The Chain Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

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 every day. 

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.

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.

Digitalizing the business is only step one in a digital transformation. The next step is upskilling the workforce for the digital supply chain. 

On this episode of The Rebound, Ashok Viswanathan, PhD, director of supply chain analytics at Best Buy and an adjunct professor at Rutgers University, outlines the four steps of his roadmap to future-ready your workforce. ASCM  CEO Abe Eshkenazi and SCMR  Editor Bob Trebilcock host. 

Digital transformation is no longer a nice to have. It’s an imperative. The part that gets far less attention is the impact of digitalization on the workforce. Afterall, if the pandemic taught us anything it’s that people are still essential.  

According to Ashok Viswanathan, a supply chain executive at Best Buy and adjunct professor at Rutgers University, the trick to a sustainable digital transformation is upskilling the workforce in areas like digitalization, automation, artificial intelligence and analytics. For most, the question is: Where do I start, and how do I get there? Where’s the roadmap?  

On this episode of The Rebound, Viswanathan shares his four-point roadmap to upskilling the workforce to get the most from your organization’s digital transformation.    

Be sure to listen wherever you get your podcasts. 

You can also click here  and here to read more from Viswanathan on SCMR.com. 

Apto Solutions CEO Jeff Jones explains how his company re-engineered its supply chain for the circular economy. 

On this episode of The Rebound, Jeff Jones, the CEO of Apto Solutions, discusses how his organization is enabling the circular supply chain for his customers and his suppliers. ASCM CEO Abe Eshkenazi and SCMR Editor Bob Trebilcock host. 

Talk to any supply chain consultant, and they’re likely to tell you that sustainability is one of the key trends their customers are asking about. Without question, we’re in the midst of an evolution from sloganeering to engineering as companies struggle just to get a handle on what’s happening in their own operations, let alone their extended supply chain.  

Apto Solutions CEO Jeff Jones discusses the steps his organization took to gain greater visibility into its supply chain, streamline its recycling processes and document the second life of the materials it sends to shredders and smelters.   

Be sure to listen wherever you get your podcasts. 

Click here to learn about Apto Solutions’ circularity report.  

You can also click here to read more about Apto Solutions on SCMR.com. 

ASCM’s Peter Bolstorff discusses the SCOR capabilities that enable digital transformation 

On this episode  of The Rebound, Peter Bolstorff, Executive Vice President for Innovation and Business Intelligence at the Association for Supply Chain Management, discusses the SCOR Digital Standard unveiled at last year’s ASCM Connect. ASCM (www.ascm.org) CEO Abe Eshkenazi and SCMR (www.scmr.com) Editor Bob Trebilcock host. 

Supply chains are in the midst of a digital revolution. Increasingly, we see innovation as an emerging core competency, with teams devoted to uncovering the technologies that will take their supply chains into the future. As the revolution unfolds, we’re discovering that traditional relationships and linear supply chains are no longer enough. Instead, new digital technologies and capabilities call for a new strategy. That calls for new capabilities to the SCOR model that has served industry well of the years.  

On this episode of The Rebound, Peter Bolstorff (www.linkedin.com/in/peterbolstorff/), discusses digital transformation and ASCM’s SCOR Digital Standard, designed to take both SCOR and supply chains into the digital future. You don’t want to miss this episode.   

Be sure to listen wherever you get your podcasts. 

And, click here to learn more about the SCOR Digital Standard (www.ascm.org/corporate-transformation/standards-tools/scor-ds/).