Supply Chain Management Trends for 2024 and Beyond

Summary

在这段对话中，Eric Kimberling，Third Stage Consulting的CEO和Transformation Ground Control播客的主持人，与物流和供应链专家Blythe Broom Leave进行了深入的讨论。他们探讨了2023年供应链管理的趋势，并预测了2024年及未来的发展。Blythe分享了她对供应链行业当前状态的见解，包括消费者支出的变化、库存管理的挑战以及技术在供应链中的应用。特别强调了人工智能（AI）在提高效率、降低成本以及增强决策能力方面的潜力。此外，讨论还涉及了供应链管理中的欺诈预防、货物犯罪问题，以及如何通过技术投资提高透明度和客户满意度。Blythe还为想要进入供应链管理领域的人提供了职业发展建议，强调了从基层做起、了解技术并建立人际关系的重要性。

Takeaways

• 📈 **供应链趋势**：2023年供应链经历了从疫情经济的衰退中恢复，消费者支出从商品转向体验，然后又回到平衡状态，预计2024年将进一步稳定。
• 💡 **技术采用**：人工智能（AI）和机器学习技术在供应链管理中的应用正在增加，帮助处理大量数据并优化决策过程。
• 🚚 **货运行业变化**：货运行业正在从以关系为基础的业务模式转向更注重技术和自动化的模式，但人际关系仍然是业务的核心。
• 🤖 **技术与人文结合**：尽管技术在提高效率方面发挥着重要作用，但供应链管理仍然需要重视人际关系和员工的参与。
• 🌐 **全球视角**：供应链管理的决策需要考虑全球因素，如天气、地缘政治和经济数据，这些因素通过AI技术得到更好的整合和应用。
• 📊 **数据重要性**：良好的数据管理对于AI和机器学习的应用至关重要，它可以帮助提高运输成本效益和整个供应链的效率。
• 👷 **前线员工的适应性**：尽管存在对新技术的担忧和抵触，但一些前线员工正在逐渐接受并利用AI工具来提高生产力。
• 🚧 **职业发展**：供应链管理职业发展中，了解AI和在地面层积累的经验对于进入该行业至关重要，这可以作为进入更高层次管理角色的跳板。
• 📚 **教育与实践**：大学教育可以帮助理解供应链管理的理论，但实际工作经验对于掌握行业知识至关重要。
• 🛠️ **技术投资**：组织在进行技术投资时，需要确保投资能够带来具体的回报，并且与公司内部流程和员工的实际需求相匹配。
• 🔮 **未来规划**：供应链管理者应关注内部流程和员工，通过过程映射和技术投资来规划未来的发展方向，同时保持与客户的定期沟通。

Q & A

2024年及以后的供应链管理趋势是什么？

2024年及以后的供应链管理趋势包括对人工智能的进一步采用，特别是机器学习技术，以及将这些技术整合进现有的技术栈中。此外，还有专注于特定领域的技术提供商，如司机追踪、卡车停车、海运等，它们将被整合进更大的系统中，以提高效率和降低成本。

消费者债务增加对供应链有何影响？

消费者债务的增加导致消费者减少支出，这直接影响了供应链中的商品流通。在美国，消费者债务的增加和学生贷款偿还的开始可能会减少假期季节的消费者支出，这对零售商和供应链管理是一个挑战。

供应链管理中AI的作用是什么？

在供应链管理中，AI的作用是处理大量数据，帮助节省成本，提高运输过程中的效率。AI可以帮助预测天气模式、优化运输路线、减少燃料消耗，并提高整体的物流生产力。

供应链管理中的欺诈和货物犯罪问题如何通过技术解决？

通过采用跟踪软件和其他保险解决方案，公司可以更好地监控货物，预防欺诈和货物犯罪。这些技术可以帮助提高供应链的透明度和可见性，从而减少风险和潜在损失。

供应链管理中的最佳解决方案是什么？

最佳解决方案包括集成到ERP系统中的各种技术，这些技术可以提高生产力并减少成本。同时，需要保持人际关系的重要性，因为供应链管理是一个以人为本的业务。技术投资应该与人工决策相结合，以实现最佳效果。

如何开始供应链管理职业生涯？

开始供应链管理职业生涯的一个好方法是从基层做起，比如成为叉车司机或仓库操作员。此外，可以加入货运经纪公司，了解供应链的各个方面。随着经验的积累，可以将这些知识转化为更高级的职位，如供应链管理经理或AI运营专家。

为什么供应链管理中的技术投资有时会失败？

供应链管理中的技术投资有时会失败，因为决策者可能没有充分了解实际使用者的需求和操作流程。如果没有与前线工作者沟通，直接强加技术解决方案可能会导致员工抵抗和低投资回报率。

供应链管理中的AI操作角色是什么？

AI操作角色负责识别和实施AI技术，以提高公司的生产力和利润。这个角色需要对公司的流程有深入的理解，并能够确定AI可以提供最大价值的领域。

供应链管理中的人际关系为什么重要？

在供应链管理中，人际关系至关重要，因为它们帮助建立客户和供应商之间的信任和合作。技术可以提高效率，但人为因素和关系网络对于业务决策和长期合作同样重要。

供应链管理中的欺诈和货物犯罪如何影响业务？

欺诈和货物犯罪直接影响供应链的成本和消费者支出。这些犯罪行为增加了运输成本，可能导致商品价格上涨，最终影响消费者的购买力和公司的盈利能力。

为什么供应链管理中的技术解决方案需要与人工决策相结合？

技术解决方案可以提供数据和效率，但人工决策提供了灵活性和适应性。人工决策可以考虑到技术无法捕捉的复杂情况和细微差别，确保供应链管理能够适应不断变化的市场条件。

Outlines

00:00

🎥 介绍和直播安排

本段落介绍了视频直播的背景，包括直播的主题是2024年及以后的供应链管理趋势。提到了直播的常规安排，即每周二同一时间进行，内容涉及数字化转型和供应链管理。还提到了观众可以参与提问，强调了观众互动的重要性。

05:01

🌐 供应链管理趋势回顾与预测

讨论了2023年供应链领域的主要趋势，包括疫情后的经济复苏、消费者行为的变化、零售商库存问题，以及消费者债务的增加对消费支出的影响。还预测了2024年第二季度末或夏季可能会结束对经济衰退的担忧。

10:01

📈 人工智能在供应链中的应用

强调了人工智能（AI）在供应链管理中的日益重要性，尤其是在物流行业。讨论了90年代以来供应链行业对新技术的采用情况，以及当前如何通过机器学习技术来优化已经建立的技术栈。

15:03

🤖 AI和机器学习的未来趋势

预测了2024年及以后供应链管理领域的AI和机器学习应用将进一步增加，特别是小型专业公司的发展，它们专注于特定问题，如司机跟踪、卡车停车、海运等。

20:05

🚛 供应链管理的现实应用案例

讨论了AI在供应链管理中的实际应用案例，包括使用天气数据来优化货物运输。强调了AI如何帮助从高层到基层的决策过程，以及AI对于提高日常工作效率的重要性。

25:07

🌟 技术整合与供应链优化

探讨了不同技术如AI、物联网、预测分析和数据管理在供应链管理中的应用，以及这些技术如何帮助做出更明智的决策。讨论了最佳解决方案在供应链管理中的重要性，以及它们如何影响传统的ERP系统。

30:07

🚜 技术采纳的挑战与机遇

讨论了供应链管理中技术采纳的挑战，包括前线员工对新技术的担忧和抗拒。强调了技术投资决策应考虑实际使用者的意见，以及如何通过技术提高生产力和降低成本。

35:08

📊 供应链管理的未来与职业发展

讨论了供应链管理的未来趋势，包括AI运营的重要性和对职业发展的影响。建议对供应链管理感兴趣的人从基础工作开始，了解行业内部运作，然后逐步转向更专业的技术角色。

40:08

💼 组织内部的供应链优化

建议组织应从内部审视，通过过程映射和与员工沟通来优化供应链。强调了与客户定期会面的重要性，以及如何通过这些内部和外部的沟通来规划未来的技术投资。

45:09

📝 结语和资源分享

总结了本次讨论的要点，并提供了如何获取更多信息的资源，包括Blythe的播客“Everything is logistics”和相关网站。

Keywords

💡供应链管理

供应链管理是指对商品从生产到消费的整个流程进行有效的监督和管理。在视频中，这一概念是整个讨论的核心，涉及到如何通过技术改进和人工智能的应用来优化供应链流程，提高效率并减少成本。

💡人工智能

人工智能（AI）是指使计算机系统模拟人类智能的技术，包括学习、推理、自我修正和感知。视频中提到AI在供应链管理中的应用，如通过分析数据来优化运输成本和提高决策效率。

💡数字化转型

数字化转型涉及将传统业务流程转换为数字化流程，以提高效率和效果。视频中讨论了数字化转型如何影响供应链管理，包括通过技术投资和自动化来改进流程。

💡消费者行为

消费者行为是指消费者购买商品和服务的模式和偏好。视频中提到，供应链管理必须适应消费者行为的变化，如从购买商品转向购买体验，这对库存管理和物流有直接影响。

💡库存管理

库存管理是供应链中的一个重要组成部分，涉及对库存水平的监督和控制。在视频中，讨论了如何通过技术改进库存管理，以应对过剩库存问题，并更好地预测消费者需求。

💡货运代理

货运代理是指在货物运输过程中充当中间人的公司或个人，他们协调货物的运输和分配。视频中提到，货运代理在供应链中扮演着重要角色，并且正在通过技术提高效率。

💡技术投资

技术投资指的是企业为采用新技术而进行的资金投入。视频中讨论了企业在供应链管理中进行技术投资的挑战，以及如何确保这些投资能够带来预期的回报。

💡数据管理

数据管理是指对数据的收集、组织、存储和分析的过程。在供应链管理中，有效的数据管理对于优化运营和提高透明度至关重要。视频中提到了如何利用AI来处理和分析供应链中的数据。

💡机器学习

机器学习是AI的一个分支，它使计算机能够从数据中学习并改进其操作。视频中提到，机器学习可以用于预测消费者行为和优化供应链流程。

💡过程映射

过程映射是分析和可视化工作流程的步骤，以识别效率低下和潜在改进的领域。视频中强调了过程映射在供应链管理中的重要性，以及它如何帮助确定AI和自动化的最佳应用点。

💡员工保留

员工保留是指企业努力留住其顶尖人才的做法。视频中提到，员工保留对于供应链管理的成功至关重要，企业需要通过提供成长和发展机会来激励员工。

Highlights

2024年及以后的供应链管理趋势讨论，涉及数字化转型、策略、流程和技术等话题。

直播形式的播客每周二同一时间进行，覆盖全球听众。

观众可以实时提出问题，与嘉宾互动。

Eric Kimberling作为Third Stage Consulting的CEO，介绍了公司的数字化转型服务。

Blythe Broom Leave分享了她作为Everything is Logistics播客主持人以及在物流行业的经验。

讨论了2023年供应链领域的重大变化，包括疫情经济的下滑和消费者行为的转变。

分析了消费者债务增加对消费支出的影响，以及零售商如何应对过剩库存问题。

预测到2024年第二季度，经济将摆脱衰退的担忧，消费者信心将增强。

AI在供应链管理中的应用被视为关键趋势，特别是在数据处理和决策支持方面。

讨论了AI和机器学习技术如何帮助提高运输过程中的成本效率。

强调了在技术投资中考虑人的因素的重要性，以及技术与人际关系的结合。

指出了技术解决方案提供商在销售技术时需要考虑的新的市场现实。

讨论了供应链管理中的欺诈和货物犯罪问题，以及技术如何帮助预防这些问题。

强调了在当前经济环境下，供应链管理者如何采取观望态度，避免错误的大额投资。

建议组织从内部审视，通过流程映射和员工保留来寻找提升效率的机会。

建议个人职业发展中考虑AI操作，作为供应链管理中的一个关键角色。

鼓励有志于供应链管理职业的人从基层工作开始，以获得宝贵的实战经验。

提供了关于如何联系和了解Blythe Broom Leave的播客节目的信息。

Transcripts

today thank you for joining today's live

stream which is to cover Supply Chain

management trends for 2024 and Beyond

I'll introduce Our Guest here in just a

moment but before I do uh cover I'll

cover a couple of logistical items uh

first of all this is a live podcast

interview that we do every Tuesday at

the same time same place whatever

platform you're listening or watching on

we do this live discussion every week

same time same place we talk about

things all all things related to digital

transformation including Supply Chain

management as well as other strategy

people processing technology types of

topics this interview will become part

of the transformation Ground Control

podcast which is what we're filming this

for so if you don't already be sure to

check out transformation Ground Control

you can find that on Apple uh podcast

Google podcast Amazon Etc all the audio

podcast platforms as well as streaming

to LinkedIn YouTube Facebook and Twitter

so be sure to check out that podcast if

you don't already

um secondly we are I've got some

questions related to Supply Chain

management that I'll ask our guest here

in a moment but the real questions I

want to get to are the ones that you all

have that the audience has here so

please chime in at any point along the

way with with questions you might have

um we'll get to those questions here as

we go and you can just drop those in the

chat whatever you're you're listening

and watching here today in fact if you

don't mind just dropping in the chats in

the meantime what city and Country

you're joining from today I'd love to

see where the global Community is

joining from today so just drop in the

in the chat City and Country love to

hear from you and see where where you're

joining from here today

um uh I guess just as a quick

introduction for myself before I

introduce the guest uh my name is Eric

Kimberling I'm the CEO of third stage

Consulting and we're an independent

consulting firm that helps clients

throughout the world reach their third

stage of digital transformation success

and of course I'm also the the host of

the transformation Ground Control

podcast which is what this interview is

for

so again the topic today Supply Chain

management trends for 2024 and Beyond

joining me today is Blyth broom leave

and uh Blythe thanks for being here

today thank you so much for having me

excited to be here excited to have you

this is your second time on the show I

know last time you were on which is

about a year ago I think it was probably

about this time last year we had a

really great discussion we got into a

lot of supply chain stuff and I thought

it would just be a great time for us to

have sort of a checkpoint here we're

late in 2023 thought it'd be a great

opportunity for us to check in and see

where things stand in the world of

Supply Chain management where you see

the world headed with Supply Chain

management in 2024 and Beyond and all

this other good stuff related to Trends

and just what's happening in the space

but before we get into those questions

tell us a little bit about yourself and

your different companies that you you

manage sure so I am the host of a

podcast called Everything is logistics

so as you can tell it covers Logistics

and supply chain and transportation

mostly focused on the U.S market now we

do cover you know International topics

as well of course

um but I started off in the freight

industry here in the U.S in Jacksonville

Florida working as an executive

assistant at a 3PO which is a third

party logistics company

um basically uh working side by side

with the executive team learning how you

know a transportation company operates

um and so because of that experience

there I was given the role of marketing

and uh digital media manager and so I

started managing all the websites and

marketing materials for that company and

that was sort of my trial by fire into

the world of logistics and that sense

has evolved into my own company where

the company that I worked for before

became my very first customer

um that that company is digital dispatch

it's website Management Solutions for

the logistics industry so Brokers

carriers shippers vendors people like

that anybody who essentially small to

medium-sized businesses who need those

kinds of services but the podcast is

really my main focus that's where I get

to have these awesome conversations with

people from all over the world all over

different sectors and modes of

transportation so I'm excited to be here

I'm excited to talk about you know the

the fascinating world of supply chain

because it really is we were talking

just before we got on air that there's

so much to learn within the world of

supply chain from a historical

perspective to you know just recent you

know history

um and even where we think you know

geopolitical struggles

um alignments are going to evolve in the

near future it's always evolving it's

always changing and I think that's why I

love this industry so much

yeah we were also talking about how it

it's likely or is possible that neither

one of us or anyone in the field will

ever fully learn and master all there is

to master about Supply Chain management

because it does change so fast so that's

right exactly I wish I wish I could

learn it all right right so how would

you so you started to touch on this a

little bit then and maybe just to set

the stage for the conversation here

today how would you how would you

summarize how the supply chain field has

unfolded in 2023 so far if we sort of

look at just you're in review sort of

thing I know it's a little early for

that but you know just we're three

quarters of the way through what what's

unfolded here what are the big trends

you've seen so we're really coming off

the downturn of the the covet economy

and so specifically here in in the

United States there was a lot of

stimulus uh impact that a lot of checks

that went out to the population

um within the us a lot of residents were

basically locked inside and couldn't go

anywhere and couldn't do anything so

what did they do they spent their money

on consumer goods and so that had a

massive ripple effect throughout the

entire global economy a global supply

chain we were we couldn't import fast

enough all of the goods that U.S

residents were buying mainly because

they were bored at home and so now we're

starting to see you know a little bit of

that pendulum shift back to where

consumers are spending a good amount of

their money on all of these consumer

goods that pendulum switched back over

the last year or so into experiences

people were traveling more and and doing

more experiences uh but now that

pendulum has kind of swung back towards

the Middle where Consumer Debt has

increased I think it just crossed you

know a one trillion dollars here in the

United States so consumers are pulling

back on their spending rightfully so and

so what we're seeing is more of a

settling in to what this new post post

covet economy sort of looks like in the

United States we're going back to sort

of 2018 2019 levels of purchasing

um we're starting to see a bunch of

especially over the last year a lot of

retailers were dealing with Surplus

inventory issues now those have since uh

balanced out a little bit and so now

we're coming up into the holiday season

and it's really a wait and see game with

a lot of what the consumers want to do

and the retailers are going to

essentially React to what the consumers

want so they're not they don't have

these massive you know warehouse space

filled with inventories I mean even last

year last Christmas season we were still

selling Goods that were on container

ships that were stuck out of the Port of

Long Beach and La that were stuck on

those ships for eight nine months and so

a lot of those Halloween decorations

those Christmas decorations that were

stuck out on the boats in 2021 that

inventory was sold off in 2022 and so

this has really been the first holiday

season where we're gonna find out where

the true economy is at from a U.S

perspective and then how the rest of the

world is going to react as far as

spending as well I think there's a

greater fear of recessionary conditions

across the entire globe and so it's kind

of a wait and see approach both on the

consumer side and on the retailer side

and that that really is what drives

um a lot of shipments

um I guess separate from you know some

of the more materials

um dry bulk

um natural gas crude oil things like

that those shipments are treated very

separately from consumer spending and so

that's a whole different Market I don't

really have the expertise on you know

dry bulk goods and you know crude oil

and things like that but I do know that

some geopolitical tensions are are

affecting those shipments as well but

here the state side it really is all

about the consumer and retailers just

waiting and see

interesting so our retailers in general

and is the supply chain in general

struggling less with excess inventory

and sort of that lumpiness of the supply

chain that we've had in in recent years

yeah they're definitely uh so they have

the re a lot of the major retailers so

the Walmarts the targets um Costco's

even of the world they have that

warehouse space now secured and so

they're essentially what they're doing

is they're just waiting to see what the

consumer is going to do I I mentioned

earlier about the Consumer Debt that

that has been increasing what is another

factor that will really impact consumer

spending is student loan repayments um

for those you know who are viewing

internationally U.S has a very

um I guess a big issue with you know

student loan payments for their college

degrees for their college education

those payments were put on hold since

covid and now with that delay uh being

removed you're going to have an extra

added expense and so things are getting

much more expensive for the U.S consumer

much more than you know traditionally

have been and so you have all of these

additional bills that are coming down

the pipeline so we we kind of expect to

have

a consumers are going to spend a little

bit less this holiday season but we just

don't know yet because we don't know if

they're continuing or going to continue

to rack up credit card debt um but less

likely so because of all of those

external factors that are now going to

be playing a role as far as consumer

spending is concerned and then you have

on the on the carrier and the broker

side of things which is the trucking

companies and the the companies that are

trying to arrange the shipments from the

customers to the the people who are

actually making the goods uh the

manufacturers so you have those added

components of they're also dealing with

an enormous amount of fraud that's going

on and so anytime you see you know

consumers kind of interesting you know

from a Global Perspective when you see

the rise in Consumer Debt people not

having access to a lot of excess funds

to be able to go and Shop then you have

a rise in crime especially cargo crime

related activities that are also

affecting a lot of Brokers a lot of

carriers and it's becoming uh the cost

of doing business is becoming very very

expensive and so you have all of these

factors sort of colliding in at once but

the economy is still especially the

us-based economy is still doing

relatively okay there are some media

companies Freight waves um in particular

they have their sonar platform which

predicts and and analyzes you know

tender inbound rejection shipments

things like that they analyze all of

that data and they kind of predict that

by Q2 of 2024 that we're essentially

going to be out of any kind of recession

there are some experts that think that

we're going to be done with any kind of

recession fears by the summer but spring

to summer time is looking like when you

know we're going to kind of be back to

those pre-pandemic levels and the

recession concerns are going to be over

so hopefully that leads to consumer

confidence increasing and then retailers

confidence increasing and then you know

that has a ripple effect throughout all

of shipping whether it's the big cargo

ships that you see out in the ocean or

if it's the down to the trucks to the

Amazon delivery packages that you're

getting on your doorstep all of that has

a ripple effect right right that's super

interesting yeah that's an interesting

prediction for for next year and when

when things might start to settle down a

bit there

um so that's that's super interesting so

what other Trends do you see

developing then for 2024 and Beyond you

talked about you know what what people

are predicting for Q2 and into the

summer of next year what other sort of

big trends or predictions do you have

for Supply Chain management in the next

year well I think I mean we made it a

whole 12 minutes without mentioning AI

um so AI uh is just dominating I think

every part of the conversation

um in every industry especially when it

comes to the logistics industry it's

just Global Transportation as a whole uh

there so to put things in perspective

for the audience there

the supply chain industry as a whole has

been really slow to adopt new technology

they made major investments in the 90s

and the mid 90s early 2000s into what's

called these massive transportation

management software warehouse management

software uh Fleet management software

they made all of those investments in

the 90s and what happens is with a lot

of those different platforms they're big

all-in-one platforms designed to handle

everything all of your data from

accounting to tracking loads to getting

your products from point A to B rate

negotiations all of those things were

happening in one platform now you can

imagine that that is so much data it is

so much to filter through and so for a

lot of the smarter companies

um here in the freight space a lot of

them have started to implement different

machine learning Technologies they're

implementing those into their already

established Tech Stacks now what we're

seeing especially that started this year

is that

some of those systems that were

developed in the late 90s the early

2000s they're becoming a little clunky

they're becoming a little

um I guess abrasive to uh further

Integrations

um outside Integrations with different

other technology providers some of them

are doing a good job of incorporating

those different Technologies into those

massive Tech Stacks but it's really

started to happen over the last year

where you're starting to get these not

small players but these Niche players

who focus on one thing driver tracking

um truck parking

um you know Maritime shipping you know

the the amount of time that you're

waiting off of the coast in order to you

know get get your call into the the port

in order to be unloaded

um measuring gas and measuring fuel not

gas fuel and truckers will kill me if I

say gas battery fuel if uh you know from

point A to B how much uh speed you

should be doing on the highway how much

of your speed you should be doing on the

ocean all of these different Niche

technology players are now starting to

come into the fold and they're starting

to be integrated into these bigger

systems and so I think a major trend for

2024 is going to be the further adoption

of AI trying to filter through all of

those different data points to help save

their customers money to help save

themselves

um the the logistics providers help them

save some money anywhere they can

because just to give you a perspective

any good that you have any kind of goods

that you have in your house building

materials things like that up to 50

percent of that product's goods are

Transportation related costs so any

small savings that you can make on any

part of the transportation process has a

massive ripple effect and so I think

that we're going to see more AI adoption

we're going to see more machine learning

and we're going to see more of these

Niche players and hopefully break down

some of these technological silos that

exist within all throughout supply chain

where you don't have just inner modal

out on an island by themselves you don't

have Maritime out on an island by

themselves you know Trucking or you know

even the variety of different trucks

that are being used you don't have all

of these different silos they can play

together and integrate much more and I

think we're going to see much more of

that not just in 2024 but in 2023 as

well these are when companies are

starting to make those Investments and

make their budgets as right now

that's super interesting

um and here's a follow-up question I'm

going to get to you I'll put it on the

screen I'll read in a moment before I do

though

um just one quick note for those of you

that are watching on LinkedIn apparently

there's a problem with the LinkedIn chat

feature if you're on the uh if you're on

the desktop I don't think the chat is

working or at least we're not seeing

them here so if you you could either go

to the mobile LinkedIn interface or you

can go to YouTube if you want to ask

questions so I'm not ignoring you if

you're trying to ask a question on

LinkedIn just try the mobile app on

LinkedIn or YouTube

um if you if you want to engage with us

here but um thank you for all the

questions that are coming in so far uh

this one's from YouTube from Andreas on

YouTube

and he sort of answered this but I'm

curious to maybe dive into this a little

bit more but is AI just a buzzword or do

you already see real life use cases that

are that really get used you sort of

Ravel off a bunch of ways AI could help

supply chain managers and Supply chains

in general how often are you actually

seeing those use cases or how much is it

emerging would you say now and what do

you expect to see in the future

I I I do not think it's just a buzzword

I think it's going to be absolutely

crucial not just to at the the top

company line level but down to the

workers that are in the trenches

um AI can really help a lot of those

different processes and decision making

that is going on from the top down to

the bottom um we're seeing massive

adoption happening from the accounting

perspective we're also seeing it from

the sales and marketing perspective I

think that that's where the bigger use

cases are right now there are other

Transportation companies I'll use one

for example

um that they are taking the weather data

that's available to you know anyone in

the United States or really anyone

globally you can take that weather data

and overlay it on top of the shipments

that you already have within your system

and now the brokers who are sitting at

the phones and they're calling the truck

drivers they're calling their customers

they're trying to get these shipments

moved from point A to B they can now see

those weather patterns days in advance

so they can plan their equipment around

that

so say like a major hurricane is going

to be coming through

um say the Southeastern Port of the

United States you likely do not want

your shipments or your trucks or your

equipment in those areas that are going

to be heavily impacted unless you're

going to be staging them for Recovery

relief

um so there's lots of different use

cases of how AI where you could take

that broker or that person that's

sitting at the phone making those

decisions is now able to take big pieces

of that decision-making process and use

AI as a filter on top of those decision

making uh really high impact Revenue

impacting decisions they're using these

different tools and these different ways

to sort through it massive amounts of

data and that's really what AI is is

taking all of your data and making it

actionable and I think that that's where

you know a lot of folks when they hear

maybe is you know AI a buzzword or maybe

is AI just a fad AI has been around for

a while but in the sense of what what we

were talking about with AI today it's

essentially taking large data sets the

large data sets of things already within

your organization and then figuring out

how you can use intelligence and your

employees to use that data to make

decisions faster so it's one of those

things that is going to make the entire

role evolve where you're using AI as

almost like a co-pilot in your

day-to-day work so it's not just a

platform you're going to go to like

ai.com and you know it buy the tool and

then implement it into your systems it's

going to be a core part of every part of

your job to help you make decisions

faster so I think from that perspective

we are only scratching the surface when

it comes to Transportation data because

when you think of Transportation data

and just Global Logistics supply chain

it really tells the story of consumer

Behavior All Over The Globe what people

are purchasing what people are buying

tells us about what the their future

Investments are going to be and we

simply just can't sort through all of

that data by ourselves we do need the

help from these other technology players

um in order to make those decisions

faster but it also matters if you have

good data because if you've got if you

have bad data you're not going to be

able to make those decisions that are

going to help your customers get their

products delivered from source to porch

much more quickly and much more

efficiently which is what every customer

every manufacturer wants in the world is

they want cheaper Transportation costs

and that's really going to be the only

way to increase productivity from a

logistics provider perspective

yeah that's that's super interesting

it's almost like there's a uh like an

integration or a uh coming together of

different types of Technology here

you've got I hope you know AI internet

of things I mean Predictive Analytics

just data management all this stuff

that's sort of been buzzing around in

the background for a while now it seems

like it's sort of a perfect storm of

opportunity now with technology with all

these different emerging texts

especially with ai ai sort of like the

Capstone that sort of takes all that

other stuff and now makes it possible to

make smarter decisions and not just have

the data but now figure out what you're

going to do with it and make better

absolutely

now kind of along those lines um this is

from Kyler on LinkedIn along those lines

of how technology will improve Supply

chains and effect Supply Chain

management going forward her question is

how are artificial intelligence

Technologies being applied to optimize

supply chain and Logistics operations

and what benefits do they offer you know

what I'm so sorry that is not the

question I'm going to ask that is a good

question I'm going to come back to it

um sorry no worries 180 here the one I

meant to ask that was related to the

last one was also from Kyler but this is

um can you talk more about the need for

best of breed Solutions in Supply Chain

management sound like Niche options have

great potential but how to influence the

core Erp solution so you you talk about

Ai and you talk about these different

technologies that are becoming more

mainstream and more of an opportunity to

help improve Supply Chain management

what does that mean in terms of like

your back office Erp systems and or your

traditional Supply Chain management

systems are these going to be sort of

Standalone systems or technologies that

you're talking about or do you think it

eventually gets embedded within Erp and

Supply Chain management Solutions

themselves there are definitely some

players that are going to be integrated

into some of these Erp Solutions now it

remains to be seen because there are

also there there's a an underlying

current that has happened within the I

would say the past five years where

what's called these digital Freight

brokerages which might be a little in

the weeds for you know Supply Chain

management nerds out there that I am one

too so I use that term affectionately

now they have tried to implement

technology into a system that is mostly

relationship based so for a lot of folks

if you don't

um I guess maybe understand the I guess

the intricacies of the U.S Freight

Market the U.S Freight Market is and I

imagine this works all over the globe

because relationships matter and so for

a lot of these folks they have a direct

relationship with the customer that's

arranging the shipments now these

customers have had a whirlwind of three

years of nobody even knowing what a

supply machine manager role was they

were not invited into the c-suite they

were not invited into budget planning or

things like that and they and they

should have been you know supply chain

managers should have had a seat at the

table because Transportation costs

affect the product and good costs so

much up to 50 like I just said and so

for a lot of these companies they have

avoided that

um that issue and that role of a supply

chain manager now the supply chain

manager at a lot of companies has a seat

at the c-suite table they're in the

weekly meetings and they're talking

about the increased role and their

increased productivity or trying to get

to an increased productivity

um within their role but they're also

these are people who are handling tons

and tons of Brokers and shipments and

relationships and they really just are

frankly tired they're it's essentially

you know one very small teams one to

five people that are in charge of supply

chain for global companies so they're

overworked but they also want to focus

on their go-to relationships so supply

chain is very much and always will be a

very people first business but they are

getting pressure from the top from their

investors

um from partner companies that they need

to start making these Tech at these Tech

Investments and so that's where the tech

Investments are almost being pushed off

to this not the smaller players but the

people lower in so you have the supply

chain manager you have the logistics

service providers you have your

Warehouse operators you have your

procurement directors you have all of

these people that are now responsible

for all of these different factors and

so you have to think about it from the

lens of

what technology is going to help that

supply that small Supply team supply

chain manager team be able to work more

effectively be able to be more

productive and a lot of those folks are

scared to make those large Tech

Investments right now because of the

fact that a lot of these folk a lot of

these companies have focused on the

digital side of things the digital

movement of goods they've kind of forgot

a little bit about the relationship

aspect that you have to build between

customer and broker and shipper and

Driver all of these relationships matter

and so for a lot of these you know

digital Freight brokerages for example a

lot of them focused on we're going to

remove the person we're going to remove

the truck driver we're going to remove

these people that from the

decision-making process and just

digitally match you know a customer to a

truck what's been lost over the last

five years and what companies are

starting to realize is that you need

both you need the tech advancement you

need the tech Integrations but you also

cannot remove move the human from the

equation and so it's there's a lot of

companies that are struggling right now

on how do we make Tech Investments

without removing the human because we've

already been burned over the last five

years for making these large Tech

Investments and that hasn't resulted in

Roi so now it's it the pendulum we kind

of talked you know earlier about the

pendulum swinging pendulum is swinging

back to the folks who focus on

relationships and that they can build

out customized Transportation uh really

uh Transportation I would say solutions

for these different customers based on

their specific needs and that's where

technology can come into play to help

develop those custom Solutions where the

person and the people are still at the

at the Forefront of making those

business decisions so then that way the

people who are working in the trenches

who are often forgotten about those are

the people that are actually using the

software those are the people that are

actually using these different Tech

Integrations and trying to find where or

else they can make those slight

improvements from not having to make 40

calls a day a hundred calls a day in

order to see where Freight is so now

they're trying to figure out what what

does that balance look like and so I

think for a lot of companies especially

in supply chain there have been burned a

little bit in the past and now they're

trying to figure out okay where do we

make the investments from a technology

perspective that we can get these

incremental improvements from a

productivity perspective and then still

really focus on the people side of

things which I think has been largely

forgotten mostly because we've all been

running around like chickens with our

heads cut off over the last few years

and now things are starting to kind of

settle into what we think is the new

normal and that's where companies can

now catch their breath supply chain

managers can catch their breath and

everybody that works underneath them

could kind of have a way to say okay

what did we learn where can we make

these Investments and where are we not

going to waste a lot of time and energy

because I you know I I don't have to

explain this to you like you know a lot

of these companies it's a senior EP that

maybe makes a fly-by-night decision

where that software sounds great we're

going to use it and then they never talk

to the people who actually use the

software they never talk to the people

that it actually directly affects and so

I think that that's where it's almost

like very much coming back to reality

for a lot of these companies is that you

probably over invested in Technology

Solutions that didn't have a huge Roi at

the end of the day and then now you have

to reinvest back into AI there's a new

sort of tech thing that you've got to

learn but incorporating AI into

different functions of the product to

increase productivity of of your job

will then Help the People relationship

side of things to help make decisions

faster so they can focus on the things

that they're they're best at and that's

developing and further developing those

relationships with their customers

yeah yeah that's super interesting and

it's and it's an interesting

perspective because you're talking about

not only changing

Technologies or leveraging technology in

a different way but it's also a cultural

and mindset shift I would imagine to

where it's it's affecting you know us as

all as humans in Supply Chain management

um how how are you seeing or are you

seeing the front line reaction to that

like are you seeing like the average

entry level or the front line person

that's doing a lot of the work in Supply

Chain management how do you see their

jobs being affected or how are they

adapting to this or do you know or are

you seeing enough in that front line

Behavior the Smart Ones are adopting it

um now there is obviously with any kind

of new technology there's a little bit

of apprehension I would say a lot of

apprehension depending on the segment

that you ask um truck drivers in

particular are very apprehensive to new

technology they they are arguably the

the

they are arguably I would imagine the

the mode of transportation and Logistics

that are the most impacted by technology

they've have autonomous trucks you know

the promise of removing the driver

um you know sort of promise to them and

so it's become a career that they've

almost had to fight back against

technology coming more and more into the

truck autonomous trucks probably doesn't

look like it's going to be uh a thing

that's going to be a long-term solution

especially for long-haul Freight

um there's a lot of debate that's going

on around that sector but then from the

truckers perspective they have ELD

mandates these electronic log devices

that have been installed in every one of

their trucks

um monitoring you know how far they're

driving their speed they're going

um they're basically outfitting a semi

truck

um with all of these electrical

components

um that makes the job of driving a truck

um it's supposed to is for a lot of

drivers that their sentiment is I can

drive my truck better than this tool can

tell me how to drive it now there's even

more technology that's starting to come

in with cameras that are inside the

truck that are facing them and you have

to think about it from the lens of the

driver that these a lot of times these

are their homes they're this is where

they're sleeping in where they're

undressing and where they're eating and

whether you know enjoying their off time

in

um and so for a lot of drivers they're

very hesitant to adopt this new

technology whereas the office workers

it's almost very much

um the same kind of apprehension to

adopting technology because they see it

as this is going to take my job and we

also see it in warehouse workers as well

with the adoption of more robotics

um you know more automation coming into

the warehouse there are actual companies

that have to train their employees to

see the robot as a helper from a

psychological perspective they have to

introduce this kind of training to say

you have to see this robot as a helper

not something that's going to take you

your job and so there's this

psychological component with adopting

more technology into the fields into

various different silos within the

entire supply chain but then you have

some of the people who are taking these

tools they are taking Chachi BT and

Claude and you know I guess barred to an

extent but not Bard is kind of an

afterthought I think for most folks who

use you know these large language model

type tools

um what we're starting to see more

especially at the Enterprise level for a

lot of logistics companies is that they

are adopting their own personal element

large language models to learn off of

their own data sets for Fears that their

data could you know privacy concerns

things like that with using some of

these open source models and some of

these other um you know Microsoft

powered models things like that

um so you kind of have a an apprehension

I've seen it with a lot of marketers and

sales folks as well much less so on the

sales side of things it's much more on

the marketing side of things they've

really fear that their jobs are going to

be taken the way I see it is that these

jobs are evolving in that you know using

these tools you're going to be able to

increase your productivity so much more

so much faster because you're able to

sift through data so much more quickly

everything is recorded conversations

like this or recorded meetings are

recorded you can't possibly filter

through all of that data and be able to

learn something from it to turn it into

something actionable and so that's why I

say the Smart Ones are starting to use

these tools in every aspect of their

work from email to quoting to uh you

know rfps to customer Communications to

reducing the amount of phone calls that

someone has to make to the shipper to

the broker and so we're having a lot of

these Tech uh Tech advancements but

they're very much as that other side

that is very resistant to it I would say

drivers are the most resistant to it but

rightfully so where it's going to impact

more along the lines of supply chain is

going to be those in-office workers the

accounting the marketing this sales

teams and also the folks that are doing

a lot of pricing a lot of quoting

different trade Lanes all throughout the

globe what do those rates look like

who's the carrier there's all of these

different data points weather is another

one geopolitical issues all of these

different data points have to be pulled

into consideration and it would be

impossible to make educated guesses or

educated decisions if you're not working

with those different data sets and using

technology on top of those data sets

yeah especially when you talk about the

disparate data sets the the stuff that's

not internal it's not data that you've

accumulated or hoarded over decades in

your own internal systems this is you

know the geopolitical stuff weather

related stuff economic data all that

stuff is third party that you you've got

to figure out a way to tie it all

together with the internal stuff that

you have um and a lot of these folks

they don't have the conversations with

those workers with the the Brokers that

are making 100 phone calls a day or the

drivers that are driving hundreds of

miles a day they aren't being consulted

first for a lot of these these Tech

Investments and so when it comes down

the pipeline hey you got to start using

this tool they don't want to use it and

then they figure out really quickly oh

we just wasted a very large chunk of

money on this investment because we

didn't actually talk to the people who

are going to be using the tool

um so that is it sounds like such an

easy thing but I think for the last you

know handful of years a lot of folks

within supply chain have been um it's

almost like the the shiny shiny object

syndrome where they see the new tech

tools and they are they want to just go

ahead and just buy them without

realizing how it's going to fit into

their already established processes and

then also from the lens of the workers

who are actually going to use it so

that's why you know I say right now is

that there's a little bit of

apprehension to invest in Technology

Solutions unless you can prove that you

can provide an Roi or solve a very

specific problem which sort of brings it

back to where a lot of the niche players

we talked about earlier in the

conversation where they're going to play

a really strong role I mentioned it kind

of briefly earlier that you know a large

aspect of what's going on in this

industry right now is fraud and

prevention of fraud cargo crimes things

you know it's smuggling across borders

smuggling into different ports a lot of

these things are uh you know they're

it's on an uptick and so you're what

you're starting to see more and that has

a direct impact on bottom line and Roi

is that a lot of these companies are

starting to invest in tracking software

and then it goes back to the drivers the

drivers want to be tracked you know

there's different elements with where

you're shipping Goods I I just talked to

an insurance provider on the podcast the

other day that that mentioned that for

his uh drivers in Mexico they are only

allowed to drive during the day they're

not allowed to drive at night because

that's where their statistics are

showing them that a majority of cargo

crime is happening is at night so when

they do drive on the road they drive

during the day and they do not stop

um so a lot of these different factors a

lot of these different data points are

going to they should be impacting your

decisions but what are those Niche

players what are they all what kind of

solutions are they offering for the

problems that exist right now that is

directly impacting Revenue fraud and

cargo crime is a huge one especially

Stateside and I would imagine across the

globe but that is one that is uh the

more investment is starting to come into

that mix

um and more of a stronger focus on

trying to prevent these issues because

we talk about all of just the general

formal supply chain issues but then you

layer in the fact of cargo crime on top

of it and that it directly impacts

pricing it directly impacts consumer

spending the cost of goods it impacts a

lot so that that's a big factor of

what's going on in supply chain right

now that is trying to be combated with

technology and with different Insurance

Solutions tracking things like that but

are the drivers going to use it are the

broker is going to use it

um that Still Remains to be seen

so you're you're touching on a lot of

stuff here like related to technology

Trends human adoption you talked earlier

about

um the dust settling from from covid and

Supply chains just sort of resuming back

to their 2018 normalcy if there is such

a thing

um so there's a lot there's a lot going

on here right there's a lot of different

things you're talking about what what do

you see with all these supply chain

managers that you talk to every day and

interview on your podcast and whatnot

what are the biggest things that are

keeping them up at night you know of all

these things that are going on sounds

like they might be spread thin they've

got a lot to a lot of balls in here

what's keeping them what's keeping them

up at night what worries them most when

it relates to Supply Chain management

some of these Trends you're talking

about I would say definitely

um it's almost a sentiment of Don't Rock

the Boat right now

um where they have you know we kind of

talked about you know the the tech

Investments that they've made over the

last five years didn't really come to

fruition hasn't really had a strong Roi

and so for a lot of folks and especially

what I'm I'm hearing and what

anecdotally what I'm seeing is that for

a lot of these businesses it's a wait

and see approach it's a wait and see on

how consumers are going to be spending

how retailers are going to respond to

that spending if spending happens at all

and then from the investment side of

things margins are so thin right now

there was a huge boom during covet where

people were buying stuff like crazy and

shipments and you know I think pallets

went from like a hundred dollars a piece

to two thousand dollars a piece and so a

lot of these fluctuations that were

massive pendulum shifts in the economy

have started to settle back in and so we

I think there is a almost a desperation

to find out what is the new normal what

does that look like so there's a

hesitancy to make those big Investments

right now and then to have kind of a

wait and see approach on where they want

to move those chess pieces on their

chessboard and so I think for a lot of

these folks they just they don't want to

make the wrong investment because the

wrong investment could dramatically

impact the bottom line and when margins

are already thin that wrong investment

could lead to a lot of people getting

laid off and so I think for a lot of

folks it very much is a wait and see

approach Don't Rock the Boat

how our supply chain technology solution

providers responding to that uh that

concern do you see them sort of get more

aggressive or finding different angles

to sell their their Technologies to

these these supply chain managers given

that mindset I mean for a lot of them

they're they're facing a hard reality I

think it's a it's a reality for a lot of

software providers that are especially

ones that were VC backed

um the VCS and the The Venture Capital

funds they want to see an Roi they want

to see that there's light at the end of

the tunnel

um and for a lot of these Technology

Solutions that haven't come to fruition

a lot of those companies are laying

people off and a lot of that funding is

drying up it's not so easy to get access

to this funding to continue

building up a business to gain market

share now it's all about profitability

and yeah I mean for a lot of small

business owners especially medium-sized

business owners that should be like a

duh moment that yes your business has to

make money and so far I think a lot of

the these software providers are really

starting to have their their come to

Jesus moment where it's like you got to

make some tough decisions you have to

figure out that path to prop

profitability and what that looks like

you have to communicate that that to

your your funding partners and then from

the funding partner perspective they

don't really have a lot of patience

um and so they want to see that Roi and

if they don't see it then you're going

to be forced to unfortunately make you

know a lot of layoffs a lot of freight

Tech uh companies in our space have uh

dramatically uh laid off a lot of their

stuff hundreds of people

um just in the last month have been laid

off from a lot of these more Tech

focused Freight tech companies and so

for and it's not just bro it's not just

tech companies but also the brokerages

that invested in a lot of those

Technologies Solutions thinking that

technology was going to solve all of

their problems and they forgot the

people aspect they forgot that you know

it's not going to be this sort of uh

Scrooge McDuck situation where you're

just going to dive in a pile of money

every single year that coveted spending

habits are over and now you have to be a

real business you have to be profitable

you can't really wait any longer or

otherwise a lot of people are going to

suffer and so you have to write the ship

and you have to do it now and that's

where a lot of companies are starting to

set themselves up for that 2024

hopefully success is by trimming the fat

now and unfortunately it's a crude way

of you know saying that when it comes to

you know employee jobs and things like

that because ultimately they're the ones

that that burn or get the brunt end of

it when upper management makes you know

bad decisions and bad investment

decisions

um but that's the thing with the supply

chain is that it's always evolving it's

one that's always going to be invested

in and so the thing with you know supply

chain roles is that unfortunately if you

are laid off in one area then there's

probably several other areas that you

could make the leap and make the jump

um career-wise and um from an AI

perspective if you are not focused if

you are one of those folks that were

laid off and you're not focusing on just

AI operations as a whole uh I feel like

that that is one area that is a glaring

mistake but it also could be a great

opportunity because that's what every

single one of these companies are

wanting to do right now they're wanting

to be more productive and they want to

cut costs and AI can help in both of

those areas and so for a lot of those

folks a lot of these software companies

that built up they had a really high

body counts

um inside their offices a lot of these

brokerages as well now it's about who

who can rise to the top who can use

these these Solutions in order to be

more productive and to enhance their

career but also enhance the bottom line

of a lot of these companies

um because that that's really the only

solution I see right now for a lot of

these tech companies that are are forced

to really look at the bottom line and

look at their revenue look at their P

L's and see where they stand and you got

to make smart decisions you got to get

leaner and that's where I think you know

for for a lot of folks it's the process

mapping it's the boring stuff

um the process mapping the software

Investments and how you're going to put

Ai and automation where it makes sense

that the people can still be at the

Forefront of those building those

relationships and then use this as

almost like their their superpower that

that nobody else sees

agree with you on one thing and that

process mapping is boring I totally just

I think process mapping is really fun

but but something really challenging too

it is so do you think you know kind of

Shifting Gears a little bit here in your

career or you know Supply Chain

management careers which is a lot of

um a lot of questions we get on social

media is related to how do I get into

Supply Chain management what area of

Supply Chain management should I focus

on is it a good area to focus on what do

you see here in terms of

um just general career opportunities is

it going to be more on the Consulting

side sort of the outside third parties

that are going to be more opportunity

you think it's the internal uh types of

people that can add value internally is

it a combination of both or where what

do you see is like a trend in terms of

careers in Supply Chain management as

terms of careers I I think I I feel like

I'm beating a dead horse when I'm going

to say this but AI operations

um that is going to be the bread and

butter of a variety of different roles

within all of supply chain I mentioned

from account I don't this is from a

us-based perspective but we have a

shortage of accountants we have a

shortage of CPAs in the United States

accounting is one of the largest

departments at a supply at a uh you know

a logistics company at a supply chain

company the accounting department is

some of the largest and we have a

shortage of those types of people then

we need software to come in and help

alleviate a lot of the overworked

individuals who are already in those

roles and they really don't have sort of

a reprieve and or a relief to come in

and help them besides these different AI

adoption Technologies and so what we're

probably going to see especially from a

career perspective is somebody who is

impact or somebody who is fluent in

process mapping someone that is fluent

in also AI operations where can AI fit

in how can we standardize our data so

that it is good for these these

different large language models these

private ones that should be in

deployment that should be being built or

at least looked into from a tech

perspective active from it or a company

perspective just in general and so I

think the the role of AI operations and

having someone that has a general

overview of that process mapping and

then seeing where AI plays a role I

think there's an incredible opportunity

in order to be able to be that main

focal point to be that main person who

is focused on where can we Implement AI

where is it going to make sense and so

having someone that is you know a chief

AI officer or someone who is you know

their title is AI operations I think is

going to be a massive play

um and really sort of solidify uh a

little bit of a guarantee for a career

in the near future where a lot of these

other traditional roles are are being a

lot of the I would imagine the the

duties within those traditional roles so

think about the folks that are in the

White Collar work the uh research

analyst um a pricing

um analyst a lot of those different

roles are directly going to be impacted

by AI where you might have had six

people performing that job whereas you

might only need like two or three now if

you use the tools like AI so if you're

in Supply Chain management or if you're

looking to be in a supply chain kind of

career or adjacent I would get in on the

ground floor I would talk to the people

that are in the trenches that are doing

the work and then become the person who

is the go-to AI person within the

company that you can look at those

different process maps you can look at

the different Tech that you have or Tech

Stacks that you have right now the tech

advancements that you could be making in

the future or or in addition to the AI

responsibilities and how you can figure

out where it's going to play a role in

different departments all across the

company because it really is going to

have a direct impact on revenue and

productivity so if you can be that

person be that person dive in bookmark

these tools figure out how you can use

them in every aspect of your job it's

going to help you get there a little bit

faster now it's not the end result it is

not I have to put that caveat out there

that it's not as simple as you know

write me a sales email to a new customer

and chat GPT it's not that simple you do

have to have a level of expertise and so

that's where the higher thinking

um the the more of the Strategic

thinking individuals who can see where

it makes sense for these AI automation

machine learning tools to come into play

that's where it's going to really just

almost put gasoline on the fire for a

lot of these folks who are looking for a

career that's going to have a little bit

more longevity whereas some of these

other careers are a little bit more in

the balance of things of what trajectory

they're going to go because AI is just

impacting every single role at a variety

of different levels

that's super interesting now is that

movement Ai and being uh maybe you're

not going to be an entry-level Chief AI

officer necessarily although that could

be a longer term career path for you

um this sort of ties into a question

from from Kyler here on LinkedIn

um about breaking into the Supply Chain

management industry and what do you

recommend to people that want to get

into Logistics and Supply Chain

management obviously AI is one area that

you know if you know Supply Chain

management and you know AI I think what

you're saying and I think what we agree

on is that that's a great that could be

a great entry point are there other ways

or other tactics or strategies or areas

of focus that you think are going to be

more important for people that are

entering Supply Chain management right

now in addition to AI I mean they're not

going to like this but you gotta you

gotta get it on the ground level with

some of these a lot of uh transportation

and Logistics professionals they are in

the field there it's more blue-collar

it's hard work getting into that aspect

of it so maybe like a forklift driver

maybe Warehouse operations

you could also go work for a big

brokerage they're always always hiring

and when I say brokerage I mean Freight

brokerage um the people that are kind of

like the middleman who are arranging the

truck drivers and the warehouse

operators and the customers and the

manufacturers

um so being that middleman will really

give you a a breath of knowledge in all

areas of the supply chain and then you

can take that role and you can turn it

into something that's AI operations you

can figure out where technology plays a

larger role but you can't know that

until you do some of this work that's in

the trenches even if you're a software

player I would encourage you to go to

some of these operations of where you're

building that software and seeing how

they're using the software you know I

was just talking to a company the other

or a couple months ago that they have

their development team their warehouse

managed they have a warehouse management

software system they went to one of

their customers and they sat in with

their customer for a full week and just

watched watch how they use their tool

why watch how they use the mobile app

they gained so much more insight from

watching the in the trenches workers

that they were able to turn around and

make improvements to their product and

be able to sell that use case to other

companies now when you have that kind of

experience from maybe a software vendor

perspective or you're actually the one

doing the work in the trenches you can

then flip that into that supply chain

manager role within a customer role so

say a Target say a Walmart

um a Costco you know building into not

Sephora but maybe a Sephora some at

makeup brands a consumer packaged Goods

you know beverages you can once you

learn the in the trenches knowledge you

can take that knowledge and you can go

to one of these bigger companies and

become the worker on the other side

where you're the one calling the and not

having to worry about calling the truck

drivers and calling the warehouse

operations and making appointments and

things like that so you could parlay

that role into something where you're a

Supply Chain management manager role

into more on the customer side of things

so there is that Evolution but if you

want if you're young and if you're

hungry and you want to get it on the

ground level I would I would go to the

nearest Warehouse I would go to the

nearest Freight brokerage and I would

get in and I would learn everything

about the modes that there are shipments

that they're using the equipment that

they're using the Commodities that

they're shipping and then once you learn

just the basics you don't even really

need to go to college for this and

that's what is the best part is that you

can learn some Supply Chain management

uh key tools things like that of course

in college but a lot of the learning a

lot of that happens while you're working

at the companies you learn how the how

the sausage is made you learn all the

intricacies and then you can parlay that

into other areas that have more

longevity and have more opportunity for

maybe what you want to do such as AI

operations role or a supply chain

manager role but getting in on the

ground level and the in the trenches

work is key to understanding where those

problems exist because no matter if you

maybe are an executive level role we

kind of hinted this Earl earlier in the

show you know they are making these bad

Tech Investments because they're not

talking to those folks who are in the

trenches working so if you're talking to

those in the trenches employees or if

you're doing the work yourself you have

a much better idea of where these Tech

Solutions make sense and then you can

parlay that experience into maybe a

freight Tech role um a logistics Tech

role or on the other side of things

where you go and actually work at the at

the customer level at the manufacturer

level and then you manage the shipments

on that side of thing as well and you

manage the entire supply chain the

source of the source for your products

um things like that so I would advise

get in on the trenches

learn it there first and then you have a

much better idea of where technology and

other roles will have a greater impact

especially while we're trying to still

figure out what the hell is going on

post coven right and it gives you a lot

more credibility you know if you want to

move up the food chain and become a

supply chain manager or a CEO or

whatever you know whatever future

aspirations you might have having that

credibility at the ground level is going

to be a lot more so especially a great

example you gave on the tech Investments

the bad Tech Investments part of that

could be that maybe these are guys and

gals that are too far removed from the

front lines either they don't happen to

start off there yeah

yeah and I'd say uh you know the the

college the university and College route

is probably good I guess if you want to

be you know consultant certainly that

can help uh but back to your point you

don't have that Hands-On credibility

necessarily just from having the the

college degree or the University degree

that's those curriculums they just

frankly can't keep up and that's you

know we've covered a lot and you know

there's this short time talking but

there's been so much that has happened

that has impacted every aspect of the

supply chain Journey for all of your

products all of your goods and it's just

happened within the last three years so

everything we thought we knew you know

prior to that has just been upended and

so for a lot of these colleges their

curriculum just frankly can't keep up

and so the best way to get that you know

sort of trial by fire knowledge is to

just go work for these companies right

right great great advice now speaking of

advice just sort of a Capstone question

here what what advice would you give to

organizations that are still trying to

chat they're still trying to navigate

some of these supply chain main

challenges today and I think what we're

saying and whatever you say is that

these challenges are not going to go

away they're going to continue to evolve

and change but they're not going to go

away so what do you what do you

recommend to an organization or a team

that might just be struggling in general

and they're not really sure where to

where to start or what to do to kind of

look to 2024 and Beyond I think you have

to look internally it has to come with

the people from within where are the

opportunities that you have workers

within your organization that want to do

something else that want to do something

more

um it's not just a matter of employee

recruitment but employee retainment

Talent keeping your top talent within

your organization not having them go to

a competitor or to another industry and

so for I think it starts from within it

starts with the not the boring stuff the

exciting stuff the process mapping so it

starts from within looking at your

people looking at your Tech stack

looking at your processes and then

figuring out where those Investments

make the most sense do you need more

bodies in the office making sales calls

or do you need that software Solution

that's going to come into play that's

going to be able to help you combat

fraud I you know I was just talking to a

company the other day that I was

surprised that this didn't already exist

but it's essentially a credit score and

rating for Brokers and shippers and so

from a customer a shipper perspective

they really have an outside of Google

reviews and a couple different sort of

Legacy software systems they really have

no idea who is hauling their Freight who

is hauling their goods and so the

greater transparency greater visibility

into who is hauling all of your goods

who is involved in this processes and so

that company what they do is they

provide almost a credit score for a lot

of these brokers and carriers so then

that way they can make these Benchmark

decisions on what is the most profitable

trade Lane which ones are can we focus

more on which carriers are the most

profitable they're most on time their

most reliable within those different

trade lanes and so having all of that

additional data points it just makes a

ton of sense for a lot of companies to

be able to say let's slow down the

economy is slowed down so you have this

extra time to be able to look at these

things more in depth you can kind of

catch your breath a little bit and look

at where the Investments that not only

you're going to make right now but

possibly in the near future you can't

make those predictions you can't make

those Investments unless you're working

with the people within your company

you're talking to your customers that's

one thing that I haven't mentioned yet

that is so vital it's so important

regularly having meetings with your

customers to figure out what go what's

going on with them and then that way you

can plan your operations appropriately

depending on how technology is being

integrated and adopted within your own

organization if you have people that are

slow to adopt technology but you want to

make Technologies Investments it's going

you're going to have a little bit of a

more challenging time so it's talking to

your people figuring out what the pulse

of your own internal workers are at

where you can make some shifts and

adjustments and then figuring out what

those processes look like and then

adopting AI automation machine learning

on top of that in order to help you

become more profitable and then if you

are more profitable then your customers

are going to be more profitable and it

just has a ripple effect for everybody

else in society I mean that really how

supply chain works is that you can save

your customers a little bit of money

then they're going to save their

customers a little bit of money ideally

that's the way it's supposed to work but

you know that's a whole other

conversation you know we don't have time

probably don't have time to get into all

that

right now how do people

um learn about your podcast how can we

listen to your podcast and how we learn

more about your business sure so um my

podcast is everything is logistics you

can find it in all major podcast apps um

Spotify Google Apple of course

um if you want to check out more Recaps

we have the the website everything is

logistics.com

um we're also on YouTube

um so all of our interviews now have the

video component as well as the audio

component and then um if you just hit up

everything is logistics.com that is

where all of my content lives social

media all that good stuff cool very good

we'll really appreciate you being here

again today uh life this was a great

conversation and as always it's fun

having you here and look forward to the

next conversation as well so thank you

thank you so much for having me

absolutely and thank you to the audience

for listening in and again apologies for

those on LinkedIn that we weren't able

to get to questions apparently that

stream is just not working from from

what I could tell today so hopefully uh

that gets fixed but hopefully you

enjoyed the interview anyway and we'll

look forward to seeing this final uh

product be we'll edit this in interview

we'll polish it up we'll add more

content to it'll become part of the full

length transformation Ground Control

podcast episode that gets released a

week from tomorrow so be sure to check

that out uh on audio podcast platforms

throughout the world the same ones that

you can find everything is logistics as

well

um so um thank you again to the audience

for being here today thank you Blythe I

hope everyone has a great week and we'll

see you next time on transformation

Ground Control take care