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How Much Should a CEO Know About Their Supply Chain?
Today’s article is about what CEOs really should know about their supply chains, in our post-COVID-supply-chain-crisis world. Including a side story about a catastrophic result from a CEO who was TOO engaged, I talk about the basics a CEO should understand and the questions they should ask to understand it.
Today’s article covers:
-Where should the line be between strategic CEO oversight and getting too deep into the details?
-Major categories CEOs should understand: spend, risks, leadership capability, and alignment with the company’s priorities and customers.
-Four basic and straightforward supply chain questions to ask and know the answers to
When Busy is a Supply Chain Problem
It’s easy to look at a very busy team and think, “This team is so productive!” And yet, this thought is a trap. Busy and productive are not only not the same, sometimes they’re mutually exclusive. Even worse, busyness leads to a death spiral where people are miserable, procurement is undervalued, and everyone just feels exhausted all the time. So let’s be willing to admit when our teams are too busy, then we can start to do something about it.
Today’s article covers:
Being busy isn’t the same as being productive: Is your supply chain team actually moving the business forward, or just fighting fires?
What separates high-performing teams: How proactive problem-solving, intentional processes, managed spend, clear priorities, and low turnover create a calmer, more effective team.
How to break the busyness spiral: Start by identifying the root causes of firefighting, expedites, excessive meetings, and manual work—and use quick wins to build momentum toward a stronger culture.
I’ve worked in and with quite a few supply chain teams. I’ve worked with small teams, large ones, from old companies and new ones; yet none of those factors actually affect a team’s “busyness.” More importantly, an extremely busy team is not always a very productive one.
Don’t Waste a Good Crisis: How Procurement Can Impact Standardization
Today’s article is about standardization, which is often considered to be “the engineers’ job.” That’s simply not true, and procurement has a major role to play in making an organization more efficient while increasing supplier leverage. I was inspired by a 99% Invisible podcast on the history of the 60-degree screw, which tickled my engineering and procurement fancy so very much.
Regret Without Action is Useless: August 2026 Insights
The end of summer makes me feel a bit contemplative. Some of that is spending time in the Northwoods on one of my favorite annual family vacations. Some of it is knowing another summer with my kids at home has passed. All of this makes me ask myself about my regrets. ...
Questions or Answers? The Roles of Consultant, Executive and Coach in Business
Today’s article covers:
-Consultants, Executives, and Coaches often overlap, but each role has a fundamentally different relationship with questions, answers, authority, and responsibility.
-Who brings answers, who asks questions, and who cares about results.
-Know which role you’re playing (and when it’s appropriate to shift roles) to be more effective.
Which role do you play most often?
Five Things to Help Your New Supply Chain Leader Hit the Ground Running
Do you have a new supply chain leader coming onboard soon? Are you ready to set them up for success?
Today let’s talk about onboarding a new supply chain or procurement leader, and five key things that lead to their success. This list is not just for the hiring executive, it also includes thoughts for team members wanting their full organization to succeed through a leader who’s ready to go. A rising tide lifts all boats!
Today’s article covers:
-Why new supply chain leaders need to understand the current state of the organization before deciding where to focus.
-The five things that can help a new leader hit the ground running: honest assessment, stakeholder relationships, accessible data, clear priorities, and the right team.
-How executives can set new supply chain leaders up for success by providing clarity, access, and authority.
A Procurement Integrity Test: Can You Fire Your Favorite Supplier?
Today’s article covers:
-How to recognize when a strong supplier relationship has crossed the line into favoritism or unnecessary business risk.
-The warning signs of overly close supplier relationships, including spend concentration, stakeholder feedback, and relationships that make it difficult to challenge or replace a supplier.
-Practical steps procurement leaders can take to restore objectivity, increase competition, and protect the integrity of their supply base.
The Secret to Networking Is Community: July 2026 Insights
My career coach Sarah Decker recently told me, “Networking is just building community.” The idea of “Networking”: my introvert self standing in a room, drink in my hand (often ice water!), mingling and talking to strangers for hours is exhausting.
But the idea of building a community? That I can do.
E-auctions Replace the Negotiation, Not the RFP
The eAuction doesn’t *need* to replace the RFP. But it *can* replace the “best-and-final-offer” process that comes *after* it.
That one change (run the RFP first, auction second) fixes almost everything people complain about: you keep your backup position, you protect the supplier relationship, and you true-up the bids before anyone races to the bottom.
Skip the RFx? Sometimes You Should
Today’s article covers:
-How going straight to auction can cut months from your sourcing process—but it can also undermine supplier relationships if done incorrectly.
-When it’s appropriate to skip the RFP, the safeguards that must be in place, and the categories best suited for a straight-to-auction approach.
-A practical decision framework for procurement teams looking to move faster without increasing risk.
The Art of Finding Great Suppliers
Today’s article covers:
-Finding qualified suppliers is getting harder as companies diversify beyond traditional sourcing markets.
-Learn where the best new suppliers actually come from, how to qualify them without creating unnecessary barriers, and why supplier partnerships are your best defense against supply chain risk.
-Practical advice for building a stronger, more resilient supply base.
Don’t Waste the Procurement Summer Slowdown
Today’s article talks about:
Procurement’s quieter summer months are the perfect opportunity to work on the business instead of just in it.
Practical ways to use downtime to strengthen data, reporting, AI readiness, stakeholder relationships, and your team’s performance.
Small investments now that can pay off when the inevitable Q4 crunch arrives.
The Goal is Always Independence: June 2026 Insights
The Goal is Always Independence
AI is Ready. We are Not.
Today’s article talks about:
AI is exposing years of neglected data, process, technology, and talent debt, and most companies aren’t ready.
Why many organizations are implementing AI for FOMO instead of business value.
The eight hidden pitfalls causing AI pilots to fail and adoption efforts to stall.
A practical framework for measuring AI success beyond productivity and headcount reduction.
How procurement leaders can earn a seat at the table in enterprise AI strategy.
Sometimes at a conference, a talk just lands. It’s well-articulated, from a reputable source, and delivers the message in such a way that we can hear it.
Recoding Procurement: Kraft Heinz, AI Buying Lessons, and Apple’s China Story
Today’s article covers:
-The procurement foundations that must be in place before AI can deliver results.
-Five major warning signs that an AI solution isn’t ready for your organization.
-Why buying AI is usually smarter than building it yourself.
-Surprising lessons from Apple’s decades-long investment in China.
-One conference session so impactful it gets its own article next week.
Economic Reality, Smartphone Addiction, and Other Lessons from USMA
Today’s article covers:
-An economist explains why the media narrative about the economy may not match reality.
-What utility leaders should know about labor shortages, inflation, and infrastructure demand.
-A neuroscientist’s brutal breakdown of how smartphones destroy focus and productivity.
-Simple productivity changes that could save hours of wasted attention every week.
Trust Your Team. Say “Yes, And.” Notes from Two Exceptional USMA Keynotes
Today’s article covers:
-A former astronaut’s powerful perspective on teamwork, trust, and leadership.
-How “Yes, and…” thinking can unlock better ideas and innovation.
-What creativity looks like in an AI-driven workplace.
-The conference feature that turned every keynote into live visual storytelling.
Fairness Isn’t Friendliness: Reflections One Year After Publishing Transform Procurement
I would argue our job is fairness over friendliness. This is a dichotomy Literary Titan identified in their review of my book, now out for a year! Reflecting on that and other lessons learned from my book one year later, today’s article is about
-Why e-auction programs fail — and how to make them work
-Supplier trust, procurement psychology, and internal resistance
-Reflections on writing for a niche supply chain audience
-Highlights from a strong third-party review and author interview
The E-Auction Starting Line: Which Categories Win — and Which Will Trip You Up
So you’re contemplating running an e-auction. What category should you do first?
I get this question all the time, and the answer might not be what you think. There isn’t an easy one-size-fits-all answer, and today’s article discusses the right _questions_ that get you to the right answer for your business. I’ll also talk about the categories that seem like a good place to start and AREN’T.
AI, Software, and Negotiation: What I Learned at ISMWorld 2026
For today’s article, let’s review some notes from the field. I’ll start with the keynote by Kara Swisher on AI’s role in society and what we can/should do about it. Then I’ll talk Source-to-Pay vs. Orchestration software; the strengths of each, how they use AI, and what they can teach us about all software implementations. Last, we’ll wrap up with the eight traits of strong negotiators according to Shawn Malone from Red Bear Negotiation.
What My Brother Got Right About AI, and What it Means for Supply Chain
For today’s article, let’s talk AI models: drafting vs. editing, ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot, Gemini, and Grok. We’ll talk about the strengths, weaknesses, and personalities of these tools, and which ones are best suited to which procurement tasks. I’ll also cover the new Sensei supply chain-specific AI from SCMDOJO as I got a chance to play with it a little this week.
From AI to Truck Drivers: Lessons from a Day at Iowa State’s Voorhees Supply Chain Conference
The article recaps my experience at the Iowa State Voorhees Supply Chain Conference, highlighting a consistent theme: despite rapid advances in AI and automation, the future of supply chain remains deeply human. Early sessions touched on Supply Chain 5.0’s focus on resilience, sustainability, and human‑centric design, as well as Casey’s gradual rollout of predictive inventory tools. The Startup Showcase emphasized meeting audiences where they are—whether through driver‑focused podcasts or advanced load‑matching algorithms. In the PechaKucha research lightning round, professors shared insights on repair economics, tariff strategy, unintended effects of gig‑worker insurance, and the regulatory burden on food supply chains. A standout moment came from Project 61’s compelling work on truck‑driver health, while the closing keynote reinforced that optimized systems still fail without adaptable, well‑developed people. “We simply can’t get so excited about AI that we build brittle supply chains that break the minute geopolitical pressures rise.”
The A Team vs. The B Team: The Case for Experience in Strategic Sourcing
This week’s article is about what experience brings in procurement. Let’s talk about building relationships, the things that go into Total Cost of Ownership, and winning the war instead of the battles. I also tell some stories about when I burned relationship bridges as a beginning Engineering Buyer, when I got to come in after a very inexperienced large consulting firm team, and when I thought I was winning, but I was only winning battles and losing the war.
To Procure Better, Classify Better: Category Taxonomy as a Strategic Supply Chain Tool
Today’s article talks about category taxonomies: why they’re important, options, pros, cons, and things to think about. While not the most exciting topic, it’s one of those Supply Chain 101 tools that, when broken, breaks everything else. They’re needed to:
-Allow for division of work
-Help accounting with taxes
-Determine bid cadence, timing, and scope
-Improve system interconnection
-Enables data analysis
We’ll cover:
UNSPSC
NAICS
Tax Codes/HTS
Home-built