by Janice Marquardt | Sep 10, 2026 | Org Chart, Supply Chain Career
In 2021, supply chain leaders suddenly got seats at executive tables. CEOs became supply chain experts overnight due to material shortages. In some companies, the supply chain leader kept their newly-acquired position close to leadership, but in others we faded back...
by Janice Marquardt | Aug 18, 2026 | Supply Chain Career
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. ...
by Janice Marquardt | Aug 11, 2026 | Definitions, Supply Chain Career
The roles we all play matter, and so do our names for them. I’m not talking about the roles of mother, sister, wife, buyer, etc. I’m talking about the professional roles of Consultant, Executive, and Coach. While there’s a lot of overlap between these three roles,...
by Janice Marquardt | Jul 28, 2026 | Supply Chain Career
My first boss in procurement used to tell me, “You can go to lunch with a supplier. But you have to be able to come back from lunch and fire that supplier the same afternoon.” His philosophy on supplier relationships was to keep suppliers a bit at arm’s length, make...
by Janice Marquardt | Jul 7, 2026 | Processes
Qualifying new suppliers is one of those activities that seems like it should be easy, but is surprisingly hard. I’ve seen companies of all sizes and in all industries struggle with supplier onboarding, qualifying enough suppliers for a given category (but not too...
