridge was constructed in 1931 to connect New Jersey with Staten Island. And while it was the largest arch bridge in the world at the time, it wasn't high enough to allow for passage of the new generation of mega-containerships. So the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey undertook a $1.6bn project to elevate the roadway. The initiative required four years of permitting and another four for construction, but that was relatively quick for a project of this scale and cost. On this episode, we find out how the bridge reconstruction was planned, funded and executed, and what it means to the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey. We speak with Bethann Rooney, assistant director of port performance initiatives at the Port Authority at the Port Authority, and Peter Keyes, vice president of New York operations with Moran Towing Corp. They explain what it takes for a major port to keep pace with the requirements of today's global container services. And they consider the question: Just how big are those ships going to get?

In the era of the Internet of Things, we're playing catch-up with the huge volume of data that the phenomenon is generating. Need to track high-value goods throughout the supply chain? No problem. Their cost has long justified the time, resources and technology involved. Now, however, we have the Low-Power Wide-Area Network (LPWAN), which allows for long-range communications between lower-value goods and equipment. In the past, those items might have been tracked inadequately or not at all. On this episode, we examine the benefits and impact of the LPWAN with Michael Orr, vice president of sales and partnerships with network operator Sigfox. He provides a picture of the modern-day Internet of Things ecosystem, identifies gaps in visibility, addresses the issue of network security, and offers his view of how the technology of smart devices will evolve in future. ''I see the market as essentially infinite,'' he says. ''Everything will be connected in the next five to 10 years.''

Forget about the old style of business networking. ''Social'' networking has brought a whole new meaning to the term. Social networking is fast becoming a must-have skill in the business world — both for career advancement and for managing day-to-day operations. More specifically, it's a critical element in procurement and supply chain. Just ask Tania Seary, founder of Procurious, the online business network for procurement and supply-chain professionals. She returns to the podcast to talk about the new era of networking, and why it's now an indispensable quality for today's procurement executive. She also reveals the secret of being a ''Procurement Network Guru.'' Says Seary: ''It's just the most valuable, cost-effective way to drive change in your day-to-day role that you can get.'' Forget about the old style of business networking. ''Social'' networking has brought a whole new meaning to the term. Social networking is fast becoming a must-have skill in the business world — both for career advancement and for managing day-to-day operations. More specifically, it's a critical element in procurement and supply chain. Just ask Tania Seary, founder of Procurious, the online business network for procurement and supply-chain professionals. She returns to the podcast to talk about the new era of networking, and why it’s now an indispensable quality for today's procurement executive. She also reveals the secret of being a ''Procurement Network Guru.'' Says Seary: ''It's just the most valuable, cost-effective way to drive change in your day-to-day role that you can get.''

How do U.S. executives view the future of manufacturing? Some of the answers are contained in a new report from the accounting and consulting firm of Grant Thornton LLP. In a survey of more than 375 U.S. manufacturers, it asked them to detail the major forces that are shaping their industries. They were also invited to describe the steps they're taking to adapt to those changes. On this episode, we get the details from Jeff French, Grant Thornton's national managing partner for consumer and industry products. Based on the firm's research, he lays out the four critical priorities for manufacturers today, as well as their number-one concern for the future. And he discusses both the political and technological factors that promise to radically transform manufacturing in the years ahead. Are manufacturers reshoring operations back to the U.S.? What's the impact on labor? It's a time of deep uncertainty — but that's no excuse for inaction.

A new wave of protectionism is threatening the stability of global supply chains. A worldwide backlash against free trade and globalization is posing new risks for supply chains. That's the conclusion of a new report from the Atlantic Council and Zurich Insurance Group. It examines a variety of geopolitical trends that could have a significant impact on economic growth, and, as a result, global supply chains. The report zeroes in on three main scenarios: the rise of protectionism in an interconnected world, the impact of conflict in the Middle East on the availability and price of energy, and the scarcity of water and food. On this episode, we take a deep dive into the study with Nick Wildgoose, global supply chain product leader with Zurich. He offers advice on what companies should be doing to buffer themselves against these three critical areas of risk. But judging from the results of a recent Business Continuity Institute study on business resilience, most are likely to suffer serious supply-chain disruptions anyway.