Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

post-conference report

Sutherland, others honored at CSCMP Annual Conference

Joel Sutherland is this year's recipient of CSCMP's prestigious Distinguished Service Award.

Joel Sutherland was on his way to receive CSCMP's prestigious Distinguished Service Award when the hotel doorman asked him where he was headed. Sutherland explained that he was going to the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP) Annual Global Conference. "What kind of meeting is that?" asked the perplexed doorman.

"And that's the kind of business we are in," reflected Sutherland during his acceptance speech. "Few understand what we do, but everyone benefits from our efforts."


Throughout his career, Sutherland has tried to pursue those opportunities that create benefits for all. "Joel has dedicated his career to creating innovative techniques, processes, and solutions to improve supply chain efficiency and effectiveness," said Rick Blasgen, president and CEO of CSCMP. "He is also an inspirational leader who believes in leadership by example and has greatly contributed to raising awareness of the supply chain management profession around the world."

Sutherland is currently the managing director of Lehigh University's Center for Value Chain Research. Over the course of his 30-year career, he has made an impact on various areas of the profession such as helping to create the non-asset-based third-party logistics provider Transplace and serving as president and COO for Air-Road Express. To learn more about Sutherland, see DC VELOCITY's exclusive interview with the award winner.

Sutherland was not the only one to be honored at the conference.

  • Intel Corp. received the Supply Chain Innovation Award for its efforts to improve customer responsiveness. The company has gone from responding to a customer request for supply within seven to nine days to responding in only one day.
  • Lieutenant Colonel Timothy J. Pettit received the Doctoral Dissertation Award for his ongoing research project "Supply Chain Resilience in a Global Enterprise." Pettit is an assistant professor of logistics and supply chain management at the Air Force Institute of Technology.
  • Matthew A. Waller of the University of Arkansas and Brené D. Williams of Auburn University received the E. Grosvenor Plowman Award for their paper "Improving Order Forecast Accuracy: A Vector Error Correction Approach." The Plowman Award is given to the best research presented at CSCMP's Supply Chain Management Educators' Conference.
  • The Bernard J. La Londe Best Paper Award was given to Daniel J. Flint of the University of Tennessee, Britta Gammelgaard of Copenhagen Business School, and Everth Larsson of Lund University for their paper titled "Exploring Processes for Customer Value Insights, Supply Chain Learning and Innovation: An International Study." The La Londe Award is presented for the most valuable paper in the Journal of Business Logistics.

The Latest

Artificial Intelligence

AI: Is it the real deal?

More Stories

Logistics economy picked up speed in January

Logistics Managers' Index

Logistics economy picked up speed in January

Economic activity in the logistics industry expanded in January, growing at its fastest clip in more than two years, according to the latest Logistics Managers’ Index (LMI) report, released this week.

The LMI jumped nearly five points from December to a reading of 62, reflecting continued steady growth in the U.S. economy along with faster-than-expected inventory growth across the sector as retailers, wholesalers, and manufacturers attempted to manage the uncertainty of tariffs and a changing regulatory environment. The January reading represented the fastest rate of expansion since June 2022, the LMI researchers said.

Keep ReadingShow less

Featured

Disrupting the furniture supply chain: An interview with Jay Rogers

Disrupting the furniture supply chain: An interview with Jay Rogers

As commodities go, furniture presents its share of manufacturing and distribution challenges. For one thing, it's bulky. Second, its main components—wood and cloth—are easily damaged in transit. Third, much of it is manufactured overseas, making for some very long supply chains with all the associated risks. And finally, completed pieces can sit on the showroom floor for weeks or months, tying up inventory dollars and valuable retail space.

In other words, the furniture market is ripe for disruption. And John "Jay" Rogers wants to be the catalyst. In 2022, he cofounded a company that takes a whole new approach to furniture manufacturing—one that leverages the power of 3D printing and robotics. Rogers serves as CEO of that company, Haddy, which essentially aims to transform how furniture—and all elements of the "built environment"—are designed, manufactured, distributed, and, ultimately, recycled.

Keep ReadingShow less
chart of GenAI effect on workforce

Gartner: GenAI tools create anxiety among employees

Generative AI (GenAI) is being deployed by 72% of supply chain organizations, but most are experiencing just middling results for productivity and ROI, according to a survey by Gartner, Inc.

That’s because productivity gains from the use of GenAI for individual, desk-based workers are not translating to greater team-level productivity. Additionally, the deployment of GenAI tools is increasing anxiety among many employees, providing a dampening effect on their productivity, Gartner found.

Keep ReadingShow less
warehouse worker driving forklift between racks

German 3PL Arvato acquires two U.S. logistics firms

The German third party logistics provider (3PL) Arvato this week acquired the U.S.-headquartered companies Carbel LLC and United Customs Services, saying the move would grow its client base, particularly in the fashion, beauty, and lifestyle segments.

According to Arvato, it made the move in order to better serve the U.S. e-commerce sector, which has experienced high growth rates in recent years and is expected to grow year-on-year by 5% within the next five years.

Keep ReadingShow less
photo collage of warehouse tech

Supply chain pros are wary of inflation and labor woes

The top worries that supply chain leaders hope to address with new innovations this year include inflationary concerns (68%) and labor shortages (50%), according to a survey on innovation from the third-party logistics provider (3PL) Kenco.

And many of them will have a budget to do it, since 51% of supply chain professionals with existing innovation budgets saw an increase earmarked for 2025, suggesting an even greater emphasis on investing in new technologies to meet rising demand, Kenco said in its “2025 Supply Chain Innovation” survey.

Keep ReadingShow less