by Elizabeth Hines | Jun 14, 2017 | Blog, Current Events, Logistics, Strategy, Supply Chain, Transportation & Trucking
Startups and transportation juggernauts alike are entering the race toward the self-driving truck, but no two strategies look alike.
There will come a time in the not-so-distant future when — instead of using a CB radio to communicate with a freight driver — you will use a line of code. A recent study conducted by the White House concluded that at least 80% of trucking jobs will be lost to automated technology.
Companies such as Otto (Uber’s robot division), along with start-ups Starsky Robotics, Embark, and Drive.ai are championing the cause of self-driving trucks. These companies are hoping to capitalize on an industry that needs revitalization. With a shortage of about 75,000 jobs and a turnover rate that tops 90%, the current climate is ripe for change.
Self-driving doesn’t mean driverless
Trucking is a $700+ billion industry, with about a third of the costs going to driver compensation. It stands to reason that there is serious incentive to get this technology rolling out onto the highways, removing the need for drivers. However, so far, most plans don’t seem to involve going cold turkey.
Both Otto and Embark will have the automated system take over for the driver when the truck is up and running on the highway. Then once the truck exits, the driver returns to the controls. The benefit of this system is the ease of which the automated driver can navigate highways, as opposed to local roads. Additionally, this system will put less stress on the driver, who can rest while the truck is on the highway.
Starsky Robotics, while not looking to do away with drivers, wants to remove them from the trucks. Starsky’s trucks will be completely autonomous on the highway. Upon exiting, the job will be turned over to trained experts that remotely guide the trucks to their final destinations. Starsky believes by bringing the drivers off the road, and into offices, freights will run more efficiently and on time, while not putting undo stress onto drivers.
While the competition focuses on long-haul trucking, Drive.ai has begun testing automated freight services on around-town delivery vehicles, which it feels is an easier way to introduce its technology. The company says it is developing software to control trucks using a small computer that “learns” how to drive, rather than using complex computers programmed with every conceivable move the vehicle could make.
Bumps in the road
While testing is underway for many of these technologies, not every course has proved smooth sailing. Most notably, Waymo, Google’s self-driving car project, has filed a lawsuit against Uber, accusing the company of using trade secrets taken by Anthony Levandowski, after he left Waymo to found Otto.
Currently, it’s unclear which company will emerge as the leader in the race to automated trucking. What is apparent, though, is there’s no putting the genie back in the bottle.
Automation technology is only becoming more prevalent. With the trucking industry in its current state, it’s only a matter of time before self-driving trucks become the norm.
This article originally appeared on EBN Online.
Related posts:
by Fronetics | Jun 13, 2017 | Blog, Content Marketing, Logistics, Marketing, Supply Chain
Follow these steps to equip your content writers with all the institutional knowledge and background information they need to create top-quality content.
Content drives consumers to your website, convinces them of the quality of your products/services, and ultimately helps convert those leads into customers. So, it goes without saying, the people writing your content are pretty important to your business.
Some companies rely on various employees, who are known to be good writers, to create their content. These people often struggle to fit writing into their full-time job, or don’t have SEO- or marketing-writing expertise. And if your business needs someone to produce many different kinds of content — like blog posts, emails, reports, articles for industry publications, and other marketing collateral — some non-writers will struggle with the versatility necessary to create it all.
Given that content is the backbone of a content marketing program, hiring a professional writer is crucial. Some companies, however, are nervous about finding content writers who are fluent in the technical language of their business. Or, they’re worried about the time it will take to get someone up to speed on all the ins and outs of the company and industry.
But here’s the thing: Great writing can’t be taught, but subject matter can. And it’s not as difficult as you might imagine. In fact, here are some best practices for turning your content writers into supply chain experts.
3 steps to make content writers supply chain experts
1. Teach them what they don’t know.
It’s easy for a content writer to conduct his or her own research to learn about industry topics, trends, terminology, and other concrete facts and news. But it’s less likely they’ll pick up on all the things that go unsaid in industry media and resources. That’s where you can help.
Provide your writer with information on all the landscape’s inner-workings. Consider answering these questions:
- Who are the key players in this space and why? Who are the most respected voices, and who are otherwise people to watch?
- How does this space make money?
- Who is the target buyer — demographics, pain points, strengths and weaknesses, etc.?
- What ideas are considered old-fashioned or taboo and why?
- What ideas are commonly accepted? Which are starting to become more accepted?
- What regulations or governing principles are relevant in this space?
- How does a company in this space measure success?
- What other internal politics or tidbits about institutional history would be helpful for someone to know?
2. Give them a watch list.
This goes hand in hand with the previous step, but it’s worth elaborating on. You want the writer to know the key players in the space so s/he can become familiar with the content and media your prospects are consuming.
Provide your content writer with a list of the thought leaders in the industry and where they are active (blogs or LinkedIn Pulse, for example); your competitors and their business partners or clients; and industry publications or media outlets that professionals in your business and your clients read on a regular basis. Who are the space’s must-follows on Twitter? Are there podcasts or newsletters that everyone in your line of business subscribes to? Do all of your industry peers receive some kind of publication?
A good writer will glean a lot of information from studying these people, businesses, and publications. They will also understand where the bar is set, and thus be able to strive to achieve that or exceed it in terms of value and quality.
3. Share your data.
The most successful writing teams I’ve ever been a part of have been well informed about business performance. Though writing is largely a creative process, it’s important that writers understand how their contributions are affecting the organization as a whole — whether that’s good news or bad news. They will feel more invested in the success of your organization, for one, but also it will help them adjust what they’re doing to accommodate what’s working and to eliminate what’s not.
You don’t have to get into the nitty gritty of financials, but some general information about how the company is performing is helpful for general knowledge. Otherwise, provide your writers with a regular report on the metrics you use to analyze the success of your content: pageviews, downloads, time on page, etc.
Follow these three steps, and you’ll ensure your writers are fully equipped to create informed, well-written content.
Related posts:
by Fronetics | Jun 12, 2017 | Blog, Logistics, Strategy, Supply Chain
These podcasts bring the latest news and thought leadership in the supply chain and logistics industries right to your earbuds.
I used to think that podcasts were a hip form of new media that millennials used to further their iPhone addictions. Fast forward a few years, and the benefits of having news and entertainment in your earbuds has converted me to a podcast fan.
Podcasts are a series of digital audio files that listeners can subscribe to. Think of it as the DVR of your smartphone. Podcasts, like cable shows, come in all shapes and sizes. Their popularity has skyrocketed since the smartphone became as necessary as car keys, giving you to-the-minute facts and information, right in the palm of your hand.
If you’re looking to increase your podcast listening, here are five that highlight topics of interest to supply chain and logistics professionals.
5 supply chain and logistics podcasts
Talking Logistics is an online video talk show and blog featuring interviews with industry thought leaders and newsmakers by supply chain and logistics analyst Adrian Gonzalez.
Gonzalez runs the show like a conversation with smart friends, making it easy to follow. Featured guests include supply chain and logistics executives from leading manufacturing and retail companies, professors from leading academic institutions, executives from third-party logistics and technology companies, and authors. The show provides supply chain and logistics professionals an interactive and engaging platform to learn and network with other practitioners and thought leaders.
Supply Chain Insights, a research and advisory firm, hosts this weekly podcast that covers a variety of topics, from global thinking to voice of the customer. Many episodes focus on technology and innovation. Nearly all of Supply Chain Insights’ podcasts feature executives and experts sharing their logistics insights. Straight Talk focuses on delivering independent, actionable and objective advice for supply chain leaders.
The SupplyChainBrain podcast features in-depth conversations with industry practitioners, academics, consultants, and other experts from every imaginable aspect of supply chain management and international trade. New episodes of the podcast have been published every Friday since its launch in 2013, touching on important topics like retail shifts, blockchain innovations, labor shortages, and the Internet of Things.
A product of the leading magazine Inbound Logistics, this podcast provides relevant information within the supply chain management world, as told by influential thought leaders in the industry. Each episode features a different special guest, who brings his/her unique opinions regarding topics such as logistics, supply chain, cargo, freight, transportation, and education.
Cranfield University School of Management in Cranfield, England, has nearly 50 years of experience educating business leaders via masters, MBA, executive education, and consultancy programs. The Centre for Logistics and Supply Chain Management is celebrating 35 years of thought leadership in logistics, procurement, and supply chain management. The free podcast, Supply Chain and Logistics Management, covers topics such as logistics and transportation management.
Related posts:
by Jennifer Hart Yim | May 30, 2017 | Blog, Logistics, Supply Chain, Talent
Is the Supply Chain talent gap problem really a talent management problem?
This guest post comes to us from Argentus Supply Chain Recruiting, a boutique recruitment firm specializing in Supply Chain Management and Procurement.
As a recruitment company completely specialized in Procurement and Supply Chain, we’re interested in following the so-called “talent deficit” in the field from all angles and perspectives. The fact is, it’s becoming harder for companies for find the talent that they need for these positions as baby boomers retire and the function evolves. As trade publication Supply Chain 24/7 puts it, “study after study has shown that for every new Supply Chain Manager entering the workforce, two (or more) are retiring.”
It’s a serious issue.
But the more you look at this issue, and the more perspectives you seek, the more you realize how complex it truly is: We’re witnessing a generational shift in the Supply Chain industry whereby more young people are entering the field. Technology has developed rapidly over the past 10 years, with big data, 3-D printing, Blockchain and automation promising to upset the apple cart completely over the next 10. It’s not just that people are retiring. It’s that finding people who have a depth of understanding of how to harness these new technologies is going to be a major driver of company competitiveness over the coming years, and they’re hard to find.
That growing demand is part of what makes Supply Chain such an attractive field for young people who are interested in business that combines global exposure, strategic problem solving, technology, and data. More universities and colleges are offering Supply Chain Management programs. But the skills required are always evolving, and how can the industry ensure that people are adequately skilled when they themselves can’t always predict the technological picture 3-5 years down the road?
Lack of talent management?
There was a thought-provoking blog post on this topic in Supply Chain Management Review this week by Supply Chain Professor Michael Gravier. Titled, “Lack of Supply Chain Talent – or Lack of Talent Management?”, the post talks about the talent deficit from the perspective of someone who’s very much in the trenches of preparing tomorrow’s Supply Chain leaders for tomorrow’s workforce.
Professor Gravier’s point is pretty simple, but pointed: “Young people who go into Supply Chain and manufacturing jobs complain that employers demand creativity during the hiring process, yet have no tolerance for new ideas in the workplace.”
In other words, companies are eager to lock down the highest-potential candidates — which only makes sense because of course you want the best talent, and of course you don’t want that talent going to your competitors. But once those candidates are placed? In Gravier’s eyes, organizations don’t necessarily take the next step and let them contribute in a creative way. For Gravier, millennial workers — especially high performers — specifically demand a higher level of engagement and skill growth than employers might be accustomed to. And, by putting these new workers in transactional roles without much opportunity for growth, companies are jeopardizing their long-term talent goals and putting themselves in danger of falling behind.
As Gravier puts it: “There’s evidence that companies show little commitment to developing and rewarding needed skills, and companies hire top-notch graduates in order to avoid having to deal with people problems later, which shows that there’s likely insufficient training and support as personnel move into supervisory positions.”
The reality for Supply Chain
A few things are worth mentioning from our perspective: for one, there’s always going to be a low person on the totem pole at any company. Workers have always had to “pay their dues” for the first couple years of their career, no matter the field, whether it’s doing dishes or preparing purchase orders. So it’s a bit unreasonable for recent Supply Chain grads to expect highly strategic roles right out the gate. For another, it makes sense for companies to want to hire the best people now, even if it means putting them in roles where they might not be developing as quickly as they would like?
On the other hand, if companies truly want to get ahead of their competitors, doesn’t it make sense to put resources into training, mentorship and skills development?
Whatever you make of his argument, it’s pretty easy to agree on one thing: Companies need to do all they can not only to attract great candidates, but to help them thrive and grow — both to keep those candidates’ eyes from wandering other opportunities, and to unlock the innovation that these candidates can provide.
But what do you think? Are companies developing junior prospects in Supply Chain well, or leaving them in entry-level positions for too long? Are you near the beginning of your career? Or does your company hire a lot of junior Supply Chain staff? Let us know in the comments!
by Fronetics | May 18, 2017 | Blog, Leadership, Supply Chain
Add these books to your summer reading list to stay on top of industry trends and jump start your professional development.
“Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.” Malcolm X
Nikki Vazeos, regional sales manager at Veritiv, a leading North American distribution company, requires all of her sales reps to read one book a quarter that deals with professional development, sales techniques, or distribution trends and write a brief summary on how it applies to their day-to-day business. I always have found this kind of assignment to be beneficial on many different levels: professional growth, staying on top of industry trends, and of course, continuing education outside of the office.
If you’re a supply chain professional looking to build your summer reading list, this post is for you. Here are 5 highly recommended books that will jump start your professional reading.
5 books for supply chain professionals
1) The Resilient Enterprise
The Resilient Enterprise by Dr. Yossi Sheffi, Elisha Gray II Professor of Engineering Systems at MIT and Director of the MIT Center for Transportation and Logistics, has become one of the most influential supply chain resiliency books since its publication. Though published back in 2005, the book is still extremely relevant using numerous case studies and cautionary tales of some of the world’s largest companies. Dr. Sheffi explores high-impact/low-probability supply chain disruptions and the tools companies can use to reduce the vulnerability of their supply chains while fostering an overarching culture of resiliency.
2) The Inevitable
The Inevitable by Kevin Kelly guides its readers through the 12 technological imperatives that will shape the next 30 years and transform our lives. Kelly provides an optimistic road map for the future, showing how the coming changes in our lives — from virtual reality in the home to an on-demand economy to artificial intelligence embedded in everything we manufacture — can be understood as the result of a few long-term accelerating forces. Kelly both describes these trends — flowing, screening, accessing, sharing, filtering, remixing, tracking, and questioning — and demonstrates how they overlap and are codependent on one another. These larger forces will completely revolutionize the way we buy, work, learn, and communicate with each other. By understanding and embracing them, says Kelly, it will be easier for us to remain on top of the coming wave of changes and to arrange our day-to-day relationships with technology in ways that bring forth maximum benefits.
3) The 360° Leader
The 360° Leader by John C. Maxwell offers an in-depth look at the application of leadership principles, even when you’re not the boss. Maxwell asserts that you don’t have to be the “main” person to impact your organization. The book suggests tangible ways to influence peers and superiors and become a more valuable member of your team.
4) Good to Great
Built to Last, a book published by Jim Collins in 1994, looks at 18 companies that have triumphed over time, and how long-term sustained performance can be built into a company’s DNA over time. In Collins’ follow-up book, Good to Great, he concludes that it is possible, but it takes a lot of hard work and dedication.
Collins and his team of researchers began their quest by sorting through a list of 1,435 companies, looking for those that made substantial improvements in their performance over time. They finally settled on 11 — including Fannie Mae, Gillette, Walgreens, and Wells Fargo — and discovered common traits that challenged many of the conventional notions of corporate success. At the heart of those rare and truly great companies was a corporate culture that rigorously found and promoted disciplined people to think and act in a disciplined manner.
5) Executive Presence
Executive Presence by Sylvia Ann Hewlett, a noted expert on workplace power and influence, shows you how to identify and embody the Executive Presence (EP) that you need to succeed. EP is a combination of qualities that true leaders exude, a presence that shows you’re in charge or deserve to be.
Articulating those qualities isn’t easy, however. Based on a nationwide survey of college graduates working across a range of sectors and occupations, Sylvia Hewlett and the Center for Talent Innovation discovered that EP is a dynamic, cohesive mix of appearance, communication, and gravitas. While these elements are not equal, to have true EP, you must know how to use all of them to your advantage.
Related posts:
by Jennifer Hart Yim | May 17, 2017 | Blog, Current Events, Supply Chain
Legislation like the California Transparency in Supply Chains Act gives consumers tools to monitor companies who violate human trafficking and child labor standards.
This article is part of a series of articles written by MBA students and graduates from the University of New Hampshire Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics.
The California Transparency in Supply Chains Act (hereinafter “California Transparency Act”) took effect in 2012. This state law applies to certain companies satisfying requirements as stipulated under the act. But if you are not doing business in California, does the law affect you?
The economy of California is big enough to be the 6th largest economy in the world, and her GDP is the largest in the U.S. Even though the California Transparency Act is state law, it seems inevitable that it will affect the U.S. economy in general.
Why Do We Need a Transparency Act?
Today, supply chain is a critical system in any business. The absence of one of its components could stop business production.
Such disruption can occur as a result of strikes or other work stoppages by laborers who have been trafficked or who are paid little or nothing for forced work. One good example is the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) representing tomato pickers in Florida. CIW has implemented a Fair Food Program, in which large retailers buying tomatoes pay a penny more per pound to fund better wages and to improve working conditions for tomato pickers. Since 2001, more than thirteen companies such as McDonald’s, Subway and Burger King have joined the program. But Wendy’s has not yet, causing the company to suffer criticism and boycotts from customers.
The need for such programs to improve working conditions is great, as tragedies such as Rana Plaza remind us. In 2013, the 8-story garment factory supplying to global brands collapsed in Bangladesh, killing 1,135 workers. Three months earlier, fire in another garment factory sewing clothes for Western companies killed seven workers, two of whom were just teenagers, ages 15 and 16.
Legally speaking, human trafficking and child labor are illegal in every country. 166 countries are parties to the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Woman and Children (aka “the Palermo Protocol”). However, violations of these laws are commonplace.
Why? In most countries, using trafficked workers and child labor is punishable under criminal law. So when it occurs, who goes to a jail? Actually, no one goes to a jail. Just a fine is imposed on the company violating of law.
In addition to the demand for cheap labor and services, the lack of meaningful law enforcement makes these practices continue. Civil liability and monitoring by good citizens are the most effective ways to decrease human trafficking and child labor. The California Transparency Act will provide a systematic process to oversee companies and to impose civil liability on illegality.
The California Transparency Act
The California Transparency Act is the first state law in the U.S. specifically addressing slavery and human trafficking in supply chains.
It applies to any business with $100 million in gross worldwide revenues that is doing business in California, and requires any subject business to disclose its efforts to eliminate slavery and human trafficking from their direct supply chains. The disclosure must provide the information of retail sellers or manufacturers, including verification of product supply chains, audit of suppliers, certifying materials, maintaining internal accountability, and training.
Those violating this act will be subject to action brought by the Attorney General for injunctive relief. If you want to see how this system works, go to a company’s website that you think does business in California, such as Trader Joe’s.
Federal Supply Chain Transparency Act
Four years after the California Transparency Act was enacted, Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) introduced a federal transparency law, the Business Supply Chain Transparency on Trafficking and Slavery Act of 2014, but it was never finalized. She reintroduced the bill in 114th Congress, but it was referred to the committee and did not go forward.
However, the federal regulation required by president Obama’s executive order titled Strengthening Protections against Trafficking in Persons in Federal Contracts was published in 2015. New FAR (Federal Acquisition Regulation) prohibits several practices for contractors, subcontractors and their agents, including denying access to the employee’s identity or immigration documents, using misleading or fraudulent recruitment practices, etc.
Transparency Act in the E.U.
In 2014, the European Parliament enacted Directive 2014/95/EU, which requires that public interest entities with more than 500 employees report information regarding efforts they are making to manage social, environmental and governance-related issues. The disclosure includes a non-financial statement on policies, outcomes and risks relating to social matters, and respect for human rights. The non-financial statement must provide a description of the policies pursued by the organization, the outcome of those policies, the principal risks related to those matters linked to the organization’s operations, and non-financial key performance indicators.
No specific penalty for failure to comply is stipulated. However, the directive instructs member states to ensure adequate and effective means for the guarantee of disclosure on non-financial information. The directive entered into force in January 1, 2017. As of December 6, 2016, most member countries had taken legislative measures to abide by the directive.
One example is the U.K. Modern Slavery Act, enacted in 2015. Part 6 of the act, entitled Transparency in Supply Chains Disclosure, imposes certain disclosure requirements on businesses. The disclosure must include information about the organization’s structure, its business and its supply chains, its policies in relation to slavery and human trafficking, its due-diligence processes in relation to slavery and human trafficking, a risk of slavery and human trafficking and its steps to manage that risk, and training available to its staff. The duties imposed on commercial organizations by this act are enforceable by the Secretary of State bringing civil proceedings.
France also enacted legislation defining a duty of vigilance for parent companies and their subcontractors in 2016, according to a promulgated document in 2017. The law applies to companies operating in full or in part on French territory with at least 5,000 employees when the head office is located in France, or 10,000 employees when the head office is located abroad. The law provides that multinational firms carrying out all or part of their activity on French territory shall establish mechanisms to prevent human rights violations and environmental damages throughout their supply chains. If the company does not prepare a vigilance plan and fails to comply with the formal judicial notice, it may be sanctioned with fines up to €10 million. The amount of this fine may reach up to €30 million if failure to develop a plan leads to injuries that could have otherwise been prevented.
Conclusion
Many legislative measures have been introduced both domestically and internationally to maintain transparency in supply chain. Regardless of a number of efforts on supply chain transparency, one question is not yet clear: how these measures will affect the transparency of supply chain.
Someone might criticize that no powerful measure has been introduced allowing governments to control supply chains. However, I wonder why we think government has more power than people and communities to maintain supply chain transparency.
We consumers can nourish or contract business. Supply chain transparency law, including the California Transparency Act, will provide a tool for consumers to monitor companies and to take action when the laws are violated. That is why I am optimistic about future of the law.
About the Author
Soyoung Yook, J.S.D., Attorney at Law, New York, is an MBA candidate at the University of New Hampshire Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics.
Related posts:
