The July episode of Tennessee on Supply Chain Management is worth a listen. Ted and Tom spoke with Dave Clark, former CEO of worldwide consumer business for Amazon. They discussed: - the factors driving a surge in container rates and the leveling off of demand for warehouse workers - eCommerce and consumer expectations - Fast Fashion Vs On-Demand Fashion - The Next Big Thing in supply chain technology - GenAI Vs 'classic' AI - What future leaders need A few quotes... On the retail sector and eCommerce*: "What you've seen in the last decade or decade and a half of retail is retailers who have met those needs and who have invested in and improved the customer experience have succeeded and excelled*, and the ones who haven't have gone away. Retail is consolidating into the players who are really aggressive about meeting consumer need.” On competition: "It's customer-focused versus competitor-focused, because the customer is always going to be tougher than the competitor. Always. They always want more than what some competitor is going to be willing to provide, and usually if a competitor has beaten you on something, it's because they figured out something the consumer wanted that you didn’t." On TikTok and others: "I think people are not as willing broadly to wait for things that are readily available. They are willing to have a longer shipping time for something that is new and unique and not readily available. That's a selection expansion." On The Next Big Thing "Honestly, much of supply chain needs to catch up with the last wave. Still Supply chain tech tends to be not very good across the board. You know there's a lot of good segments as pieces of tech that's good, but there's very little end to end." "But if I've had the most thematic thing, I would say getting to a place of data consistency, less for generative AI and more for classic AI...ML neural network...true high-end analytic calculation and optimization performance, I think is a huge impact." On Supply Chain Disruptions: "I certainly don't think chaos is going to be reduced over time.” On the next wave of supply chain leaders: "Building leaders who are dynamic, who are resilient, I think the number one skill I used to say software is probably the number one skill. Math generally, is probably the number one base skill." The full episode is below... * More on the 'how' from the team at Standvast Fulfillment is here: https://bit.ly/3ybacA0 #supplychainmanagement #supplychain #GSCI #UTK #2024SpringSCF Ted Stank Thomas Goldsby Kevin O'Meara Lance Starks Eric Topp Alan Amling Haslam College of Business at the University of Tennessee Christopher Wolf Paul Dittmann Daniel Stanton Rob McIntosh Thomas Deakins, MBA Ben Cook Timothy Dooner Jeff DiLullo Mary Long Brian Fugate Chris Richards Barton Jennings Ken Evans Scott DeGroot Bill Hutchinson Greg Smith Peter Anderson
S2E11: Online Retail and the Modern-Day Consumer with Former Amazon Executive Dave Clark - Tennessee on Supply Chain Management
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Dave Clark's focus on data consistency in AI and machine learning for supply chains is crucial. As the industry grows, quality and integrated data will be key for maximizing AI's benefits. It's not just about adopting new tech; it's about building a solid base for smart decision-making. Supply chain pros need to prioritize data governance and integration. This will lead to a more unified, efficient system with better demand forecasting, route optimization, and risk management. Thanks for sharing David Shillingford
Brian Eddy, MBA
1mo
Thanks for sharing
Insightful on the "Customer" is the toughest and most critical component. This is the outside-in strategic thinking approach that drives outcomes.
Robert Garrison
1mo
David Shillingford. Thanks for sharing.
Ted Stank
1mo
Thanks for taking a listen, David, we appreciate your input and insights!
Great episode, and thanks for sharing David Shillingford! Dave Clark is right: supply chain tech is ripe for disruption. We're seeing retailers increasingly adopt a cloud-like shared services model, providing AI/ML-powered inventory rebalancing and scalable FC networks. This allows brands to adjust to demand without extra capital for warehousing and transportation, previously exclusive to giants like Walmart and Amazon.