This edition features a handful of the most influential leaders in the supply chain that are at the forefront of leading us to make a better business Read More: https://ciolook.com/the-10-most-influential-leaders-in-supply-chain-2022-august2022/

1. VOL 08
ISSUE 02
2022
The
The
The
Most
Most
Most
Influential
Influential
Influential
Leaders
Leaders
Leaders
in
in Supply
Chain, 2022
VP, Global Marke ng
Mindy
Davis
Helping the Best-run
Businesses Make the
World Run Better

2. The
Stuff is Really
Tricky
Supply Chain

3. Supply Chain

4. Supply Chain Moves
to the C-Suite
he plumbing is hardly ever a topic of conversation unless it's
Tclogged up. Before the pandemic, the supply chain played
the role of a functional and supportive system and was
rarely brought up in boardroom discussions among the top-level
management. But enter into the 2020s, and it has become a matter
of much hullabaloo in the c-suite. And why not?
The formula milk shortage in the U.S only stresses the lessons of
the previous two years. Diversified, agile, and flexible supply
chains have become necessities for businesses in the 21st century.
Organizations with superior supply chain efficiencies will be able
to move faster and gain an advantage over their competitors.
The best example of the benefits of making supply chains your core
competency is Amazon. Amazon's world-class supply chain
continues to give the company its edge in an extremely
competitive market. This competency is what positioned Amazon
to gain the advantage during the pandemic shooting its profits to
the heavens above.
Therefore, it is with obvious expectancy that the supply chain has
swept into the c-suite rooms. There is much to be attained and
everything to be lost without making the supply chain a c-level
concern. With this understanding, CIOLook is releasing the edition
of “The 10 Most Influential Leaders in Supply Chain.”
In between the pages of the magazine, you will find interviews with
experts who have been successfully navigating the 21st-century
EDITOR’S NOTE

5. challenges in supply chains. Their domains are as varied as their approaches which will only give a
comprehensive look into the functionality of supply chains of varied spheres. You will also find the
expertise of the industry professionals written from a CxOs standpoint. Don't forget to give them a read
too.
Good luck with your pipelines. May you face no obstacles in your flow!
Abhishek Joshi
Abhishek Joshi
The
Most
Influential
Leaders
in
in Supply
Chain, 2022

6. C O V E R S T O R Y
Helping the Best-run Businesses
Make the World Run Better
Mindy
Davis
20
Ledership insight
An Interinsic way
of Leading
28
Glimpse into Future
The Fuss About AI
34
Leader’s Viewpoint
Pharma In The Tines Of
COVID-19 Crisis
What Lies Ahead?
CXO
08

7. Benjamin Gordon
Nexus of the supply chain
Expansion
16 22
Bill Mrzlak
Chanelling Demand
with Expertise
30
Chitra Shinde
A Resolute Leadership
Personality
C O N T E N T S
46
The Quality Challenge
Your Backbone to
RPA Success
42
Industry Intel
Rethinking the products
of today
for a better tomorrow
38
Leader’s Viewpoint
Its all about Evolving
50
Integrity the foundation of a
leader
Values & Ideals

8. CONTENT
Senior Editor Alan Swann
Executive Editors Abhishek Joshi
Sakshi Shrivastava
DESIGN
Visualizer Dave Bates
Art & Design Director Revati Badkas
Associate Designer Sandeep Tikode
SALES
Vice President Operations Kshitij S.
Senior Sales Manager Prathamesh Tate
Sales Executives Rohit, John
TECHNICAL
Technical Head Amar Sawant
Technical Consultant Victor Collins
August, 2022
Copyright © 2022 CIOLOOK, All
rights reserved. The content
and images used in this
magazine should not be
reproduced or transmitted in
any form or by any means,
electronic, mechanical,
photocopying, recording or
otherwise, without prior
permission from CIOLOOK.
Reprint rights remain solely
with CIOLOOK.
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sales@ciolook.com
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Research Analyst Eric Smith
SEO Executive Ravindra Kadam

9. Brief
Company Name
Cambridge Capital is a private equity firm investing in the
supply chain sector.
Featured Person
Cambridge Capital LLC
cambridgecapital.com
Benjamin Gordon,
Managing Partner
ChainSequence® is a unique consulting group with extensive
hands-on experience in high-tech manufacturing in
combination with broad consulting experience in Supply Chain
management.
ChainSequence
chainsequence.com
Bill Mrzlak,
President
Intel’s mission is to shape the future of technology to help
create a better future for the entire world. By pushing forward
in fields like AI, analytics and cloud-to-edge technology.
Intel
intel.com
Connor Roe,
Supply Chain Analyst
HP Inc. is an American multinational information technology
company that develops personal computers, printers and related
supplies, as well as 3D printing solutions.
HP
hp.com
Ernest Nicolas,
Chief Supply
Chain Officer
FedEx connects people and possibilities through our worldwide
portfolio of shipping, transportation, e-commerce and business
services.
Fedex
fedex.com
John Smith,
President &
Chief Executive Officer
With a global network of customers, partners, employees, and
thought leaders, SAP helps the world run better and improve
people’s lives.
Sap
sap.com
Mindy Davis,
Vice President,
Global Marketing
UPS is committed to moving our world forward by delivering
what matters.
UPS
ups.com
Philippe Gilbert,
President
GSK is a multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology
company that makes innovative vaccines and specialty
medicines to prevent and treat diseases.
GSK
gsk.com
Sara Braun,
Head of Supply Chain
Supplyframe was founded with a vision of transforming the
way innovators interact with electronic component suppliers,
distributors, and manufacturers.
Supplyframe
supplyframe.com
Steve Flagg,
CEO & Founder
DHL is the global leader in the logistics industry. Specializing
in international shipping, courier services and transportation.
DHL Express
dhl.com
Chitra Shinde,
Vice President
Operations

10. Mindy Davis,
VP, Global Marke ng
SAP

11. Helping the Best-run
Businesses Make the
World Run Better
Cover Story
Discover the innovations
your business can leverage
today to become a more resilient,
sustainable, and
intelligent enterprise.
Mindy Davis
Mindy Davis

12. upply Chain can be a source of strength or
Svulnerability," these words from Mindy Davis
rightly explain the powers of a well-oiled supply
chain a company possesses. At the same time, she also
states the magnitude of instability that can occur when the
supply chain falls apart. Working with this transformative
mindset, Mindy has crafted a rewarding experience
throughout her tenure at SAP as the Vice President Global
Marketing. She is disrupting the marketing niche and the
supply chain domain, which go hand in hand with a
resilient, innovative, sustainable, and customer-centric
approach.
Mindy cancels out the risks and shortfalls in global supply
chains by utilizing the vast experience she gained while
working with customers, understanding their challenges,
and learning from those experiences. At SAP, she has been
at the center of implementing the processes for planning,
sharing, and manufacturing supply chains with digitalized
platforms. As an established leader, she has also been a
voice for women in the supply chain by interacting with her
female counterparts through social platforms.
Let's glide into her enthralling experiences and learnings
with her insightful stories;
Introduction to Her Company
Backed by an attitude that is driven by excellence and a
very strong work ethic, Mindy created a fruitful career at
SAP. She stepped into a leadership role about four years
ago. Her peers look up to her to set the strategy and guide
them toward success. Mindy mastered the challenge of
evolving from an individual contributor to a strategic
leader. She learned how leading with empathy can truly
earn trust and respect as a leader. Amplifying this strategy
at the organizational level, she worked towards improving
people's lives with sustainability at the core at her company,
SAP.
Mindy has been with SAP for over 15 years. As a global
organization with employees from 150+ nationalities, she
aims to make the employees feel free to be their authentic
selves for the company to perform at its best. The company
is committed to being one of the most diverse and inclusive
software companies in the world. It proactively promotes
diversity, inclusion, and social justice and work to ensure
that its workforce reflects the gender parity and
demographics of all the regions. Constant efforts are made
to ensure that all stages of the employee lifecycle are
inclusive to enable employee success, hold leaders
accountable, and build a diverse ecosystem – both
internally and among the partners and customers.
Using Technology to Leverage Growth
With technological innovation, unprecedented business
growth has been made possible. Mindy plans to leverage
advancements like cloud, a technology which has immense
potential. With a forecast of $1 trillion growth by the end of
this decade, she plans to capture a huge share of the
domain. To survive in this cutthroat competition of
upgrading, Mindy has enlisted 3 critical issues SAP has
faced. The focus is on these points for the company to drive
change now:
Develop New Business Models: To avoid disruption in
your industry, create new offerings and new revenue
streams. The cost of NOT doing these things leads to
disruption in the industry and, ultimately the company.
Drive New Operational Efficiencies to Fund Growth: By
taking advantage of new technologies for process
automation – such as AI, IoT, ML - and innovation with
SAP Business Technology Platform and iOS, to extend
solutions to make it easier for PEOPLE to work and gain a
competitive advantage over competitors.
SAP solutions can
help you optimize
your supply chain for
lower emissions and
greater profit.

13. Transform Mission-Critical Systems Without
Interruption: The cost of IT downtime for an average
Fortune 1000 enterprise is high and only increasing as
digital systems will be at the heart of every company.
Mindy further provides a framework for details about an
E2E supply chain. Businesses are more dependent on each
other than ever before. As businesses become more
specialized and as customers and competitors raise the
pressure on pricing, speed, individualization, and
sustainability, already intricate supply chains get
increasingly complex.
Here are the principles
Mindy endorses to use the
supply chain of a company to
an advantage:
Ÿ The Top Line: While
any business intends to
grow revenue, it's those
that use their supply
chain as a differentiator
that lead the market.
They connect insights,
processes, and people to
innovate and introduce
new products faster or
transition from one-time
product purchases to
ongoing service
revenues. Consider
Industrial Machinery
manufacturers who
successfully transition to
assets as a service by
managing service
delivery together with
pricing, contracts, cost
structures.
Ÿ The Bottom Line: It's
about increasing margin
and unlocking efficiencies. SAP helps increase margin
by digitally transforming factory and plant processes for
uninterrupted production with Industry 4.0 best
practices, integrated from product design to
manufacturing and logistics while anticipating,
planning, and providing stability across entire supply
chains.
Ÿ Unlock new efficiency with intelligent automation
across all mission-critical processes. With the Internet of
Things or Artificial Intelligence embedded into the
supply chain and manufacturing processes, things can
be shifted like predictive maintenance to predict
machine breakdowns on your plant floor and fix
problems before they happen to prevent downtime.
There is transparency created in production
management to assess and resolve quality and
productivity issues quickly.
Ÿ Managing the Green
Line Growth: Just a short
while ago, sustainability
and profitability were
perceived as mutually
exclusive. Now, they are
synonymous because
customers only want to do
business with
environmentally
responsible, safe, and
ethical companies. A
supply chain is a great
place to start when SAP
operationalizes
sustainability across entire
supply chains from design
to operation. Data
transparency for energy
monitoring or
consumption in the
manufacturing processes
is provided or there is a
system in place to monitor
emissions of the
company's trucks on the
road and identify quicker
routes to reduce
emissions.
With SAP, fully paperless
production processes and
100% traceable production from raw materials to finished
parts is done through Smart Press Shop.
Growing with the Futuristic Tide on the Marketing Side
Disruptions will happen, but companies can respond
reactively or with resiliency. Digital businesses don't just
react and create unnecessary costs and delays – they

14. anticipate and adapt ahead of disruptions to reduce costs
and continue to deliver for their customers. In Marketing,
Mindy helps businesses digitalize their supply chains and
operations to establish resiliency and thrive in a changing
economy.
Through digitalization, companies can take advantage of
vast amounts of data, information, analytics, and
technology platforms to handle disruptions better, faster,
with less complexity, and at a lower cost than reactive value
chains.
Intelligent data makes supply chains resilient and highly
adaptable. When mountains of real-time, actionable data are
combined with the latest technologies and smart analytics
and then shared across every part of operations, smarter
decisions are made, risks are reduced, opportunities are
seized, and crises are averted.
Mindy believes that it's the time to either modernize or
fossilize. She says, "Throughout history, technology follows
an interesting pattern. Things get incrementally faster,
smaller, and more innovative. And then, BOOM, game-
changing technology hits. Products leap ahead, industries
change, and new markets emerge. Supply chains and
operations are going through this right now. We've all been
collecting data for some time now. But the combination of
cloud, IoT, AI, analytics, big data, and machine learning
are creating a perfect storm of change to the traditional,
siloed supply chain processes. “
Most modern manufacturing brings the possibility of
reconfiguring factories to adapt to seismic market changes
or fleeting market opportunities. Technology makes it
sustainable and environmentally responsible. The result is a
living, breathing, real-time, data-driven supply chain that
becomes the epicenter of the entire business. Technology
and real-time data have created a new tipping point for
manufacturers. She emphasizes, "Titans will rise, and
laggards will fall painfully behind. It's time to modernize or
become fossilized."
Turning Setbacks to Successes
The disruptive phase in a business is ongoing. The next
significant change in the marketing sector Mindy's seeks to
address is disruption with resiliency to improve visibility,
productivity, connectivity, and sustainability.
Business leaders are bracing for a possible economic
downturn as the U.S. Federal Reserve raises interest rates
and pushes up borrowing costs to combat inflation currently
running near a 40-year high. Continued supply chain
problems and higher energy costs are creating additional
uncertainty.
SAP's Take: While most economists are still cautious about
predicting a recession because consumer spending, the main
driver of the U.S. economy, remains strong, the shifting
economic outlook has refocused attention on technology
that can improve efficiency, enhance business agility and
address supply chain issues.
Company executives, including CIOs — especially those
who have experienced previous downturns know that in
order to thrive in a challenging economic environment, they
need to build resiliency and invest in technologies that
provide them with greater insight into their business
operations and enable them to react quickly to challenges
and opportunities.
Mindy shares, "As a Harvard Business Review article
noted, it is tempting to think of a recession as a time to
batten down the hatches and play it safe. However,
downturns actually appear to encourage the adoption of
new technologies. That's often because digital technology
can make businesses more transparent, more flexible, and
more efficient."
Get customer-centric
products to market
faster and at less cost
with global supply chain
management (SCM)
software and tools from
SAP.

15. Parting Comments
Marketing can help shine the light on how organizations
can create responsive design-to-operate processes and a
customer-centric supply chain that is the backbone of
businesses.
At SAP, the team aims to create a continuous design-to-
operate process and bring the following four key principles
to each and every part:
Synchronize planning company-wide: Integrating
customer input, demand signals, finance, sales, service, and
logistics across your operation and supply chain to improve
speed and responsiveness.
Reinvent production and services: Using intelligent
assets, processes, and Industry 4.0 best practices to increase
output while quickly adapting as demands and priorities
shift.
Operationalize sustainability: Embedding ethical sourcing
and sustainable manufacturing practices and priorities
across the design to operate a process that help businesses
reach its carbon footprint, equality, and reusability goals
faster.
Redefine trading partner collaboration: Connecting
every supply, logistics, and asset management provider on a
unified business network that uses dynamic workflows and
real-time data to increase the pace of business.
Speaking about her vision for the future, Mindy concludes
with, "I want to ensure companies use their supply chain as
a competitive weapon to safeguard themselves against
disruption that will help grow revenue and establish deep
customer relationships.”

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18. Cambridge Capital’s philosophy is to invest in
companies where its operating expertise and in-depth
supply chain knowledge can help top entrepreneurs and
management teams grow their businesses.
| August 2022 |
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16

19. Benjamin
Gordon
W
hen we receive a product or service in our
hand, we associate the delivery of the
commodity with the said brand. As a matter
of fact, to bring the product to people, there is a
network of mediators disseminating in a system. This
system acts as a facilitator and is gratified by the Supply
Chain sector.
Supply Chain is the link between producer and
customer and between the supplier of resources to the
producer. However, if the supply chain looks after the
needs of both the manufacturer and the customers,
who fulfils the sector’s requirement, such as
recapitalization, expansion, and so on?
To cater to these needs of supply chain mediums, the
supply chain expansion and acquisition investors play
an important role in ensuring prompt and reliable
services.
Benjamin Gordon, the Managing Partner of
Cambridge Capital, is an investor in the supply chain
niche. Benjamin holds a vast segment of experience in
the supply chain sector prior to stepping into the
private equity firm Cambridge Capital. The company
oversees investing in the applied supply chain by
providing finance for the expansion, recapitalization, or
acquisition of growth-stage companies in the sector.
With his caliber specifically oriented to the supply chain
sector, Benjamin is determined to provide effective and
reliable solutions for emerging companies in the supply
chain niche.
Let us go through his journey to know the virtues by which
he stands on the top in this sector.
An odyssey that Innovates the Present
In 1999, Benjamin Gordon founded a SaaS logistics
company called 3PLex. He raised traditional venture
capital from major financial institutions, including
Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley. They ultimately
sold the business to Maersk, later selling it to IBM.
As part of his experience with 3PLex, Benjamin believed
there was a need for a supply sector-focused
investment firm comprised of traditional senior
investment professionals and relevant operators with a
track record of success who have built significant
companies in the sector.
The supply chain is in Cambridge Capital’s DNA.
Benjamin has spent his career building businesses in
logistics, first with 3Plex, then with BGSA, then with a
series of other companies like EcoSquid and
GreenScreens.ai, and now with Cambridge Capital.
Embracing Mission and Vision with Eminence
“Cambridge Capital seeks to be a founder-friendly and
high-impact investor. We aim to make a small number of
high-conviction investments per year. Our goal is to provide
practical, hands-on assistance in all functional and strategic
areas critical to growth-stage companies in the supply
chain,” states Benjamin.
The company’s philosophy is to invest in firms where
the operating expertise and in-depth supply chain
knowledge can help top entrepreneurs and
management teams grow their businesses.
Cambridge’s supply chain sector focus, unmatched
network, solid historical results, and unique blend of
deeply experienced investors and operators present an
Nexus of the Supply Chain Expansion
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17

20. Benjamin Gordon,
Managing Partner
Cambridge Capital
| August 2022 |
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21. attractive opportunity for companies to choose
Cambridge and achieve outstanding value growth.
Enabling an Exponential Growth
Benjamin says, “Cambridge has built on a long history of
excellence in advising, building, and investing in the supply
chain sector. Our professionals have deployed over $2.5
billion in capital across equity investments and acquisitions
of more than 50 supply chain/technology companies.”
Investing in the supply chain is all Cambridge Capital
does. It partners with companies whose unique domain
expertise and operating capabilities will help drive the
next chapter of its growth.
Cambridge’s supply chain sector focus, unmatched
network, solid historical results, and unique blend of
deeply experienced investors and operators present an
attractive opportunity for companies to choose
Cambridge and achieve outstanding value growth.
Reflecting the Pulse
Supply chain software companies have always been
attractive areas to invest in. Cambridge Capital believes
that best-of-breed niche leaders are an
underappreciated opportunity to succeed.
Benjamin strongly believes in humanity with
technology, “‘Man + Machine’ Wins. Tech-enabled 3PLs, or
even 3PLs that are more services-based, will continue to
provide value for shippers based on specialization,
capabilities, and density – not everything can be fully
automated purely by technology.”
This is the thesis that led Cambridge Capital to acquire
a majority interest in Everest Transportation Systems
and to invest in SaaS leaders like GreenScreens.ai. As
video telematics and voice/data networks mature to
allow for real-time edge computing, there is a universe
of exciting companies that will achieve significant
success (by replacing older commodity GPS tracking
vendors)
While capital has flowed into a few unicorns in the
sector, Cambridge Capital believes that other tech-
enabled forwarders, especially those who understand
the legacy business model’s profit drivers, will be more
successful.
Like forwarders, Cambridge Capital believes the best
“digital” brokerage opportunities are to invest in
brokers undergoing a digital transformation, given the
importance of reputation, relationships, density, and
market share.
“Enabling More Efficient Last-Mile Delivery” is the goal of
Benjamin. He says, “The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated
e-commerce penetration in the US from 16% to 34% of all
retail sales, resulting in 10 years of expected e-commerce
penetration growth in just three months. As a result, E-
commerce logistics companies benefit.” This led
Cambridge Capital to invest in companies like Byrd and
ReverseLogix.
Last-mile delivery is a $115B industry and is currently
the most significant cost driver in the supply chain;
companies that innovate and enable more efficient last-
mile delivery options will succeed. It led Cambridge
Capital to back Bringg and DeliveryCircle.
Unraveling the Subsequent
Saving Money, Time, and Reputation of Global Shippers.
Local incumbents usually dominate the fulfillment and
delivery of goods. Still, increasingly shippers/sellers
want to consolidate vendor relationships and be able to
monitor all their activities globally from a consistent
vendor.
The recent advances in productizing AI and ML at scale
create a new class of companies that can automatically
cure supply chain issues, saving considerable money,
time, and the reputation of global shippers.
Cambridge Capital’s preferred investment size is $10-
50 million in equity investments. The company provides
capital for growth, strategic initiatives, acquisitions,
and shareholder liquidity. Cambridge Capital is willing
to invest in a majority or minority capacity, and it
invests in partnership with management to add tangible
value.
“The next level of supply chain visibility connects all
stakeholders in a shipment onto a trusted platform. It
enables ‘higher Pixel’ visibility that provides predictive
analytics and machine learning, leading to enhanced supply
chain resiliency and efficiency. This thesis led Cambridge
Capital to back Parcel Perform,” concludes Benjamin.
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22. | August 2022 |
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23. www.ciolook.com | August 2022 |
21

24. BillMrzlak
Chanelling Demand with Expertise
Chanelling Demand with Expertise
truly effective supply chain actually owes its
Asuccess to a long string of disparate yet
interdependent processes. And, as most of us
have learned more recently, maximum supply chain
functionality also depends on seemingly unrelated
global events, both large and small. To best meet
demand, proactive planning is key.
However, in the past two-plus years we have seen
global disruptions, due to COVID-19, volatile weather,
and slow-to-respond, reactive planning do their worst
to turn the global supply chain infrastructure on its
head. In some critical cases, it even stopped functioning
altogether.
While catastrophic or unexpected events cannot be
avoided, with the power of human intelligence, we can
craft proactive solutions that can more rapidly restore
economic equilibrium and further business growth and
investment. One such leader facilitating smooth
deliveries globally is Bill Mrzlak, who has been working
exclusively within the supply chain sector since 1995.
He is the President of ChainSequence and continues to
be an unstoppable force when it comes to guiding his
client partners in achieving more committed, effective,
and competitive sales and operations planning with
innovative solutions that are geared toward long-term
success.
We recently caught up with Bill to discuss his ongoing work
in this space, and are excited to share these interview
highlights as well as several well-earned insights below:
Brief our audience about your journey as a business
leader until your current position at ChainSequence.
What challenges have you had to overcome to reach
where you are today?
Until the mid-1990s, I was among the top-producing
partners working at a large management consultancy
firm, serving clients within a wide range of industry
sectors. In 1995, I pivoted to manufacturing concerns
and started working exclusively in the supply chain
sector. From that moment forward, I found my passion,
and it has continued to grow my knowledge of all things
related to Supply Chain and Sales & Operations
Planning.
In 2009, I launched my organization, ChainSequence, a
premier supply chain and S&OP consulting group.
Recognizing that my practice serves a niche market, I
succeeded in this highly competitive field through
undisputed expertise and excellent client service in two
primary areas – S&OP and supply chain planning.
Hard-won experience has taught me that you can't be
all things to all clients, but by doing what you do best,
you can be the partner of choice. Clients attest that
this enduring enthusiasm still comes through in each of
my engagements.
Tell us something more about your company and its
mission and vision.
ChainSequence's mission statement is clear:
“Committed to helping enterprises identify challenges,
create innovative solutions, and implement lasting
improvements in Supply Chain processes to advance Sales
& Operations goals.”
We're able to achieve our mission by following an
inclusive, collaborative approach,
Ÿ Maintaining an extensive knowledge base of S&OP
and supply chain planning principles for a vast
spectrum of industries and geographical locations.
Ÿ Adhering to our philosophy and fundamental
| August 2022 |
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25. Bill Mrzlak
ChainSequence
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23

26. practice of knowledge-sharing with our client
partners to ensure ownership of each solution; and
Ÿ Quickly assimilating into our client partners'
environments, becoming an integral part of both the
team and the solution.
Enlighten us on how you have impacted the supply
chain niche through your expertise in the market.
The demand for S&OP and supply chain expertise has
never been higher, so the sheer number of supply chain
consulting groups currently working in the
manufacturing space comes as no surprise.
To succeed in this crowded field, a consulting firm must
develop and commit to a differentiator that allows its
services to stand out.
First, we have deliberately broadened our client
partner base to include semiconductor and electronics,
CPG/Food and Ag, Medical/Pharma, and modular
furniture systems, among others.
Second, we leverage our experience, best-practices
expertise, and proven knowledge-share approach with
customizable services that maximize the data-driven
st
realities of the 21 -century manufacturing and
commerce.
Our cross-industry knowledge-sharing empowers our
client partners to apply best practices they might not
have previously considered. It brings a higher return on
their investment and furthers our expansion into new
markets.
Describe in detail the values and the work culture that
drives your organization.
From its inception through today, ChainSequence only
focuses on two primary service offerings: S&OP and
supply chain planning. While other areas reside under
the supply chain umbrella—warehouse space planning,
logistics, etc.— ChainSequence's philosophy stresses
top-tier excellence in our two offerings, which impact
an organization's bottom line the most.
Our expertise shows and is consistently recognized
through feedback and referrals from our client
partners. It is common for us to periodically return to
our client partners, providing solutions to evolving
issues in today's changeable business climate.
We also have individuals with whom we have worked
for 15+ years, moving with them as they transition from
one organization to another and as they progress in
their careers.
Undeniably, technology is playing a significant role in
almost every sector. How are you leveraging
technological advancements to make your solutions
resourceful?
ChainSequence is an enthusiastic advocate for
technology, but as an integral tool to execute solutions,
not the solution itself. Some company execs hold on to
the false premise that implementing the latest
advanced technology will reduce systemic problems.
It's crucial to remember that People and Processes
come first.
Technology can only provide serious improvements and
competitive advantage once an organization completes
its due diligence by defining and developing a rigorous,
end-to-end process that will ultimately govern the
technology at the center of its business.
ChainSequence's decades of wide-ranging
technological experience serve as proof that “systems
are dumb and require instruction.” Further, instruction
can only come from those key enterprise stakeholders
who clearly understand: 1) what is most important; and
2) the key drivers of their success. Only then can you
make a system selection that best serves those
requirements and configure it appropriately during
implementation.
That said, ChainSequence is leveraging newer
technologies such as AI and ML to greatly improve our
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27. client organizations' ability to better plan demand.
While traditional statistical models can only project the
future based on the past, these new AI/ML models can
predict the future by correlating many different data
points.
These models might work more effectively in certain
sectors but are still useful tools overall. Again, it still
takes stakeholder knowledge within the business
organization to identify those relationships that a
technical resource would use to code the AI/ML model.
What, according to you, could be the next significant
change in the global supply chain sector? How is your
company preparing to be a part of that change?
For years, S&OP was considered a nice-to-have
business luxury rather than the must-have operational
necessity as it is recognized today. Then COVID-19
happened, catching many organizations off-guard in
two ways.
First, unexpected plant closings resulted in excess
manufacturing capacity. Then, when plants started up
again, manufacturers couldn't bring capacity online fast
enough. Material shortages, long lead times, and
surging customer demand put further pressure on
already strained supply chain organizations.
Companies are now staring down the barrel of multiple
international health crises, climate change, and other
unknown events which will continue to disrupt global
commerce.
The need to better plan strategically has become a very
high priority, and organizations are fully embracing
S&OP as the game changer that will drive long-term
business growth. The volume of client requests for
services in this area continues to increase, and we are
well-positioned to answer the call.
Where do you envision yourself to be in the long run,
and what are your future goals for ChainSequence?
ChainSequence enjoys a well-established presence in
the U.S. market. Many of our client partners have
operations located all over the world (Europe, Asia),
and we work on-site with them wherever needed.
In the past several years, we have expanded into new
sectors, and our portfolio includes several client
partners in Europe, which continues to grow. Demand
for our S&OP services is increasing more than ever as
global supply chain shortages, long lead times, and
labor shortages continue to challenge enterprises. With
proactive planning through an S&OP process, we can
help an organization minimize the impact of these
challenges.
What would be your advice to budding entrepreneurs
who aspire to venture into the supply chain sector?
We would advise those aspiring entrepreneurs that
working in the supply chain sector is not for the faint of
heart. Competition can be very high and global supply
chain networks can mean long days to accommodate
different time zones and involve a great deal of long-
distance travel. Solving problems in new industries is
equally challenging.
However, because the principles of supply chain
planning transcend virtually every industry and sector
– from semiconductors to clothing, fruit processing, and
washing machines – the same rules generally apply.
And you will meet many interesting people, learn about
other cultures, and visit fascinating places. For me
personally, it continues to be a gratifying career.
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32. ChitraShinde
A Resolute Leadership Personality
n today's world, women may not always realize their
Ipotential, but once unleashed, they have a direct
route to success. Their capability and abilities are
undeniable when they find themselves in a leadership
role. However, it is simple to claim this, which creates
the need to outline multiple benefits women can bring
to leadership roles.
We have all seen women demonstrate passion,
enthusiasm, and the capability to take command of a
situation when needed. Women can make bold and
wise decisions as leaders; this helps make the team
environment less authoritative and more cooperative,
bringing a family-like feel to the team.
This boosts teamwork across the organization and
helps implement a new culture within the business.
With these significant qualities, Chitra Shinde excels as
a proficient leader and an influential leadership persona
in the modern industry.
Chitra is currently working as Vice President,
Operations at DHL Express, a company that aims to be
the 'Logistics company of the world,' with the purpose of
'Connecting People and Improving Lives.’
In an interview with CIOLook, Chitra shared valuable facts
highlighting her substantial leadership qualities and her
contributions to scaling DHL Express' operations and
progress to greater heights.
Below are the excerpts from the interview.
Chitra, please brief our audience about your journey
as a business leader until your current position at DHL
Express. What challenges have you had to overcome
to reach where you are today?
I joined DHL Express in 1994 as a Management Trainee
in Mumbai, India. From this role, I chose to work within
DHL Operations and worked for the next 15 years in
Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Australia and New Zealand
doing various roles in Operations and IT before
returning to India. In 2019, I made the permanent move
back to New Zealand as Vice President, Operations,
DHL Express NZ.
As a leader across multiple roles, I shifted execution
focus to futurizing the operation through
standardization, scalability and sustainability. I focused
on developing high-performing teams, and this, in turn,
developed my own competence. I also had to shift my
own mindset from being operationally focused to being
insanely customer focused.
My challenges have been mostly around juggling
multiple roles of mother, daughter, and wife and being
career-focused. It was not unusual for me to be the only
woman in the board room, but I have worked with some
exceptional colleagues who made it easier.
Tell us more about DHL Express, its mission and its
vision in the modern industry.
DHL Express is a division of Deutsche Post DHL Group.
Our Vision is to be the 'Logistics company of the world,'
with the purpose of 'Connecting People and Improving
Lives.'
At DHL Express, we focus on our core product, Time
Definite International Express. We do this through our
proven strategy for the last decade of developing our
people through our internal certified specialist
programs. We believe that our motivated people drive
excellent service quality for our customers, which
keeps them loyal and results in making us profitable.
We continually improve our processes and systems and
adapt to the voice of our customers.
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33. DHL's sustainability
roadmap is a structured
approach to addressing
environmental, social and
governance that impact
our people, customers,
and partners in a
transparent and ethical
way.
Chitra Shinde,
Vice President, Operations
DHL Express

34. We have stepped up our sustainability and compliance
programs through even more focus on the
environment, community, and governance.
Enlighten us on how you have impacted the supply
chain industry through your expertise in the market.
During the Covid-19 lockdowns, we have experienced
massive peaks and troughs through market reliance on
Express to continue to operate as an essential service.
Overnight we lost access to commercial carriers,
putting a demand on us that was higher than any peak
we had experienced before.
We responded by introducing new routes, new flights,
new processes, facilities, and people. We innovated as
we progressed. It was the most unpredictable and,
therefore, exciting time in my career. We carried time-
critical medical supplies and plant equipment, vaccines,
aircraft parts and critical travel documents around the
world.
Necessity became the mother of innovation, and
creativity thrived. We came up with solutions
previously not considered or thought possible. There
was no disruption to service, not on a single day.
Describe in detail the values and the work culture that
drives your organization.
Our values are based on Delivering Results without
compromising on Respect. Supply Chain and Logistics is
fraught with easily breakable links and
interdependencies, which can create a high-pressure
environment. It was necessary for us not to allow speed
and urgency to come in the way of Respect.
We have a culture of continuous improvement we call
First Choice. We use tools like GEMBA, Performance
Dialogues, 5S and DMAIC methodology to reduce and
eliminate defects in our process. The supply chain is
synonymous with teamwork. We set our performance
metrics around collective success and working As One.
We train our people on what it means to be a successful
21st Century Leader and an Inspirational Leader who
can empower, coach and develop our people. We focus
on inclusion, collaboration and diversity. In New
Zealand, we take great pride in having women in roles
that were traditionally male-dominated like our
frontline operations team in our gateways.
We went from 5% to >50% in 5 years through
implementing Mechanical Handling Equipment (MHE)
that was suitable, appointing women in supervisory and
frontline leadership roles.
Our Environmental, Social and Governance agenda is a
key priority, and we are seeing positive traction in our
environmental initiatives. As a market leader, it is
important for us to lead and set the standards in our
industry.
Undeniably, technology is playing a significant role in
almost every sector. How are you leveraging
technological advancements to make your solutions
resourceful?
Our Digitalization strategy is built around customer
experience, employee experience and operational
efficiency. We have global programs that apply to all
countries and local initiatives that address specific local
requirements or challenges that can be solved through
technology or automation.
What change would you like to bring to the supply
chain industry if given a chance?
The Covid-19 pandemic has exposed the frailty of
global supply chains and the risks associated with just-
in-time followed by overstocking just-in-case. I would
like to see better risk assessment and risk management
in purchasing decisions across the value chain. There
needs to be a balance of cost vs risk. The lower cost
focus on procurement and transport has led to a
greater exposure of being caught up in supply and
demand swings of industries and trade lanes.
Secondly, I would like to see convergence of the Tech
world with Supply chain. Traditionally Tech has been an
enabler for Supply chain. I would like to see Tech being
the centrifugal force to modernize supply chains. Our
Industry is in the nascent stages of harnessing
technological development. We are not on the radar of
software graduates and professionals as an Industry
with opportunity.
What, according to you, could be the next significant
change in the supply chain sector? How is your
company preparing to be a part of that change?
Emerging out of lessons learnt from the Covid-19
pandemic, there will be more diversification of sourcing
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35. and movement of distribution centres and potentially
closer to markets. This is likely to create new
opportunities and new players.
Last mile disruption and drone delivery for high altitude
and low density locations.
We should expect to see more data-driven and real-
time decision-making capability using Machine
learning, AI, Twin technology, Virtual reality, IoT,
Blockchain, Cloud, Crypto currencies etc. A holistic
approach to digitalization that can make predictions
about future conditions.
Cybersecurity, Data Protection, Trade sanctions,
Internet Protocol, Intellectual Property rights, along
with an escalating cost of Compliance requirements.
There will be more shifts in multimodal transport via –
Air, Rail, Sea or combinations preferring the most
environmentally friendly options. We expect more
corporations to drive CO2 emission reduction, thereby
driving a shift from fossil based to green energy in
transportation. Governments will start to focus on
beyond-this-election to long-term infrastructure needs
through regulation, subsidies, and penalties that would
influence consumption behavior.
Our company plays a leading role in this space with a
modernized aircraft fleet, Sustainable Aviation Fuel
(SAF), R&D investments, investments in Electric
aircraft, collaborating with partners, suppliers and
customers, and transitioning to a 60% green fleet by
2030 for the first mile and last mile. We set audacious
goals and find innovative ways to meet these goals.
Where do you envision yourself to be in the long run,
and what are your future goals for DHL Express?
We will continue to keep the customer at the center of
everything we do and adapt as they evolve their supply
chain models. Our sustainability roadmap is a
structured approach to addressing environmental,
social and governance that impact our people,
customers, and partners in a transparent and ethical
way.
We set the Industry and Global standards in these
areas. We are already No1 Great Place to Work, so our
focus is to Futurize and Humanize through diversity,
equity and inclusion. Developing leaders who
demonstrate authenticity, empathy, vulnerability, and
emotional Intelligence, build trust, care personally and
challenge directly to strengthen our coaching and
timely feedback culture.
What would be your advice to budding entrepreneurs
who aspire to venture into the supply chain sector?
My advice would be to be personally resilient and
visible, just like a good supply chain.
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