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Hey, good morning, good afternoon, good evening wherever you may be.

Scott Lewton and Kim Reuter with you here on Supply Chain Now.

Welcome to today's live stream.

Hey Kim, how you doing?

Good, how are you?

It's been a minute.

It has been a minute.

I know you've been busy moving mountains in industry.

We certainly have had a busy summer here.

Kids are back in school already, which is crazy.

What?

Yeah, happens early.

It happens early.

But nevertheless, great to have you here.

Thank you.

How have you been enjoying the cooler temps, huh?

Doing well.

A little break in Virginia.

We finally the temperatures have cooled down.

We can actually go back outside now.

So that's been helpful.

So yeah, really good.

Oh, so nice to get outside.

I can't wait to fall weather and we're going to touch that here.

Second folks, today's the Buzz.

Every Monday at 12 noon Eastern time, we discuss a variety of news and developments across global supply chain and global business.

We like to call it news that matters.

And we've got a terrific show here today.

We're going to be looking at trends in the supply chain job market.

We're getting an update on the health status of the manufacturing industry.

We're going to exchange best practices when it comes to applying AI to automate operations.

We're even going to check in on what has become one of the biggest events in industry, Manifest.

All that and much, much more.

And speaking of Manifest Kim, in about 10 minutes or so we're going to be welcoming a a special guest today on the Buzz.

Katie Date, Senior Vice President, Industry Relations and Strategic Initiatives with Manifest Kim.

We got a jam up episode here today, huh?

A lot going on a supply chain right now.

There's a ton.

There's tons.

And I wish I could say and guarantee we're getting to all of it next hour, but we're picking and choosing our fights a bit, aren't we Kim?

We are.

We can only tackle one mountain at a time.

That's right.

Well said folks.

Before we jump in, two things.

Number one, give us your take in the comments whether you're tuned in via LinkedIn, YouTube, X, Facebook, Twitch, no matter, let us know what you think.

Just like Trisha here who always wishes us a happy buzz day.

And let us know, as she says, let us know where you're tuned in from.

We love making that connection.

And then secondly, if you enjoy the show.

We'd love for you to share it with your friend, your network, your family, your aunt Edna up in Montana.

No matter.

They'll be glad that you did.

Okay, Kimberly, we've got some work to do before we bring on our esteemed guest Katie.

Date with manifest and say three things.

Three things.

And we're going to start with a great addition of our ongoing almost nuclear wheeze letter.

Wheeze letter.

Yeah, I think I reversed the consonants there.

Weekly newsletter with that said, it published over the weekend as it always does because it's a slacker.

It doesn't work during the week in this edition, Kim, we focused on a lot of things because to your point, there's so much going on.

Number one, hey, D. Minimus is going away sooner than expected.

As the White House says the popular shipping exception will will end on August 29th versus 2027 as originally planned.

Ford Motor Company is said to be talking with U. S. Trade negotiators daily as they look to mitigate a challenging path forward for the company that makes the most vehicles in the US of any other.

Speaking of automotive, hey, did you know that aluminum, which has been hit with a 50% tariff, average aluminum usage on a per car basis has almost doubled in the last 20 years, mainly because it's strong and, and it's light and now it's more expensive.

Aside from that, Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern, I think.

Can I say that right?

Like y' all do up in Virginia.

Oh, the old pronunciation in Norfolk.

Well, there's Norfolk and Norfolk, so I think we're.

We're in Norfolk.

Okay, so there's two big railroads.

I'm a butcher.

Regardless, Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern have come to a merger agreement to form a true single transcontinental railroad.

But they got to get past the regulators.

And as we were saying, pre show.

When I hear the word regulators, Kim, my brain goes straight to mount up.

And talking about little Nate dog and Warren G. We'll see if anyone out there thinks like I do.

But there's a lot more to this edition, folks.

And I also want to call out, so check out what that said or drop the link.

Make it really easy.

We've got a tremendous event coming up September 3rd.

Big panel, rock and roll supply chain leaders.

Get this.

Stephanie Beal, CSCO with Hasbro.

Whitney Schlesinger, VP of Global Planning Logistics with McCormick.

Sylvia Wilk, CSEO with Lamb Weston.

Eliza Siminova.

Hope I got that right.

VP Global supply with Mars pet nutrition.

And Tamara Finski, chief supply chain officer With Kimberly Clark, that panel all led by the one only Corinne Bursa.

Folks, come check this out and we're going to drop a link.

If you get tired of registering, check out the register once and for all option that we're going to be dropping in the comments.

So Kim, I'm scratching the tip of the iceberg from with that said, which delivered on time and but your thoughts, did you happen to get a chance to read it?

Yep.

I took a look at the with that said this with my morning coffee today and you know, I think the biggest thing that's been most disruptive of all the things have been disruptive in the last week or so is the de Minismis piece.

We knew this was coming.

We've been talking about getting rid of de minimis for 20 or 30 years now.

As long as I've been in the industry, it's always been something that we've been talking about.

So it's not surprising that we're getting rid of it.

Most other countries have gotten rid of it.

Europe has gotten rid of it for the most part.

Canada is 100 Canadian dollars, so very low, much lower than what we have in Europe.

It's €50.

So while they still have some sort of de minimis, it's much smaller than the 800.

So I'm not surprised to see it go.

But as we all know, execution is going to be interesting.

Yes, it will.

Yeah.

Because I think we are looking at last time we went through this it was just from Hong Kong or out of China.

It was a million packages a day.

Wow, that is remarkable.

So, yes, it's the devil's in the details and then the execution, especially to your point at this scale.

Yes, so we shall see.

But folks, hey, check it.

Whether it's D Minimus or anything else there, we also include live events.

You name it, check out.

With that said and as always, folks, we love the feedback we get.

Constructive, positive.

Sometimes we get a punch in the nose.

Hey, whatever, whatever you'd like to share.

We welcome it because our thoughts and perspective from our global supply chain.

Now Fam is our North Star.

Okay, so moving right along, Kim, and really picking back up on what you're just sharing there.

You know, I've been regularly kind of baking this into the buzz with this incredible cadre of co hosts from that all our titans of industry doing big things.

And that's where I want to go next with you.

So you're just referencing, you know, your time industry because I bet you've seen a lot of things Come and go.

Some things stick around.

But when you think about what business leaders and supply chain leaders are faced with right now, what's one key theme or topic that you're seeing lots of angst and heartache and struggle on?

What say you?

So obviously tariffs are upsetting a lot of people.

It directly impacts the bottom line.

And that is worrying for a lot of companies that I talk to.

But underneath that, the issue that's actually causing the worry is that companies continue to not value supply chain expertise.

So, you know, during COVID we saw that turn around a little bit and supply chain got a seat at the executive table as we like to talk about.

People started to care about it and talk about it the C suite more.

And then we've seen a little bit of a backtrack.

But with these new tariff conversations and sourcing and managing pricing and things like that, supply chain is bumped back up into what I consider a high demand skill set.

And so the companies who have not focused on that in the past, who continue to let you know, the mail guy run the import department, seeing it.

And I'm not putting down the mail guy.

The mail guy's right.

I started my industry, I started my career as the male girl during telexes.

So I've been there.

I'm not devaluing that, but I'm saying they're not putting enough emphasis on it and so they're paying the price.

So hire actual supply chain professionals.

Cam, I love it.

And one key thought comes to my mind as you were sharing both that been there, done that perspective as well as what's going on right now.

Yes, we're in the golden age of supply chain technology.

It's amazing.

However, we gotta have that number one.

We also have to have the human talent, right?

Communication, storytelling, creativity, the problem solving, both proactively and reactively.

You know, we put the right technology in the hands of the beautiful human element and we might just have a chance at baking our cake and eating it too.

Kim, would you agree?

I agree, I agree.

But you gotta have the human element.

That's right.

Well said.

So, folks, that's our supply chain leadership pulse.

Check for all.

August 4, 2025.

Hard to believe we're talking about August this year.

We were just talking about super bowl, but hey, I digress.

Hey, one more quick thing.

We're bringing on an outstanding guest here today, folks.

You're going to love our guests and the rest of the show.

You know, we're all about sharing terrific, high quality resources with our global supply chain.

Now Famine.

That's where I want to go next.

From our friends here at Easy Post, the rules, folks of peak season, they've changed.

This isn't the same peak season.

It's not even close.

So if you're dusting off last year's playbook, this brings a perfect image, like a football analogy.

I can just see folks going down to the basement, getting last year's playbook, bringing it back up, knocking off the dust.

Folks, if you're doing that, you're going to get burned.

Gotta download this latest guide from Easy Post and learn why Peak 2025 is not business as usual and how smart brands and savvy leaders are responding.

It's easy to download.

Check out the link and let us know what you think.

And Trisha.

Hey Trisha, is Johnny on the spot today?

Thank you, Trisha.

I appreciate what you and Amanda do behind the scenes.

And hey, achata says via LinkedIn, Excited to be a supply chain leader.

Hey, we are too.

And you know what, one quick final thought before we bring on Katie.

There are steps like step changes and they're temporary finish lines when it comes to being a supply chain leader.

But Kim, we gotta constantly learn, add new skill sets.

I mean, there's no one finish line, right?

No, there's no one finish line.

And I will say, you know, in my podcast I've interviewed a lot of supply chain experts and every single one of them says keep learning, you got two folks.

But Akshata, I bet we're preaching to the choir there.

And great to have you here.

Let us know where you're tuned in from.

Okay, Kim, I am looking forward to an outstanding guest here today.

I'm going to introduce Katie Date who serves as Senior Vice President, Industry relations and Strategic initiatives at Manifest, which is in there, done it of the fastest growing quality supply chain shows around.

So prior to her role at Manifest, Katie spent almost a decade at MIT's illustrious Center for Transportation and Logistics.

Now, while she was there, one of the numerous ventures initiatives that she led was she launched the MIT CTL Women in Supply Chain initiative to help organizations understand and improve do something about gender balance in the field.

And that's Katie continues to serve as a big champion for that today.

So please join me in welcoming Katie Date with Manifest.

Hey Katie, how you doing?

Hello.

Thank you so much for having me.

I'm doing great.

Happy Monday.

Happy Monday indeed.

It's so nice to finally meet you.

And Kim, we've been chatting about this segment for a while, huh?

Looking forward to it.

So Kim, you Know how we do it around here.

I like my fun warmup questions.

And Katie, welcome.

I know this isn't your first rodeo, but might be your first fun warmup question.

And this is where I'm going to start.

We were talking about this pre show.

Look at this nice, pretty picture.

Look at the coolness, the briskness in that picture.

Here in Atlanta, folks.

Over the weekend we got a nice break from the heat and for a moment it felt like cool fall weather, football weather even.

So I want to lean into cool fall forward thinking and ask our esteemed panel, starting with you, Katie, what is one thing you're looking forward to come October and November when it's not 105 degrees?

There's so, I mean, fall is my favorite season for a lot of reasons.

My birthday in September.

So I celebrate not just one day, but the whole month of September is my birthday.

But I'm a huge football fan, so I'm very excited.

Go Minnesota Vikings.

Very excited for football to get started.

And I'm a cozy person, so I, I love being able to, you know, put on the cozy clothes.

And we got a little taste of that this weekend on the Cape, which was amazing.

And most importantly, my son is going to kindergarten, so that will, will be a big milestone for us and I'm excited to, you know, kick him out the door in September.

So, so said with all the love and gentleness of a parent.

They've been there, done it, Tim.

Lots of things.

First off, Katie, happy birthday.

Let me be the first person to tell you that football.

And she's a big Vikings fan.

I'm a Bandwagon Falcons fan and a big time Clemson fan.

It's been tough last few years.

Kim, if it's not football or anything else that she had mentioned, I love the cozy factor.

Kim, what's one thing you're looking forward to when the temperatures come down a bit?

So I love being outside, to being able to get back outside.

Comfortable temperatures on the beach are always welcome, even if that includes a sweater.

I'm sure Katie feels the same way.

Being on the cape.

Sweaters and beaches go together actually very well.

So I'm just looking forward to the coziness.

I'm going to go with Katie on cozy.

Okay.

The cozy factor is alive and well and I'm with you.

I'm with you.

Katie and Kim, you know, we've got, I love cranking up a fire and it's a gas fireplace, so it's easy turn on, turn off.

And it really just adds a great element when you when it's brisk outside.

Katie, again, great to have you here.

And Kim, always a pleasure knocking out these conversations.

So I look forward to what we have here today.

Folks, really quick, I want to call your attention.

Trisha, as always was Johnny on the spot dropping links, making it easy for folks to connect.

Check out the easy post guide we mentioned.

And Akshata answered our question.

She is tuned in from Mumbai, India and had worked with a great procurement technology platform previously.

Great to see you here, Akshata and looking forward to your perspective throughout the conversation.

So time to get down to business.

Katie and Kim, because there's so much going on, look at this graphic.

I can relate to this graphic.

And we're going to start talking about the job market, right?

As Kim mentioned earlier, lots of interesting stuff to get to.

So we're going to see how the drama unfolds.

You know, not getting into politics here, but you know, last week, generally speaking, there were some big revisions to job growth numbers here in the States.

But that aside, I wanted to check in on the supply chain job market via this interesting read from Supply Chain Exchange.

Now get this folks, we're going to drop the link so you can check it out on your own.

Katie and Kim, check out some of these data points from the survey.

So they survey a company called click surveyed 1500 business leaders and here's a couple of key findings.

Number one, one in five businesses have created entirely new job roles in response to tariffs, including, here's some examples, tariff mitigation strategist, not just specialist strategist, Reshoring program manager Supply chain resilience analyst Market Man.

Number two, 31% of companies polled are planning to invest more in supply chain manufacturing.

That number sounds low.

50% of those polled are investing in automation.

That number sounds low.

And 40% of those that participated are taking a closer look at predictive analytics.

And then finally, before I get y' all's thoughts here, 28% of business leaders said they're struggling to find job candidates with AI and automation literacy that's needed to get their job done.

Interesting highlights.

Katie, your thoughts on what we heard, what this survey here delivered in the metrics.

Yeah, the number one thing for me that came out of this is that the key word in supply chain always has been and always will be agility and the willingness to change.

You saw supply chain leaders step up and adding different roles, pivoting.

That's really what makes the supply chain great and why supply chain leaders are such good business leaders and why they deserve a seat at the table because they're looking at the market and they're seeing, you know, what needs to be done and, and doing it.

The other thing that was very encouraging to me at the very end of the article, they said that job seekers are feeling more positive now than they did in January.

So I love to, you know, look at the bright side and, you know, made me happy to see that and all the people that are out there looking for jobs, I think your ticket is there.

You need to invest in education and go out and there's so much, so many good resources out there.

You know, the, the MIT Micromasters and supply chain is a great place to start to skill up and make yourself, you know, more marketable to the supply chain leaders out there because there's jobs.

You just have to go out there and get those skills.

That's right, Katie.

I love it.

And quick shout out to Sophia Rivas Herrera, who went through the Micromasters mit, if I'm not mistaken.

So Kim, one big point.

First off, Katie, I love that you focus on the good news.

We're going to be second cousins, I think.

And secondly to going back, Kim, what she shared there, agility and willingness to change.

And that willingness to change includes your professional journey.

Learn new things, invest in yourself.

You've got to be your own number one fan.

There's no guarantees in terms of other folks helping you to find those opportunities.

So believe in yourself, amongst other things.

But Kim, your thoughts on the survey and its findings?

Well, first of all, finally, like supply chain is getting some recognition and so I'm excited to see that.

And as I mentioned earlier in our broadcast here, I'm trying to think, are we on a podcast?

Where do we go on our broadcast here?

Earlier on our broad.

We'll go broadly there.

Earlier on our broadcast, you know, we talked about what I'm seeing in the industry is that more and more companies are finally embracing that they have to hire a supply chain professional that they can't just rely on, you know, somebody who showed interest in it or somebody's sister or aunt or niece or whoever wanted to be a part of it.

And that I think is what we're also seeing as part of this article is that there is an increase in supply chain jobs available.

Yes, it's interesting.

Those titles I was sharing earlier, Tariff mitigation strategist.

Nope, don't want to touch that with a 20 foot pole.

Reassuring.

Program manager.

A little better it might be interesting.

Supply chain Resilience Analyst.

That is as ambiguous as I think this is.

That you should have had that anyway.

Yeah, so true.

That's a great point.

Hey, we're just creating new title at this point but hey, regardless, same.

Yeah.

What do they say?

We're going to keep our figure on the polls.

The job market is there but to spike the football on something that really Katie and Kim both have said in their early comments, there's opportunity out there.

You got to step into those new, you know, out of that proverbial comfort zone and be willing to learn.

Be willing to learn.

All right, before we shift over, I want to welcome in.

Great to see you again.

And this guy's been on fire.

So he's a supply chain practitioner from Pakistan and he joined us last week on a couple shows.

So why is keep the good stuff coming my friend and hope you have a great week ahead.

Okay folks, I wish I didn't have to say the T word for the five main time.

I know we're all get tired of the tariff talk 347 times an hour.

I think that's a factual metric.

That's how often the news talks about it.

And as one Manufacturing activity index shares for now, we're going to have to quote, going to have to live with tariffs.

As reported by Supply Chain Dive, the latest Purchasing Managers Index was released by the Institute for supply management ism.

It focused on July 2025.

And check this out folks, as I share some key findings here.

There's a lot more to this.

We're just getting a tip of the iceberg so you have to check out the link.

But some of the key findings Overall, ISM data shows continued manufacturing contraction and July activity was actually a little bit worse than June activity.

One of the specific items that ISM CEO Thomas Derry mentioned was how companies are now actively trying to figure out how much of the higher costs from tariffs to pass on to their customers.

He had mentioned in the in the article that, that that wasn't a thing but now it's very, very common on on analyst calls and some of their conversations, Dairy also pointed to a reading that shows 79% of manufacturing sectors all reflected contraction.

So if y' all look at the PMI regularly, you know, they survey a bunch of different sectors of the manufacturing industry.

So really that 79% speaks to all the categories together and almost 8 and 10 are showing contraction and that's the highest that metric has been at since December 2024.

One other point, data suggests supplier deliveries are being made faster, which suggests companies are finding new efficiencies in the current ambiguous environment.

So there's that.

And in more of a global look, Chris Williamson, chief economist with S and P Global Market Intelligence.

Get this said, quote, optimism about the year ahead has meanwhile taken a knock as factories worry about reduced demand from customers, especially in export markets, and the inflationary impact of tariffs.

Employment consequently fell as factories trimmed headcounts amid concerns over rising costs and lower sales, end quote.

So, Katie, I know we can find practical optimism here.

Your thoughts on kind of putting our finger on the pulse of what's going on in the manufacturing industry?

Yeah, it's, you know, we speak to a lot of leaders at Manifest, and it's this uncertainty that is really killing them.

And so, you know, taking politics out of it, I think all leaders are just really looking for some certainty as we end the year.

A lot of leaders are looking to scenario planning to kind of help them game out different situations.

But if we're going to take the positive out of this, I think for a lot of manufacturing companies, it's giving them an opportunity to really look at their supply chain a little bit differently and see where, you know, maybe procurement can, you know, take a little bit bigger role in planning the supply chain and find some efficiencies.

And it always makes me happy for procurement to maybe become a little bit more of, of a leader at the table and not just looked at as a cost center.

But ultimately, I just, I want some certainty as we end the year to, to help these leaders make some decisions because this whiplash is, is certainly not just impacting manufacturing, but it's impacting the, the supply chain as a whole.

Katie.

Well said, Cam.

Two points there.

I want to spike the football, Minnesota Vikings football on number one.

Yeah, folks, you've heard about uncertainty in every conversation, but that's because it's real.

It's very real.

And it's not just one flavor of uncertainty.

It's endless permutations of uncertainty.

So that's number one.

But the good news, Kim, is it's a great time to lean on the innovation and maybe some of the earlier investments you've made in the supply chain organization to find opportunity to end the downturns and really roll that up as competitive advantage and differentiation.

But Kim, your thoughts on what we're seeing here and these manufacturing metrics?

So I'm going to take the customer view on this one.

So the customer hasn't experienced it yet.

For the most part, customers are just, I would say in the last 30 days, starting to feel inventory price increases.

So I'm starting to get emails from some of the manufacturers or retailers that I buy from telling me that the prices are going up.

But for the most part, most retailers, e commerce companies, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera, for better or worse, we can get in a whole just in time inventory management debate later.

But for the most part, they hold about 60 days worth of inventory.

So through these ups and downs, we're now starting to pile through that inventory and now we're going to start seeing the prices increase as the cost of goods are increasing.

So we haven't felt it, the consumer has not actually experienced it in its full form.

And I'm curious to see what's going to happen when the customer actually feels it.

I think there's going to be a.

Big uproar and unfortunately that's going to come in just in time for the holidays or Christmas.

There you go.

So what you're saying is it's about to get real, number one.

And number two, I would just suggest this too, folks.

And you got to get past the headlines.

You really got to get past headlines.

Going back to what Kim said earlier on the front end, Devil's an execution in the details.

And we all see some big agreements and some frameworks being announced and all right.

But we gotta get down, get it on paper and get it on the details so that can really, we can find some of that certainty that Katie was talking about earlier.

So we shall see.

But keep your finger on the pulse.

And one last quick little aside, I'm not an idiot.

Katie and Kim, I know that prices have changed for quite some time.

Kim, looked like you were debating.

I was like, amanda, are you still with us?

But get this, I was in a gas station over the weekend and I don't know if y' all ever been like this.

You're kind of hungry.

You kind of aren't.

If you walk in and see something that kind of makes you, you know, willing to purchase it.

Great.

So I did kind of one of those walkthroughs.

I was over there in the candy bar, saw Snickers, which always gets my attention.

That and KitKats.

This Snickers was $3.75.

Yes.

And yes.

It was like the 16 ounce version or, or the jumbo, but still $3 and 75 cents wasn't long ago.

You get a double cheeseburger and fries and a small Coke at McDonald's for 2.99.

We shall see.

I want to share this quick comment here.

T squared, who holds down the fort force up in the Baltimore area?

Great to See you.

And on YouTube says uncertainty and volatility are among the soups of the day in business.

No business will survive without getting a taste of it at least thrice.

That's very Shakespearean.

T squared.

Great to have you here.

And it's true.

We're getting a meal by meal dose of uncertainty and volatility for sure.

Okay, Kim and Katie, we got a lot more to get to here today, including.

Stay tuned folks.

We're going to dive into what's new at Manifest 2026 really soon, but really quick.

You know, we love sharing and supporting great causes here and I want to stop for just a second and share this new endeavor and make sure it's on everyone's radar here, at least the folks in our audience.

The Logistics Marketplace.

So this has been built by Scott Dubin with the Global Fund and his colleague Lantos Penn.

So this new logistics marketplace helps health and humanitarian supply chains optimize their noble missions and help more communities in need, faster, smarter and with more transparency.

They're serving as those blessed bridge builders and as blessed connectors that we need in any industry, but certainly in the health and humanitarian supply chain sector.

So folks, you can learn more at Logistics Marketplace Health.

All right.

And as always, Tricia is dropping all the links.

Logistics Marketplace there, that new news there, the tariffs article.

Folks, you're one click away.

Going all the way back to the the job information.

Trisha's got our back there.

And Nadine, great to see you again once again from Saudi Arabia.

Looking forward to your take here today on these stories.

Okay, Katie and Kim, I want to get back to talking some news.

I can't wait to get both Yalls take on this.

So in our latest supply chain now guest blog article, we featured the perspective of Alex Yassin, the founder and CEO of an interesting company called Parabola.

I said Parabola last week and Amanda said it's Parabola.

She's usually right.

So Parabola it is.

He speaks on the always intriguing topic of artificial intelligence and specifically on the topic of deploying AI to automate operations.

So in a true been there, done that perspective, Alex answers five questions on the topic they get all the time.

And this is where they start.

He starts in the blog.

Operators are, in the famous words of Freddie Mercury and David Bowie, under pressure.

I'm not gonna sing for y' all folks.

I'll ruin yalls ears.

They gotta do more with less.

And lots of CEOs are demanding that they do something with AI.

But what?

That's the question.

A lot of Folks are asking, they're trying to bridge that gap.

One of the points that Alex makes focuses on where to start.

He's got some great perspective.

He says, quote, don't overthink it.

Start with something you already do.

Often.

Maybe it's a weekly report, a monthly reconciliation, or pulling together data from five different systems.

Add automation to make it faster, layer in AI to make it smarter.

Maybe to interpret an email or summarize rows of free text data.

You'll get a feel for what's possible and you'll quickly see where the value is.

End quote.

And I'll just add one more thing to that great stuff from Alex.

You will take friction out of the day for your people.

And that is the beautiful part about the golden age of supply chain tech.

So I like it.

What else did you see in this blog, Katie, and what would you suggest?

I know you've done a lot of work in this space.

Your thoughts?

First and foremost, I love his take on Just figure out one thing.

Just start small.

I've talked to so many leaders where it's analysis paralysis.

They get so stuck in the idea of we need to use AI, but they don't know where to start.

So taking something as simple as, you know, a spreadsheet or a CSV and dig into it, just use AI to start small and, you know, share it with your team.

That's the other thing that I've really seen.

It needs to come from the top.

I see leaders who, you know, demand it and they don't know enough about it themselves.

So going back to our previous conversation, don't be afraid to go to school on the little things and really, you know, level up your learning and just dive into it and share it with your team.

Also, I'm sure there are plenty of people on your team who have already dove it into it themselves.

Don't be afraid to ask them to share what they've learned.

We've been doing this a lot at Manifest, you know, sharing with each other.

This is how I'm using ChatGPT or this is how, you know, I've automated this and by learning together it helps the whole team level up.

Also, go to events like Manifest.

It's a great place for you to walk the expo floor and learn about, you know, all of the different ways that AI is being used in the industry.

And you know, we can talk more about that later, but don't be afraid to be vulnerable and just jump in and get started.

Ad we need to bottle your last response because it offers a lot of practical but really genuine advice to folks.

And one of my favorite things you shared is AI can do so many different things and you got so many different types of AI that continues to emerge and evolve and all this stuff.

If you're not brainstorming and comparing and contrast how different offices and functions, even your supplier ecosystem, having real conversations there you are missing lots of breakthrough moments, getting out to leading events and having those walking the floor as Katie suggested, but also grabbing the dinners or the beer at night and sharing stories.

I'm telling y', all.

That is how you can find the information that is so key to unlocking that next chapter for your organization.

Kim, beyond the article itself, write this great blog from Alex or Katie's perspective or your own perspective on terms of good best practices and advice for leveraging AI to automate and make days easier.

So you know, I'm a kind of old school, so I stay away from technologies, especially the new, latest, greatest.

Here's my advice to people, don't solve problems you're already solving.

Okay, so a lot of companies I think out there, I see they're selling solutions to things that already exist.

I already know my transit time from this zip code to that zip code.

I don't need AI to tell me that.

So use AI in a way that adds value, that just doesn't duplicate what you're already doing.

I am seeing some of that out there, so be afraid of that.

But also define the outcome that you are expecting because you don't know if it's working if you haven't defined that.

So define the outcome that you're looking for.

I've talked to a bunch of my great partners and colleagues.

We're all been in the logistics and supply chain since we were using typewriters and carbon paper.

And you know what we say is that when you add technology, especially AI, if you're doing it wrong, you're just going to do it wrong faster.

Right?

That's a great quote.

Along those lines, a bad process, automated, just kind of to your point, delivers bad results more efficiently.

Yeah.

So define the outcome that you want.

So if we are going to use this tool to do X and we expect Y, then define that.

Because a lot of people are just like, we're using AI and I'm like, and you're just circling the drainage.

Kim.

Love it.

We need to have a whole series.

Look at Katie and Kim talking.

We'll unlock the world's ills here.

I want to share a couple quick comments here.

Nadeem says at the end of the day.

AI is developed by H Human Intelligence.

Let's start using it.

I love that Nadeem Akshata says use AI to generate ideas to solve complex problems.

That's right.

I've seen folks tout the ability to ask chat, GPT and other platforms how to build prompts to accomplish what you're trying to do.

Yeah, whatever you do, start experimenting with it.

Share those experiences with your colleagues and your other folks across the ecosystem because you might be surprised just what AI can do and how easy it can make when used correctly and in a focused manner.

How it can make your day easier.

So we just dropped a link to that blog article here, so thank you Tricia.

That was the five questions I frequently get asked at Automation Automating Operations with AI Folks, stay tuned.

We got a new website coming if you have any challenges.

This is transfer a week, so stay tuned.

But great blog article.

OAS is talking about some other supply chain buzz, talking about spot prices from East Asia to North America are dropping again.

He's also talking about some lost containers, folks.

You'd be surprised how many containers it lost in global shipping.

If you haven't shined your light in that, you might really be surprised.

Anyway, I've got to move on and Katie, a couple topics I want to get into here today.

I want to explore what you've done previously in your journey and then I really want to dive a little deeper and manifest and really make sure folks know the incredible opportunity that that is come February 9th through the 11th in 2026.

But for starters, I love what you've done here.

This is the webpage from the Women in Supply Chain Initiative at MIT center for Transportation and Logistics.

We've had Yossi on the show.

Well, given your perspective of it, the two of y' all make quite a one, two punch.

But save that for another day.

Tell us if you would, about what led you to creating that initiative and your why behind it.

Yeah, yeah, no, absolutely.

Thank you.

So you know, throughout my 20 plus years in operations, I've always been in kind of male dominated roles but never really like asked why it was like that.

And I joined the center for Transportation and logistics in 2014 and got the opportunity to sit at the table with some of the, you know, greatest leaders at the top supply chains, you know, really throughout the world and started noticing usually I was the only woman at the table.

Sometimes there was, you know, one other woman at the table and being a very naturally curious person, I started, you know, asking why Is it because in my opinion, supply Chain is made for just the innate skills that women have.

So what really started as just being curious, you know, I would start asking women leaders in supply chain their story and then it evolved into doing a survey of about 150 women leaders in supply chain to learn what their journey was and why they think this was the case.

And in 2016, I decided to put my stake in the ground and develop this initiative which, you know, over the course of my career at mit, included some roundtables and a Women in Supply Chain space summit and lots of virtual meetings bringing women together to exchange stories.

And the most impactful thing I think, was the development a full tuition scholarship that till this day is still awarded to some very deserving women to attend the supply chain management program at mit.

And it's a full tuition scholarship which if, you know, the tuition at MIT is worth a pretty penny and really gives women who maybe wouldn't have thought that it was possible an opportunity to come to mit.

And it was.

Talking about this initiative is actually the reason that I'm at manifest.

So in 2023, I was the keynote speaker at the women's lunch and met the amazing Manifest team.

And Courtney Mueller, who's the president of Manifest, said, would you ever be interested in making a radical career shift and coming and joining us at Manifest?

And at that point Manifest was only a couple years old.

And I just saw so much magic and so much potential with Manifest that, you know, I decided to make the jump over to the Manifest team and, you know, continue to still work with all the amazing shippers I worked with at mit.

And since then, you know, we've just, you know, in just two years have, have grown, you know, over 6,000 people at the last Manifest.

This year we'll have over 7,000.

So, you know, what was a passion of mine at MIT led me to this amazing, amazing opportunity at Manifest.

I love it.

I love it.

So I'm going to go back up.

We're going to talk about Manifest in just a second.

So, Kim, I love Katie's why for founding the Women in Supply Chain initiative.

And better yet, I love how she used surveys and other tools to make it a data driven initiative.

Even better.

Kim, what'd you hear there?

And how in your career, how have you seen that?

Why?

And the need to address the gender balanced in the industry.

So my career in supply chain was a little bit different.

I came up through freight forwarding and brokering, which actually has a lot of women working in it.

I would say leadership tended to be a male dominated industry, but the brokering and freight forwarding industry, at least in my experience, was fairly female driven.

And to Katie's point, it plays well to our skill set because we can multitask and think ahead and things like that.

So my experience has been a little bit different in it, but I do think at the leadership level and we kind of see that across all industries, industries, we need to have more women at the table.

I completely agree and I don't have a one of the many surveys and data in front of me, but if you look at entry point careers, right, Coming into supply chain, the gender balances is really as probably as close as it gets to 50.

50.

Pretty close to 50.

50, right?

No, for sure.

But as you move up into director level and VP level and certainly in the C suite, that's when the disparity really begins to be incredibly lopsided.

So I appreciate the gains we've made because I imagine 20 or 50 years ago what that entry level looked like.

So clearly the proliferation of programs and maybe the accessibility programs is helping that.

But we got a lot more heavy lifting to do to really move the needle and make it much more balanced and create opportunities for all at those ever increasing upper echelons.

Katie, I'll give you the last comment and then we'll talk manifest.

Yeah, absolutely.

I think it's, it's all about education, I think.

Yes.

You know, I talk to a lot of women in undergrad, you know, that are getting their business degree and they still think that supply chain is this like dirty manufacturing.

You know, my first job was in a distribution center that was dirty, but it led to other things.

And it's just I have this mission to make everyone think that supply chain is sexy because it is like you can use your brain, you can do so many different things and you know, supply chain can be whatever, whatever you want it to be.

It can be freight forwarding, it can be a distribution center, or it can be analytics and it can be leadership.

So I really have this goal to just open people's eyes.

Love it, Katie.

Consider my eyes open and we need a lot more open eyes out there.

And by the way, what a great addition to the manifest team.

So looking forward to seeing what you do there as well.

She was mentioning 6,000 people last year.

Well, look at this, this guy right here.

I was one of the 6,000, leading a great panel there with the fearless Krenar with TAV and had a great time, had a great time walking the floor, having all sorts of those floor level conversations.

You were alluding to earlier, Katie.

The dinner meetings at night and the cups of coffee had a great time.

And we'll go ahead and get some of the good news out and then we'll talk Manifest and get Kim to comment too.

You've already announced 150 speakers already and I bet there's a new milestone coming out soon.

But y' all waste no time.

You waste no time at all.

So, Katie, tell us what's new for manifest 2026 and how folks can find it and be a part of it.

Yeah.

Well, first, with your 150 speakers that you alluded to, we have more chief supply chain officers on stage than we ever have.

We also have our new cold chain topic that we are launching.

It's a cold chain pavilion.

We heard from everyone out there how important cold chain both is to food and beverage as well as to the pharmaceutical industry.

So we've really leaned into that.

In addition, you'll see us showcasing the latest technologies that are driving the industry forward.

So everything from sustainability and drone delivery and AI and quantum computing and digital twins and it's really, we look at the end to end supply chain.

For those of you that don't know, Manifest is an ecosystem event.

So we're attracting shippers, we're attracting three PLs, fleets, forwarders, carriers, ports, but also the investors and startups really are there and really influence the trajectory, the focus of our content.

And you know, so many people say to me it's the ultimate supply chain party because we like to have fun.

Also, you'll see things on the show floor like the Puppy park and, you know, Rose all day and mocktails.

But also we have, you know, our proprietary networking tool that makes it really easy to connect with people to set up one on one meetings in the meeting zone.

We treat our shippers very special.

At Manifest, we have a whole new revamped hosted shipper program.

One of the things that I brought from MIT is roundtables.

So we really focus on, you know, giving shippers the opportunity to sit down and have those conversations together around a roundtable.

We also have our sponsors leading some of those roundtables so you can learn about the newest and greatest, you know, technologies that are out there.

So many different opportunities to really, you know, catch up with your supply chain besties, but also to meet someone new that's going to drive your business forward.

Love it.

An ecosystem event.

As what Katie said, I love how you think and that was my experience when I went last February, interviewed a bunch of people, caught up with a Bunch of people and folks, again, mark your calendars.

We know how busy the event season is, but you really need to pick and choose your spots and really invest your time, which is most precious and other resources in the high quality events February 9th through the 11th, 2026 at the Venetian in Las Vegas.

And folks were dropping the link.

It's right there.

Tricia is right on time in full link right there to learn a whole bunch more about Manifest.

So, Kim, I know you do a ton of keynoting and speaking facilitation and events around the globe.

You just got back last time we were connecting, you got back from a beautiful European city.

What was Salzburg, Austria.

Yes, yes, yes, yes.

Good one.

Yeah.

So what you hear there, I mean, you may or may not have been to Manifest just yet.

I bet you will soon.

What you hear there from Kate, that's really important to those teams trying to figure out, you know, where to invest in the right events.

It's the ecosystem piece.

There are so many events out there that are just speakers on stage.

Yep, yep, yep, yep.

A couple cocktail cocktails and then that's it, right?

The real magic happens.

Like you guys keep talking about, like, you know, going out to drinks and having dinner and blah, blah, blah.

The real magic happens when you can have those one on one conversations.

And so all of those roundtable talks and things that Katie, you're talking about, that's what really makes an event like Manifest worth it.

Yes.

Well said, Kim.

Been there, done that.

And I look forward to your next one, Kim, as much as I look forward to the next manifest.

And I got to give a shout out.

My buddy Nate Endicott told me forever ago, Katie, he was an early adopter, early supporter manifest.

He's like, Scott, mark the calendar before even the first one happened.

And I tell you, I gotta check out what his crystal ball is saying now because he was right about Manifest then and I gotta see what else he's right about out there.

So.

Yeah.

So, yeah, right.

All right, so folks, again, we dropped the link right there.

Check it out.

I really appreciate what Katie and Courtney and Pam and, and the whole team is building at manifest.

The 2026 version looks to be topping a very successful 2025 version.

And that's how it should be.

So check it out.

Okay, Kim, I'm going to ask you about your great podcast in just a second.

We've got a couple different comments.

Dr. Shah is talking about some of his work he does helping to optimize AI so automation doesn't just move faster.

It moves smarter.

I love that.

Dr. Shah, great to have you here.

T Squared says this little shorter comment.

As he said before, supply chain management is no longer the appetizer, it's an entree.

I love that T Squared.

Any food analogy, it lands with me.

Juan, I look forward to getting a cup of coffee with you soon.

Juan says working in a distribution center as an entry management job is a great way to develop your leadership skills.

And Juan's doing some great things now in industry.

Why is AI is very important in demand planning and forecasting?

Absolutely.

New revelations innovations come out all the time there.

Okay, let's do this.

Katie, I'm looking forward to getting you to and I hear one of these magical moments that Kim has been having on her podcast the Morning Mood.

So this is.

You bet.

Now Kim, this is what I saw earlier today, I think, right, you're telling your story.

Check this out folks.

50 million to 11 billion in four years.

And as always, you're keeping it real.

I think with Andrew on the episode.

So tell us more whether you want to touch on this or something else.

That was a really a eureka moment on a recent episode of the Morning Mood.

Let me talk about the podcast and yeah, the rest of the podcast is that episode just came out today.

And I do talk about scale.

Like at scale is innovating.

At scale is what that's about.

But my favorite thing about the podcast has been I developed this miniseries called the Architects.

The Architects of Amazon is interviewing my colleagues and partners that actually created industries while we were at Amazon.

And the ability to tell their stories and help them tell their stories has been the most amazing.

We did one miniseries out already about the EU logistics and Torsten Rung who created Last Mile Delivery, owned by Amazon, Amazon from scratch.

This month we're coming out with Private Label with Carrie Morris and she's going to tell the story of how she built Private Label at Amazon.

And then we have a whole bunch more that we're setting up.

So that is my favorite part is telling the architect stories.

The people who really built the foundation not only of Amazon but of what became E Commerce.

Yeah, love it.

You've done great work.

I think you published episode 60 already and you're cranking them out like a modern day manufacturing facility.

I love it.

It is the ticket.

20 minutes.

20 minutes.

Okay, great work folks.

You can check out the Morning Mood wherever you get your podcast.

Katie, when you hear that from Kim, one of my favorite things.

They are part of her mission.

And we were talking about this in a pre show ahead of time is helping people, building a vehicle that helps people tell their story and share their perspective and expertise.

And that's a common theme.

What manifests is done and that's a common theme to what we are doing, whether it's events or digital media, you know, helping to bridge modern day communication, helping to create more compelling stories that it's not just a great story.

It moves industries, it moves companies, it creates opportunities for people and businesses.

Katie, all of that's got to be one of the great reasons why you jump out of bed and get to work every morning, huh?

Yeah, no.

100%.

I often say you can't be what you can't see.

So the people that are out there amplifying all of the different stories, that's the secret sauce.

You don't know who you're going to inspire by what you share.

But by being able to go out there and share your lessons, probably saving, you know, I hope, 10 people from making the same mistake, you know what I mean?

And then those 10 people, it just amplifies, you know what I mean?

I, I think back to, you know, before, you know, because I'm old.

So before these stories were being shared, I lived in my silo and I thought that this was my experience and no one else was experiencing this.

So the ability to, you know, tune in and listen to a podcast and connect with, you know, someone who has that shared experience, it just, it gives you confidence to go out and share your story and, and to amplify it.

And hopefully, you know, there's someone, you know, in college that's, that's, you know, gonna do the next great thing because they learned from, you know, what, you know, you were doing at Amazon or, you know, all the different things.

Yeah, well said, Katie Kim, you were gonna add a point there.

Well, so, you know, she was talking about.

And I think Katie and I have a similar background.

You know, when I was coming up in supply chain, I didn't have a lot of mentors and I didn't have a lot of people to coach me on just the basics, right.

Like I coach, I mentored a young woman a few years ago on her issue was how do I get people out of my office politely.

Yes.

Right.

And we've all been there, right?

Like I get you out of my office, but you're never gonna talk to me again.

Coming up, like, I didn't have anyone to be there to be, to be like, oh, hey, like what do I do when this happens?

So like Katie is talking, being able to Share these stories is really like, hopefully somebody else learns.

And by the way, if you need to get somebody out of your office to stand up, that's a great tip.

That's a great tip.

Go to the door.

Communicates kind of passively.

Hey, I gotta get to work.

Oh, yeah, thanks for coming by.

So, Kim and Katie, I really appreciate what both y' all do in industry and.

And in telling the story of industry and helping to be those great connectors out there so that we can not only help other folks prevent from making the same mistakes all of us in the industry has, but even better yet, finding opportunities.

And one last tip here, folks, and we're gonna wrap here the buzz.

If you get get asked to give an interview, make it happen.

Step up to the plate.

Don't get anxious.

You got to believe in yourself.

Just say yes.

That's right, Katie.

Because that experience begats and begats and begats and I promise you, you'll learn a lot about yourself and you end up being more confident.

And it'll help you find the voice that in some cases, not all, but in some cases, you kind of lock way down deep inside of you.

So if Kim or Katie comes to you, hey, don't join a podcast or lead a panel, whatever.

Say yes.

That's right.

Just do it.

All right, everybody.

What a great show.

What a great show.

I want to thank a shout out to T Square.

Please, please.

Yes, please.

If you're out there, baby, I'm going to be in Baltimore next week.

I'm going to be at the Propeller Club Crab Feast going up there, courtesy of Shapiro.

I'm going to be at their summer seminar.

But if you're at the Propeller Crab Feast, let me know.

Okay?

Love it.

T squared.

You heard the invite there.

She's putting it out there.

It's all about food, so.

That's right.

Yeah.

All about food.

As it always is.

You get my attention.

Talking food.

Hey, really quick, Katie.

How can folks connect with you and the manifest team?

LinkedIn.

That is the easiest way to get in touch both with me and with the entire Manifest team.

We're all very active on LinkedIn.

Awesome.

Wonderful.

We got Katie's LinkedIn right there.

You one click away.

We also shared the link to Manifest earlier.

And folks, you can also connect with Kim right here on LinkedIn and I encourage you to do that.

You'll find the podcast and many of our other musings.

Amanda's saying the back channels, she wants to go that Crab feast.

We'll see if we can't make that happen?

You know what?

Drive the camper up beat there in Baltimore and have crab cracking and and a few beers.

But anyway, big thanks Katie.

Date with Manifest.

Katie, appreciate what you and the Manifest team are doing and look forward to having you back soon.

Thank you so much for having me.

I'll come back anytime.

I can't wait.

Appreciate what you're doing in industry.

And Kim, always a pleasure knocking out these conversations with you.

Thank you.

Always pleasure being here.

I appreciate what you're doing to set the right morning mood.

A big thanks again, Amanda, Trisha Folks, I appreciate all the comments.

I know we couldn't hit everybody, but I really appreciate what y' all shared here today on a great episode of the Buzz.

But you've got homework.

Katie and Kim shared a lot of very actionable perspective.

Take one thing you heard here from both of them.

Hey, check out manifest.

Check out the morning mood or invest in yourself, right?

Learn one, at least one new thing every day.

There's a lot more.

I'm scraping the tip of the iceberg, but put it into practice.

Deeds, not words.

And with all that said, Scott Luton, on behalf of the whole Supply Chain now team challenge, you do good, get forward, be the change that's needed.

And we'll see you next time right back here on Supply Chain Now.

Thanks for join the Supply Chain now community.

For more supply chain perspectives, news and innovation, check out supply chain now.com subscribe to Supply Chain now on YouTube and follow and listen to Supply Chain now wherever you get your podcasts.