The Chain Podcast

Kicking off 2025, we are talking tariffs. Join ASCM CEO, Abe Eshkenazi, and special guest, Alastair Charatan, as they give their tariff predictions.    We examine the proposed tariffs and their potential effects on supply chains and consumers. Our discussion sheds light on the broader implications for global trade and the economy.    Did you know global trade is the #2 need-to-know supply chain trend of 2025? Global trade dynamics and geopolitical policies continue to evolve, posing significant supply chain challenges. If you want to prepare yourself and your company to face the challenges ahead, download ASCM's Top 10 Supply Chain Trends of 2025.    Want more supply chain knowledge? Visit ASCM.org. For more details on The Chain Podcast visit ascm.org/podcast Register for CHAINge now and join supply chain leaders from around the globe at ASCM's transformative supply chain conference.

The supply chain touches everything, even the clothes on your back! Join us as we explore the complex world of retail supply chains in this episode of ASCM's The Chain podcast. Dive into the conversation with our guest, Frankie Mossman, CCO of Dropit. She reveals the challenges retailers face on a day-to-day basis to bring you the latest goods and threads for your wardrobe.  “From the shirt on your back to the shoes on your feet, the modern apparel industry hinges on an effective supply chain. In this episode,  Abe and I take a clear-eyed look at the increasingly complex apparel supply chain and ask a critical question: how can we in the apparel and retail industry move toward a brighter, more sustainable future? “ - Frankie Mossman.

Welcome (back) to part two of our series on supply chain futurecasting. We continue our conversation with our guest, Brian David Johnson. This time, we discuss: What are the future stressors for the supply chain? How will the next generation of professionals shape supply chains? How can organizations implement futurecasting in their businesses today?   Want more supply chain knowledge? Visit ASCM.org. For more details on The Chain Podcast visit ascm.org/podcast #TheChainPodcast #supplychainpodcast #podcast #supplychain #supplychainmangement #ASCM #APICS #AssociationforSupplyChainManagement #futurecasting #threatcasting #futurist

“You know when you’re watching sci-fi movies, and the heroes enter a grocery store and see empty shelves, you know the zombies are coming.” -Brian David Johnson What does sci-fi have to do with the supply chain? Well, supply chains' inner workings were non-existent for the average consumer. But, as soon as there’s a toilet paper shortage, suddenly this invisible link comes into full view. There is always going to be disruptions.  Supply chains and the people who run them, find their resilience in their preparation for the future. Our guest, Brian David Johnson, shares his expertise as a Futurist and Threatcaster for leading tech organizations and how that translates to supply chains and consumers. Part one of this two-part episode will explore: What is futurecasting, threatcasting, and scenario planning? How does futurecasting function in supply chain? How have disruptions changed the mindsets of consumers and businesses?

Sustainability, supply chains, and Antarctica?   Listen to episode two of The Chain Podcast, recorded live from ASCM Connect: North America Conference 2024. Abe Eshkenazi invited eco-tourism expert and executive producer, Richard Crawford, to share how one of the world's coldest, driest, most remote places is helping lead the charge in creating sustainable supply chains.  To get the full picture of how to operate supply chains in Antarctica, visit our YouTube page and watch the episode on demand. Ready to elevate your supply chain and achieve sustainability goals? Download the ASCM Enterprise Standards for Sustainability today and gain a competitive edge in the global market.

How do you tell a story about global supply chains? It's easier said than done. For The Chain's inaugural episode, host and ASCM's CEO, Abe Eshkenazi, is joined by the creative minds at WAG Entertainment to discuss how they created the soon to be released documentary, The Chain. The documentary is a six part series that breaks down how some of the most critical industries create the products and services we use everyday.  Hear how working on the docuseries opened the documentarian's eyes to the hidden world of supply chains. Learn how they made the docuseries, the stories it presents and the communities influenced by our global supply chains — and why we must all understand the intricacies of this system to create a better world.

Abe Eshkenazi and Bob Trebilcock launched The reBound in the spring of 2020 with a simple goal: In the thick of the pandemic, let’s highlight the best of what’s happening in an industry grappling with labor challenges, parts shortages and unpredictable shutdowns.   After four years and nearly 70 guests, now was the time to look back at those guests and events that left a lasting impression on us as ASCM charts a new course for the podcast. Be sure to listen wherever you get your podcasts. And thanks for your support.

On this episode of The reBound, Stephanie Cannon joins Abe Eshkenazi, CEO of the Association for Supply Chain Management, and Bob Trebilcock, consulting editor of Supply Chain Management Review, to discuss a new approach to mid-mile deliveries in the e-commerce supply chain. Cannon is the senior vice president of operations excellence and collaborative innovation at Pitney Bowes, where her team is working with the startup community to bring in high levels of automatic sortation and robotics to its distribution centers and now autonomous trucks to deliver parcels from its distribution centers to USPS depots in several states. Cannon explains why one of the world’s leaders in global shipping and mailing decided to adopt autonomous trucks; how it worked with a solution provider to design a system for autonomous deliveries; and how it piloted and is now rolling out the fleet of trucks in multiple locations.

The shortage of supply chain talent, especially on the line, isn’t new: It just became more visible during the pandemic. What’s more, with baby boomers retiring every day, it’s only likely to become more of a challenge in the future. What’s a supply chain manager to do? The answer is to begin looking for talent among overlooked and underutilized communities. On this episode of The reBound, Tim Engstrom joins Abe Eshkenazi, CEO of the Association for Supply Chain Management, and Bob Trebilcock, consulting editor of Supply Chain Management Review, to discuss a new approach to recruitment. As the SVP of supply chain at Essendant and an adjunct professor at Elmhurst College, Engstrom and his team have developed a playbook to bring people with disabilities, second chance hires and veterans into operations. They have also launched a program to train and educate young hires with the potential to lead. The results are impressive.  

One of the lessons from Apple’s wild success in the years following the introduction of the iPhone is that it pays to be an innovator. Today, every company worth its salt is looking to get some of that innovation magic. In the supply chain, Maersk (www.maersk.com) is investing in innovation  to maintain its competitive edge. On this episode of The reBound, Yujie Su, head of product innovation at Maersk, joins Abe Eshkenazi, CEO of the Association for Supply Chain Management, and Bob Trebilcock, consulting editor of Supply Chain Management Review, to explain how the world’s largest global shipping and logistics company is working with startups in its innovation center to develop new solutions using NextGen technologies.

Not that long ago, self-driving, autonomous trucks might have seemed like something out of The Jetsons. Or a logistics manager’s dream. Today, autonomous vehicles may not yet be mainstream, but they are beginning to find a home in the supply chain, especially in sunny southwestern states. Broader adoption is in the foreseeable future.   On this episode of The reBound, hosts Abe Eshkenazi, CEO of the Association for Supply Chain Management, and Bob Trebilcock, consulting editor of Supply Chain Management Review, explore the bottlenecks, barriers and benefits to autonomous fleets with Aaron Campbell, the go-to-market lead for the autonomous technology group at Daimler Truck North America.

If your supply chain seems more complicated than ever, you’re not alone, according to Arun Kochar, a partner with the consulting firm Kearney. As Kochar sees it, we’ve entered a new era of dynamic supply chain management, one in which organizations are more dependent than ever on their suppliers as well as service providers such as contract manufacturers, 3PLs, cloud-based software providers and outsourced partners for planning and procurement. Think of it as Supply-chain-as-a-Service.    On this episode of The Rebound, hosts Abe Eshkenazi, CEO of the Association for Supply Chain Management, and Bob Trebilcock, consulting editor of Supply Chain Management Review, explore with Kochar what makes dynamic supply chains different, along with the four key components to the Supply-chain-as-a-Service model.

Geopolitics. AI. Risk and resilience. Those were just three of the trends that shaped supply chain management in 2023 and are sure to have an impact in 2024.   On the last episode of The Rebound for 2023, hosts Abe Eshkenazi, CEO of the Association for Supply Chain Management, and Bob Trebilcock, consulting editor of Supply Chain Management Review discuss the current state of supply chain management, and where the profession is heading in 2024. It is, without question, one of the most exciting times to work in the supply chain. Be sure to listen wherever you get your podcasts. And, click here if  you missed our last episode, where GE Appliance’s Alison Seward discussed the 3D transformation at one of the country’s largest manufacturers of appliances.  

On this episode of The reBound, Alison Seward, the executive director of manufacturing quality, walks us through how a 3D digital model of operations is at the heart of GE’s transformation; and delivering industry-leading results. ASCM CEO Abe Eshkenazi and SCMR Editor Bob Trebilcock host. Just about every organization worth its salt is in the middle of a digital transformation, about to start one or making plans to digitalize its supply chain. GE Appliances, one of the country’s largest manufacturers of appliances, is no different. Since adopting a new, consumer-driven business model in 2017, GE Appliances has been on a journey to develop a digital ecosystem that will take its operations, the quality of its products and the skills of its workforce to a new level of performance.   And, click here to learn more about ASCM’s Certified in Transformation for Supply Chain certification, designed to equip current and future leaders with the skills to manage an end-to-end transformation.

Listen in as Supplier.io’s Aylin Basom discusses the state of supplier diversity, sustainability and ESG initiatives in today’s supply chain.   On this episode of The reBound, Aylin Basom, CEO of Supplier.io, discusses her firm’s latest research into supplier diversity and sustainability initiatives, and why the best companies continue to invest in these programs. ASCM CEO Abe Eshkenazi and SCMR Editor Bob Trebilcock host.  In recent years, supplier diversity and sustainability have risen to the top of the To Do list for supply chain managers. And, according to research from Supplier.io, there’s a good reason: Supplier diversity, for instance, is delivering value by building more reliable supplier bases, creating access to innovation and by preparing organizations to meet the needs of a more diverse customer base.  

Listen in as Arup’s Catarina Carvalho discusses the rise of mega cities and the reasons supply chain managers need to rethink their strategies for serving urban customers.   On this episode of The Rebound, Catarina Carvalho, Americas East Cities Logistics and Ops leader for the global consulting firm Arup discusses how population growth and the expansion of mega cities is transforming logistics in urban areas. ASCM CEO Abe Eshkenazi and SCMR Editor Bob Trebilcock host.  Drive around any major city anywhere in the world and it’s impossible not to notice the pileup of double parked trucks and parcel delivery vehicles snarling traffic. If you don’t happen to live in a mega city, it’s easy to shrug it off as traffic coming with the territory. But there are implications for supply chain managers: The Wall Street Journal estimates that urban congestion costs the trucking industry $74.5 billion and leads to about 1.2 billion hours of delay annually. Add the dramatic increase in parcel deliveries associated with e-commerce fulfillment, and it’s no surprise that cities, especially in Europe, are limiting when trucks can come into the city and what types of vehicles can be used for deliveries. Those limits could be coming to your neighborhood next.    On this episode of The Rebound, Arup’s Catarina Carvalho discusses the challenges of urban logistics, the potential impacts of new regulations and strategies supply chain managers should consider when doing business in a major city. It’s time to pay attention to urban logistics.   Be sure to listen wherever you get your podcasts. 

Listen in as ALOM’s Brandon Marugg discusses the rise of AI and its potential in the supply chain.   On this episode of The Rebound, Brandon Marugg, the chief operating officer at ALOM, a manager of global supply chains, explains why and where his firm is investing in AI to take the supply chain to the next level, along with the reasons we need to be be cautious with this powerful new technology. ASCM  CEO Abe Eshkenazi and SCMR Editor Bob Trebilcock host.    It's hard to imagine a technology that has garnered as much press as Artificial Intelligence. And, it seems as if we’re of two minds about AI: It’s either lauded as the most important technological development of the last 100 years, one that will revolutionize our lives, or a precursor to the end of humanity as we know it. It is all a little scary. But, maybe it doesn’t have to be, at least for supply chain managers.     On this episode of The Rebound, ASCM CEO Abe Eshkenazi and SCMR Editor Bob Trebilcock talk with ALOM’s Brandon Marugg about the present and future potential applications for AI, along with the some of the reasons we may all need to proceed with caution.   Be sure to listen wherever you get your podcasts. 

On this special episode of The reBound recorded live in Louisville, Abe Eshkenazi and Bob Trebilcock host a panel of experts to look at the sustainable supply chain.  Listen in as Abe Eshkenazi and Bob Trebilcock talk to Nico De Golia, the global lead of cloud logistics sustainability at Microsoft, and Deborah Dull, Vice President, Global Supply Chain Sustainability Leader at Genpact about the present and future of sustainability and supply chain management. You won’t want to miss this episode of The reBound recorded live at ASCM CONNECT: North America 2023.     A quick look at the headlines underscores the reasons that sustainability is inching higher on every corporation’s To Do list. And, given that operations is responsible for a significant percentage of any organization’s carbon footprint, supply chain management is where the rubber hits the road when it comes to executing a sustainability strategy and meeting stated goals.          On this episode of The reBbound, ASCM's CEO Abe Eshkenazi and SCMR’s Bob Trebilcock discussed the sustainable supply chain with Nico De Golia, the Director of Cloud Logistics Sustainability at Microsoft, and Deborah Dull, Vice President, Global Supply Chain Sustainability Leader at Genpact. They discuss the steps their taking for their supply chains, as well as practical strategies all supply chain managers should consider. You won’t want to miss this special episode of The reBound, recorded live in Louisville at ASCM CONNECT: North America 2023.     Be sure to listen wherever you get your podcasts.  

Listen in as Yossi Sheffi discusses his new book, The Magic Conveyor Belt, and the state of supply chain management. On this episode of The Rebound, MIT professor and author Yossi Sheffi talks about his latest book and what supply chain leaders learned from the pandemic that’s making supply chains better than ever. ASCM (www.ascm.org) CEO Abe Eshkenazi and SCMR Editor Bob Trebilcock host. The last time MIT professor and author Yossi Sheffi was on The Rebound, it was to discuss his then new book on supply chain’s role in the development and distribution of the COVID vaccines. That was a time of incredible disruption, but even then, Sheffi, one of the industry’s real thought leaders, was arguing that supply chains didn’t fail: They performed heroically and exactly as designed. On this episode of The Rebound, Sheffi is back to discuss his newest book, The Magic Conveyor Belt, as well as the lessons we all learned from the pandemic that are shaping the supply of tomorrow. Be sure to listen wherever you get your podcasts.

On this episode of The Rebound, we explore ASCM’s 2023 salary survey. The good news: Times are great for supply chain managers. Join ASCM board members Amy Augustine and Lisa Veneziano as they discuss the results of ASCM’s 2023 salary survey, including the impact of diversity, inclusion and women in the supply chain. ASCM CEO Abe Eshkenazi and SCMR Editor Bob Trebilcock host. Here’s the good news: Supply chain professionals are seeing higher earnings and better benefits and are experiencing high levels of job satisfaction. Those are two of the important take aways from this this year’s ASCM salary survey. Perhaps more importantly, the pay gap between women supply chain professionals and their male counterparts is closing, while individuals from under-represented communities are also seeing some of their best salaries in years. It’s a good time to work in the supply chain.   On this episode of The Rebound, co-hosts Abe Eshkenazi and Bob Trebilcock discuss the findings with Amy Augustine, senior director of the network supply chain at UScellular and Lisa Veneziano, who for 35 years was a supply chain leader at GM, including executive director, global supply chain, warehousing and logistics. Both are ASCM board members. Be sure to listen wherever you get your podcasts. And click here to read the full salary survey.