The SupplyChainBrain Podcast

Another short-term extension of funding for transportation infrastructure improvements? This story is getting old. The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation has come up with a six-year transportation bill, the Comprehensive Transportation and Consumer Protection Act of 2015. That's not to be confused with the DRIVE (Developing a Reliable and Innovative Vision for the Economy) Act, which came out of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee. Ideally, these measures would be successfully combined into a comprehensive, multi-year bill that nails down funding for transportation projects once and for all. But don't get your hopes up. Meanwhile, Congress has passed yet another extension of the Highway Trust Fund, but only until the end of the year. Have we made any progress at all, since enactment of the last big transportation bill in 2012 (which, by the way, didn't include a long-term funding solution)? On this episode, Joshua Schank, president and chief executive officer of the Eno Center for Transportation, returns to the podcast with an update on a perennially contentious issue. It's time to come up with a new way of paying for transportation projects, he says. But what will that look like? Nobody can seem to agree.

Is there slavery in your global supply chain? Are you sure about that? Governments want to know. The first major attempt to curb modern-day slavery through legislation was the California Transparency in Supply Chains Act of 2010, which took effect in early 2012. It served as a template for the United Kingdom Modern Slavery Act of 2015. Both require companies to disclose the presence of slavery or human trafficking anywhere in their supply chains, or face stiff penalties for failing to do so. Our guest on this episode is attorney Maureen Gorsen, partner in the Environment, Land Use Natural Resources Group of Alston Bird LLP. She discusses how companies can comply with the two laws, and gain visibility into activities of which they might previously have been unaware. As with any human rights violations, it can be tough to uncover such occurrences within complex, global supply chains. Nevertheless, companies will have to step up their game. These initial laws represent only the beginning of what's sure to be a more comprehensive effort on the part of governments to put a stop to slavery once and for all.

The race is heating up over who will dominate the world of ''last-mile'' delivery of online retail orders. It's a crowded field, to be sure. Competitors range from internet giants such as Amazon.com, Google and eBay to traditional brick-and-mortar retailers such as Walmart, Macy's and just about every major department store imaginable. The nature of the service is up for grabs as well. In addition to home delivery, retailers and e-tailers are offering options such as secure lockers, in-store pickup and postal service locations. Finally, there's new technology to be considered. Will drones and driverless vehicles play a part in the delivery model of the future? What about on-demand passenger services such as Uber and Lyft? Our guest on this episode is Rob Howard, founder and chief executive officer of Grand Junction, Inc. He runs down the multitude of players that are jockeying for position in the modern-day delivery market, and discusses their various strengths and weaknesses. Who will make it to the finish line? And what do consumers really want?

What can automobile manufacturers to do stop the endless flood of recalls, some of which result in injury or death to drivers and passengers? There's been no letup of incidents in recent years. The recall of airbags by the Japanese manufacturer Takata Corp., affecting more than 53 million cars worldwide, is only the latest to hit the headlines. In recent years we've seen the failure of brakes, electrical systems, locks, steering mechanisms and even, apparently, floor mats. The trend toward globalized supply chains, involving multiple tiers of suppliers, only makes the problem more complex. On this episode, we're joined by Evan Hirsch, partner at the global consulting firm Strategy. He offers a perspective on why product failures and recalls continue to happen, and what original equipment manufacturers and their suppliers can do to reduce such incidents. Perfection is impossible, but there's plenty of room for improvement, says Hirsch.

It's enough to scare the daylights out of retailers: $1.75tr in lost revenue due to overstocks, out-of-stocks and preventable returns. Welcome to ''The Ghost Economy.'' The term comes from new research conducted by IHL Group on behalf of OrderDynamics. It looks at the costs that retailers rack up by failing to understand what's happening in their businesses today. The problem rests in large part with the additional challenges posed by e-commerce and the advent of the omnichannel. Many retailers have yet to coordinate their efforts across all channels, resulting in pockets of inventory that drag down the bottom line. They just can't seem to match supply with demand. On this episode, we speak with Kevin Sterneckert, chief marketing officer with OrderDynamics, who explains how retailers got into this mess, and how they can escape it. No need for an exorcist: just a comprehensive approach to customer and inventory data, updated far more frequently than it is today.

The Greek people have said a resounding no to their creditors. So where does the country go now, to avert all-out economic collapse? There doesn't seem to be much light at the end of the tunnel. Greece owes the European Central Bank, International Monetary Fund and other lenders a reported €323bn (about $354bn). But the people and government of Greece have balked at the additional austerity measures they would have to adopt, in order to keep getting bailout money from their creditors. Yet those entities show no sign of backing off from their draconian demands. Is there any hope for a solution? On this episode, we speak with David Lea, senior analyst for Western Europe with Control Risks. He traces the history of Greece's economic woes, and speculates about what might happen if the nation leaves the eurozone (or is kicked out). He also explains how the situation in other ailing European economies, especially Spain, differs from that of Greece. And he confronts what is perhaps the ultimate question: Was the eurozone one huge mistake?

In the world of fast fashion, social media can be both bane and salvation for manufacturers and retailers. Clearly, they are hoping it's the latter. Much press has been devoted to the negative impact of social media on products and brands. But there's a significant upside as well #150; provided that companies know how to exploit it. Handled properly, social media can be a rich source of intelligence on ever-changing consumer tastes, helping to determine products, styles and quantities that are right for the marketplace. On this episode, we speak with Peter Akbar, vice president and chief customer officer for fashion with SAP. He says companies need to be paying close attention to social media, which have the power to influence every step of the merchandising supply chain, from forecasting through manufacturing, distribution and final sale. Fashion companies, he says, ''are likely highly tuned race cars.'' Even the slightest edge can prove instrumental to a product's success. He also discusses how companies can integrate social media with their traditional forecasting and planning methods. Bottom line: ''Companies need to start believing in social media.''

Bad things are bound to happen in your supply chain. Are you ready for them? Recent history demonstrates how vulnerable companies are to disruptions in their supply chains. Whether it's a flood, tsunami, earthquake, volcano, disease, port strike, data breach, or any number of other potential disasters, the impact on global organizations is immense. Yet many seem not to have got the message. What's gone wrong? Where are companies most vulnerable today? What must they do now? We get answers to these and other questions in our conversation with Chloe Demrovsky, executive director of the Disaster Recovery Institute International. She details the cost of unpreparedness, as well as some of the misconceptions that companies harbor about the types of disruptions that entail the highest costs. Time to do away with what Demrovsky calls ''risk psychology'' – the notion that ''It's never going to happen to me.''

It's been about a year since the Securities and Exchange Commission began imposing its rule on the disclosure of conflict materials from the Democratic Republic of Congo in manufactured products. Are companies up to speed? Mandated by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010, the rule applies to tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold sourced from mines in the DRC that are controlled by armed gangs. Companies are now required to reveal the presence of those commodities in their products, despite the difficulties of making that assessment in complex, multi-tier supply chains. On this episode, we speak with Paul Noel, senior vice president of procurement solutions with Ivalua, a vendor of software for procurement and spend management, about how far global businesses have come in complying with the rule. Noel also provides advice on what they must do to fall into line. While the rule lacks teeth – there are no monetary penalties for non-compliance – it nevertheless poses a substantial challenge to global supply chains. And it could get tougher in years to come. Consider it ''fair warning,'' says Noel.

Procurement fraud is costing global companies billions of dollars a year. So why can't they put a stop to it? The problem takes many forms: bribes, kickbacks, collusive bidding, conflicts of interest, exclusion of qualified bidders and the falsification of invoices, to name a few. The cost to companies hasn't been fully quantified, but there's no doubt that it's huge. In one recent case in Australia, the chief executive officer of fleet-management company Orix was accused of making corrupt payments of nearly US$388,000 to Coca-Cola Amatil, to secure vehicle-leasing contracts valued in the tens of millions. With so much at stake, why does the practice continue to plague companies today? On this episode, we speak with Tania Seary, founder of Procurious. She offers her opinion as to why businesses have failed to stamp out procurement fraud, how it can be detected, and what must be done to stop it. In addition, she raises the question of licensing procurement professionals, and talks about the skills and training that are needed to create a corporate culture that doesn't tolerate procurement fraud.