Organizations’ need for efficiency in the supply chain has seen them adopt a wide variety of different technologies and processes in their quest, from the ingenious to the bizarre.

This has driven a dramatic shift in the role of supply chain decision makers. They no longer focus exclusively on managing traditional supply chain functions such as transportation and inventory management, they also now need to lead on strategy and drive growth.

This requires new skills and a different mindset. Technologies like the IoT, blockchain, and AI, in particular, are set to provide a tremendous boost to the economy over the next decade, and nowhere more so than in supply chain management. Indeed, Jerry Cuomo, IBM’s vice president for blockchain, has said that ‘Supply chain is the most likely application for the technology after financial services,’ while a recent Accenture survey found that 70% of executives said they are significantly increasing investments in AI compared with two years ago. They will help increase efficiency and alleviate executives of their more mundane tasks, allowing them to focus on more creative tasks, driving growth from the heart of their organization.

The Supply Chain Innovation Summit returns to Chicago this November 17–18, with 20 industry leaders in the sector taking the stage to discuss how they are tackling supply chain challenges, which strategies and technologies they are embracing, and how they are exploiting them to maximize their full potential.

Among the speakers will be Christopher Reed, Director of Integrated Supply Chain Strategy at Honeywell. He will share his experiences and best practices to compete with analytics, and how to go about getting organizational support in the form of data and tools.

Also speaking will be Gary Shelton, Director of Sales Operations at McCain Foods, Jerry Wang, Global S&OP Analytics Project Manager at Caterpillar, and Carlos Estrella Olvera, Supply Chain Director at Navistar, as well as a host of others. 

Event curator Allie Laurent said of the event: “Supply chain managers are facing a more diverse range of challenges than ever, with a turbulent business climate presenting them with a new set of risks many are struggling to overcome. We created this event to deal with exactly such problems, and this year we have a diverse range of speakers we feel are perfectly positioned to help attendees use supply chain to its full potential.” 

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IE

Innovation Enterprise Ltd, a division of Argyle Executive Forum, is a business-to-business media brand specializing in delivering the most innovative business solutions to executive-level decision makers. Innovation Enterprise produces a range on online and offline content, including, but not limited to, summits, online learning, webinars, and white papers, as well as offering other additional services such as lead generation and bespoke research.

Innovation Enterprise focuses on seven key channels - Finance, Supply Chain, Analytics, Big Data, Strategy, Digital, Innovation & Sports - to ensure that organizations are furnished with all the cutting-edge insights necessary to driving growth in the evolving business environment.