Doctor. Lawyer. Engineer. Supply Chainer? Supply Chain Manager? We wonder why folks are confused.

As some point, most supply chain professionals struggle to accurately communicate what they do. If Jane Smith introduces herself as a doctor, I have a clear vision of what that means; she completed a bachelors, went to medical school, sat for her boards, and earned a professional license to practice medicine.  Furthermore, she might have a specialty such as pediatrics or oncology, and I know that means she completed some advanced instruction and certification around children or cancer respectively. The same analogy holds true for lawyers, engineers, teachers, nurses, financial advisors, and accountants; there is a minimal education requirement accredited by some widely accepted organization and then the opportunity through advanced education and experience to specialize.

First, what is the over-arching occupational title for supply chain?  Until we, as a profession, can come to agreement on this, I think there will be ambiguity and confusion.  If one more person assumes that I am in logistics and/or transportation because my title is Supply Chain Global Process Owner, I may have a high speed come apart.  I would liken this to the assumption that every doctor is a pediatrician, all lawyers understand the intricacies of tax law, or every engineer can design an automobile. 

Carving specialties out of Supply Chain is perhaps more straightforward, but only after you agree on what functions and/or processes it includes.  When asked, I find it easiest to leverage the APICS SCOR (supply chain operations reference model) framework to describe the major components (functions and/or activities) of supply chain: plan, source, make, deliver, return and enable.  Beyond this basic definition, I often describe supply chain as the realm where the digital meets the physical - yes, stolen from Brian David Johnson, futurist! By this I mean supply chain is both 1) the tools and knowledge that we utilize to model, describe, optimize, control, predict, etc…complex and unique organisms, i.e. our business, AND 2) physical production and distribution of the “things” that people will then buy. 

You will notice that I did not use the term products. ALL businesses have a supply chain!  It does not matter what they produce.  You can provide a physical item or a service. At the end of the day, you are creating something that a customer is choosing to purchase. That means you need to plan what you are creating.  You must source materials, ideas, or expertise.  You have to package it, or make it, into something that is tangible and can be provided to your customer.  Then, you must deliver to them, be it virtual or physical.  Moreover, you should probably provide a path for them to return it if there is an issue. All of this requires some type of enablement or support, which is generally technology focused: email, spreadsheets, ERPs, etc…

If we can all agree that every business has a supply chain and we can align around the basic definition of what that supply chain is accountable for and to, then perhaps, we can start to build consensus around title and the accompanying educational and experience requirements. Today, it feels a bit like the wild, wild west, making it a challenge to win the hearts and minds of CEOs, CFOs, CIOs, etc… Who are we? What do we do? How do we support the business? I would argue that a large swath of the public could describe these key attributes for doctors, lawyers, engineers, teachers, nurses, etc… but that most would struggle if asked the same questions about supply chain professionals.  In fact, a quick search online revealed the following:

Webster’s lack of entry on Supply Chain is insightful.  Dictionary.com takes a stab at a definition, but still does not define a Chief Supply Chain Officer or Chief Procurement Officer.  At the least, this highlights a lack of consensus and consistency in using the term supply chain, supply chain professional and supply chain management. 

I am going to support APICs by leaving you with their definition of supply chain: The global network used to deliver products and services from raw materials to end customers through an engineered flow of information, physical distribution, and cash.  Furthermore, supply chain encompasses planning, sourcing, making, delivering, returning and the associated enablement tools.  Now, let’s make sure that our academic partners are providing this broad foundation to their students and ensure Supply Chain is a destination occupation, driving unparalleled excellence and value.

College, trade school, apprenticeships....one size does not fit all!

It is hard to believe that my “baby” is graduating from high school in only 2 days.  Sniff.  Sniff.  In the course of the last year, we have vetted ad nauseam the “right path” for him post high school.  He talked to the Navy, thinking perhaps that enlistment would be a good fit.  Briefly, he considered trade school. Finally, his love of science, math, and soccer prevailed and he decided to pursue engineering while playing college soccer.  The options often seemed endless and the navigation next to impossible. In six months, we visited 15 universities, consulted websites, accreditation bodies, talked to students, recruiters, and professors and constructed one heck of a spreadsheet, all with the hope of selecting a place where he can grow, thrive and be successful.  Oh, and not require selling a kidney or getting a second mortgage on the family home!

This is the second year in a row and that I assisted a student navigating the post high school landscape; my oldest is completing his freshman year in college, studying Environmental Science. I am convinced that there is no “right path” but there are countless opportunities to explore, learn, develop and grow.  Much like a fingerprint, the journey is unique to the individual and we often cannot fathom the end game.  Yes, there are individuals who have a calling, who know with certainty what they want to accomplish, where/how they want to live, and how they can contribute to society.  That was never me. It is not my children.  Moreover, I have only found it rarely in their friends and associates.  To be honest, I do not see it much at work either.  I have yet to witness my nephews pretending to be Chief Supply Chain Officers or Executive Vice-Presidents of Operations!

Ultimately, my advice to my own boys, their friends, teammates, classmates, etc…has been to explore what interests you, that you are “good” at, and that can provide a decent standard of living.   Yes, I am pragmatic; some interests are better explored as hobbies versus careers.  Regardless, I do not buy into the notion that EVERYONE must acquire a bachelors in “something” in order to be successful.  The skilled trade shortage in the US is real and it will only worsen as boomers retire.

In ’96, I was fortunate to on-board in plant maintenance with a large apprenticeship class.  Hardworking. Intelligent.  Motivated.  All are accurate descriptions of the 30+ men and women that completed the selection process and were accepted into the program.  They worked with seasoned veterans during the day, went to school in the evenings, stayed up half the night completing homework and other household chores, and missed numerous family activities in the interest of bettering their employment and/or earning a higher wage.  Perhaps because I came from a construction family, multiple generations of tile-setters, I never recognized a divide.  The plant could not operate without either the engineer or the journeyman.  Our jobs were different, but neither more important than the other.   It seems that somewhere along the journey, we have failed to recognize that many innovations/ideas require physical construction to produce value. If I pay for an architect, but find no carpenters, I have no shelter.

For this reason, I was delighted to discover renewed interest in developing skilled tradesmen and women during a recent visit to the Southern Indiana Career and Technical Center. With tracts in Robotics, Industrial Maintenance, Precision Machining, and Welding, the options were varied and provided a robust means for high school students to explore paths and learn skills that manufacturer’s value.  I would still love to see a resurgence in formal apprenticeships, as I think the mentorship it provides is invaluable, but how awesome is the recognition and subsequent investment by the community in developing manufacturing and construction leaders.  

Supply Chain transformations are HARD! How do I get started?

Last year, I was privileged to not only attend but, also, speak at the APICS Conference in San Antonio.  The sheer size, breath of material covered, and depth of knowledge at the conference was mind blowing and I must admit that I was bit intimidated.  Fortunately, passion for continuous improvement drove past my fears and I had an incredibly enjoyable and intimate discussion with a couple hundred supply chain professionals on the transformation of Berry’s Supply Chain.

It was with great enthusiasm that I said “YES!” when APICs asked me to repeat my presentation at an online event on Wednesday, 23-May.  Won’t you join me for lunch (12-1 PM CDT) to discuss Berry Global’s efforts to build an End-to-End Supply Chain? Not sure if this is something that might interest you?  Check out the abstract below.

Building an End-to-End Supply Chain: Berry Global Case Study Part 1

Creation of an end-to-end supply chain must start with an honest evaluation of where you are.  Have you ever tried to generate route directions without a starting point? It is impossible!  Google, Apple, MapQuest – they just spin, lost in the enigma of “where are you now” until they can pinpoint your location.  Once you know where you are, you can start the journey for where you want to be.

At Berry Plastics, we evaluated our reality in 2014, leveraging Berry Supply Chain SMEs, industry experts, and consultants. We learned that we lacked supply chain maturity and we were infants in the journey to nirvana, an Integrated, End-to-End Supply Chain.  With multiple planning systems, wide spread excel usage and off platform manual efforts, lack of a demand plan, and inconsistent processes, we lacked the ability to efficiently predict and control our results. 

Once, we understood where we were, we needed a strategy, a map, for navigating to our desired destination.  This is not an easy task for a company that has completed over 40 acquisitions in 30 years and has grown to nearly $8B in annual revenue. Berry’s approach was to create Centers of Excellence (COE).  This allowed us to leverage dedicated, subject matter experts to evaluate best practice, create new processes, evaluate systems and tools, determine a repeatable implementation approach, and execution/implementation strategy.

Part 1 of Berry’s journey included the creation of a multi-faceted project portfolio, branded, STEPs to Success.  STEPs (Streamline – Transform – Enable – Pursue) attacked multiple areas within the end-to-end supply chain, including transactional efficiency, data sharing, policies, and relationships through four programs or key pillars: Customer Interfaces, Warehouse & Transportation Operations, Supply Chain Systems, and Integrated Planning. Our approach was to move our enterprise from reaction to integration, improving all aspects of the supply chain and increasing profitability.

Passion. Zeal. Both seem insufficient to describe my enthusiasm for this discussion.  We can always improve, always advance, always evolve to the benefit of all stakeholders: consumers, customers, employees, suppliers, and stockholders. There is no RIGHT way for how to get started, but perhaps I can help to stimulate some ideas or answer some questions. 

You can register using the following link: http://www.apics.org/credentials-education/events/event-landing-page/2018/05/23/default-calendar/building-an-end-to-end-supply-chain-berry-plastics-case-study

Let’s share the supply chain continuous improvement journey!  Together, everyone wins!

Christine (Reed) Barnhart 

Mentors, role models, colleagues and friends – What exactly do I need?

 I do not think I can discuss mentors and role models without giving the first shout out to my family.  Very few women in my family have been traditional, stay at home, wives.  Grandma Charlotte retired from Crescent Plastics; she always told the best stories about the ladies in her department with all the work place gossip intact.  My maternal grandmother, Doris, aka Mimi, was widowed when I was very young; she was the first female professional that I encountered. I had no idea what she did at “the bank” but she had a beautiful, highly polished desk, she wore heels, dresses, jewelry, and make-up. Always immaculately put together, I thought she was very important and tremendously glamorous.  My own mother, Momma Sue, as she is affectionately referred, worked in healthcare.  As a phlebotomist, she was in scrubs, no jewelry, no make-up, no pretty shoes, but her ability to juggle a full-time job and manage a home with two active kids and a husband that worked long, unpredictable hours in construction was amazing.  I grew up believing that women could do anything.

Throughout elementary and high school, I had a variety of role models and mentors that provided concrete evidence that women were intelligent, capable, and creative. I had only to dream and I could make it a reality.  Girl Scout leaders (Judy Weaver, Betty Statham, Karen Selby) provided a smorgasbord of experiences: National Convention in exotic Kansas City, hiking/camping/backpacking at a variety of state parks and the illustrious Camp Koch, State Page for the Indiana General Assembly, and a multitude of badges teaching me everything from sewing to accounting and finance.  Coaches/teachers (Ginger Lutterman, Fred Bracher, Eldon Hopkins) reinforced a belief in self and perseverance both on the court and in the classroom. Why wouldn’t the volleyball team be honored at the fall assembly along with football? Why wouldn’t there be a 50/50 gender split in calculus or advanced chemistry? In fact, my recollection is that of the several valedictorians/salutatorians in my graduating class (yes, we had several of each – over achievers!), there was a slight female advantage.

You can imagine my horror and shock when I entered engineering school only to discover a complete lack of female instructors.  It was also my first encounter of gender bias.  Was it intentional?  Probably not. It still smacked me in the face at a point without any female leadership or guidance.  Fortunately, there was a very, very small group of inspirational women in school with me (Melissa Dilger, Michelle Graves, Debbie Gross, etc…).  We provided each other with the feedback, coaching, and support to successfully navigate a minefield of self-doubt perpetuated by a leader that truly believed women should not be engineers and he had a duty to steer us in an alternate direction. We overcame.  We triumphed. We graduated. 

As I look back over my career, I have to question whether it was luck or some unseen design that provided such a plethora of wonderfully enlightened, energetic, and enthusiastic colleagues.  Intentionally, I will not label them as mentors, role models, or friends.  Some embodied all and others played a pivotal role at an instance when I needed support, guidance, or encouragement.  Many are women. Others are men who never saw a gender boundary (Mike Reibsamen, Kirk Sakel, Scott Collins, Tony McKimmy, Kenny Grismore, Andy Odorzynski).  Whether it was sheparding my career as I started a family (Linda Duvall, Paula Lee) or pushing me out into the global landscape (Mike Anthony, Patty Cox), they each saw something in me that I didn’t see in myself and helped me to expand and grow. My network pressed me to take risks (Pat Chandler, Kathy Hardesty, Jose Feito), not limiting my career to simply what I had learned or experienced thus far but to apply it in novel ways to both the benefit of myself and an employer. Often, they have thrust me into uncomfortable, but wildly rewarding opportunities (Terri Pitcher, Debbie Garrison, Mandy McCain). 

It is only now, as I acknowledge but a handful of my influencers on paper, that I realize how truly fortunate I have been. I grew up without knowledge of boundaries and with role models that believed hard work was a prerequisite for success. I stumbled into personal/professional relationships with servant leaders who had little to gain from my accomplishments beyond small measures of gratitude. My framily (yes, that is friends and family pushed together in a seamless fashion) includes trailblazers who have proven women in STEM can knock it out of the park (Marcy Mohler, Emily Millsap) and that women entrepreneurs can be fierce and creative (Terri Lewis, Mandy Patterson).  It, also, includes unsung, compassionate heroes who provide comfort, laughter, and companionship (Christy Boring, Wendy Payne, Erika Liddle, Kathy Hartz, Diane Wells, Melissa Kettinger).

I am always stumped when a new professional asks me how to find a mentor; this is what they need to conquer the world!  Mentors. Role models. Peers. Friends. Teachers. Family. Coaches. Students. Teammates.  Influencers are all around you.  Ask for what you need. Be open to feedback. Ensure that you give a little something back: gratitude, thankfulness, or a measure of your day to someone else.  I do not believe that life is a zero sum game. I do not win because you lose. We all win when we help each other. We all win when we stop erecting boundaries.  The world is simply a better place when it is filled with optimism, creativity, and fellowship. 

In closing, I give thanks to my biggest fan, my husband. Yes, it is cliché, but he is my cheerleader, my sounding board, the instigator behind the scene that loves and supports my success and helps me find value in my failure.   

Christine (Reed) Barnhart