For our July episode, co-hosts Ted Stank and Tom Goldsby speak with Dave Clark, former CEO of worldwide consumer business for Amazon.

In two decades at Amazon, Clark, a graduate of UT’s MBA program, helped build one of the most extensive supply chain operations in the world, with hundreds of fulfillment centers and transportation facilities, a fleet of several dozen dedicated aircraft, 100,000 delivery vans, and more than 1.5 million employees. Clark is a member of the American Red Cross Board of Governors and served as CEO of Flexport from 2022 to 2023. He is regularly sought out for his expertise in tackling logistics issues related to national security and global affairs.

Don’t miss this exciting discussion on the evolution of Amazon’s consumer business as well as current warehousing trends, the state of the economy, retail consumer habits and expectations, and much more.

The episode was recorded virtually on July 8, 2024.

Related links:

• How consumer demands drive warehousing trends
• Ocean freight rates are spiking again
• Inflation continues to slow in the U.S. opening door to Fed rate cut
• U.S. labor market adds 206,000 jobs, unemployment rises to 4.1%
• Amazon plans to launch discount store to fend off Temu and Shein
• Gartner ranks UT’s graduate SCM programs No. 1 in North America
• Read/watch Dave Clark’s fireside chat at UT’s Haslam College in April
• Become a Supply Chain Forum member
• Subscribe to GSCI’s monthly newsletter
• Read the latest news and insights from GSCI

For our June episode, co-hosts Ted Stank and Tom Goldsby speak with University of Tennessee colleagues Joe Buckley executive education director for supply chain management, and Dan Pellathy, assistant professor of practice for SCM.

Buckley, who spent three decades in industry (including seven years as director of materials management and transportation for the Tennessee Valley Authority), is the mastermind behind UT’s highly acclaimed virtual learning academies. After the success of the Leadership and Finance academies, he and Pellathy collaborated on the Planning academy launching Fall 2024 and are working on a Procurement academy for 2025. More than 1,500 students, ranging from managers to VPs, across every industry have participated since the first Leadership academy was launched three years ago.

In this conversation, they discuss talent development efforts, the mid-level manager crunch, pairing hard- and soft-skill development for emerging leaders, delivering education flexibly and in digestible forms for busy professionals, and more.

Ted and Tom also talk about the reopening of the Port of Baltimore, the Container Port Performance Index Global Ranking of Container Ports, labor scarcity and automation, and more.

The episode was recorded virtually on June 11, 2024.

Related links:

• Baltimore’s busy port fully reopens after bridge collapse
• The Port of Charleston (53) is the top U.S.-ranked port, ahead of Philadelphia (55), Miami (74), and Boston (75), in CPPI’s 2023 rankings
• Potential strikes at East Coast and Gulf ports threaten further disruption
• Sudden container crunch sends ocean freight rates soaring
• Understanding America’s labor shortage: state-by-state analysis
• Tom Goldsby on the Dynamo Future of Supply Chain podcast discussing the complexities of global trade and logistics
• Learn more about SCM Talent Development programs at UT
• Download (free) Dan Pellathy’s white paper on supply chain planning talent development and leadership
• Become a Supply Chain Forum member
• Subscribe to GSCI’s monthly newsletter
• Read the latest news and insights from GSCI

For our May episode, co-hosts Ted Stank and Tom Goldsby speak with Martha Buffington, chief procurement officer for SC Johnson, about all aspects of effective business leadership.

They touch on company culture in global organizations, advancing your career and finding success during times of transition, the importance of empowerment over delegation to drive team achievement, balancing double standards for female leaders, and more.

A member of the GSCI Advisory Board, Buffington spent more than two decades with Coca-Cola, rising to the position of chief procurement officer for its Bottling Investments Group before transitioning into senior procurement positions with DSM in the Netherlands. She joined SC Johnson, a Supply Chain Forum member, in 2022.

Listen in as our hosts discuss current consumer sentiment, import numbers and new tariffs, the latest in rail transportation in North America, the Port of Baltimore’s removal of the cargo ship Dali, and much more.

The episode was recorded virtually on May 13, 2024.

Related links:

• US consumer sentiment at six-month low, inflation expectations rise
• Cargo ship Dali that struck Port of Baltimore being removed
• Canada seeks ruling on mandatory shipments during potential rail strike
• US plans to impose major tariffs on EVs, other Chinese green energy imports
• Container import volumes rise in rebound after China's Lunar New Year
• How women manage the gendered forms of leadership
• Become a Supply Chain Forum member
• Subscribe to GSCI’s monthly newsletter
• Read the latest news and insights from GSCI