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Case Studies

Fail Fast, Then Move On

Fail Fast, Then Move On

Jim Barnes did not have a mentor at the start of his career. “No one taught me how to become a leader,” recalls Barnes, chief executive officer of enVista, an Indianapolis-based supply chain consultancy and software firm. MORE TO THE STORY: Getting Advice, Paying it Forward Instead, observation and experience helped Barnes develop his leadership […]

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Erik Snyder Keeps His Spirits Up

Erik Snyder Keeps His Spirits Up

Erik Snyder is president of North America supply and procurement with Diageo, a leading premium spirits company and producer of brands including Johnnie Walker, Crown Royal, Smirnoff, and Guinness. Responsibilities: Oversee Diageo’s end-to-end supply chain and procurement operation in North America, including sourcing raw materials, distillation, manufacturing, packaging, planning, and customer service. Experience: Senior vice […]

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Jack Buffington: Here for the Beer

Jack Buffington: Here for the Beer

Jack Buffington is supply chain leader with MillerCoors and professor at the University of Denver. Responsibilities: Oversees U.S. warehousing operations for MillerCoors. Developing a supply chain program and supply chain, materials science, and sustainability research projects for the University of Denver. Experience: Post-doctoral fellow, Royal Institute of Technology in Sweden; adjunct professor, University of Denver; […]

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Admiral of the Fleet

Admiral of the Fleet

In the early 1990s, John Burke worked for Northside Foods. “We offered redistribution services on a very small scale in the restaurant space,” he says. That meant bringing smaller-volume shipments into a consolidation center and then shipping mixed truckloads, with multiple SKUs, to customers’ distribution centers. MORE TO THE STORY: Try It All That simple […]

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People and Culture First, Strategy Second

People and Culture First, Strategy Second

Some years ago, Dan Curtis took a crash course in logistics operations. It started in 2002, when he joined Greatwide Logistics Services as vice president of finance. MORE TO THE STORY: Balancing Act “We were a very acquisitive company,” he explains. “I immediately began working on the mergers and acquisitions transactions we were pursuing.” In […]

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Sunset’s Rising Star

Sunset’s Rising Star

When Lindsey Graves joined Sunset Transportation in 2006, the founder and CEO—who happens to be her father—asked her to learn the business by spending some time in every possible role. As the years progressed, that didn’t mean dealing just with the company’s freight operations. MORE TO THE STORY: No Glass Ceiling Here “I was always […]

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Joel Kamp: Never Out of Gas

Joel Kamp: Never Out of Gas

Joel Kamp is head of the bulk scheduling center, Americas region, with The Linde Group, a leading gases and engineering company operating in more than 100 countries. He oversees the transportation and delivery of liquefied gases such as oxygen and nitrogen to plants and depots in this region. Responsibilities: Directs the bulk scheduling center for […]

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Fueling Transportation Breakthroughs

Fueling Transportation Breakthroughs

Doug Mueller was enjoying a long, happy career at Schneider National when Craig Dickman, a former colleague, proposed Mueller join him in a new kind of business. MORE TO THE STORY: On Becoming Breakthrough Fuel would help shippers save money on fuel surcharges, allowing them to base those charges not on a nationwide index, but […]

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Michele van Krieken: Formulating Supply Chain Clarity

Michele van Krieken: Formulating Supply Chain Clarity

Michele van Krieken is global supply chain manager with The Chemours Company, a $1.5-billion global chemistry company with leading market positions in titanium technologies, fluoroproducts, and chemical solutions. Responsibilities Manage global supply chain for the fluoroproducts business, driving both day-to-day execution and improvements, and developing career paths for supply chain employees. Work closely with business […]

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Running a Global Organization Like Family 

Running a Global Organization Like Family 

When Frank Guenzerodt joined Dachser USA as its president and CEO in 2004, this U.S. unit of the German-based global logistics firm was bringing in $11 million annually. By 2016, annual revenues had ballooned to $181 million. MORE TO THE STORY: Get Your Passport Ready That strong growth has continued, and Guenzerodt expects to see […]

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Mike Parsley: Supply Chains Suits Him Well

Mike Parsley: Supply Chains Suits Him Well

Responsibilities E-commerce and retail distribution, transportation and logistics; national tailoring service and tuxedo distribution. Experience Vice president, operations, Macy’s; senior director, distribution, Men’s Wearhouse; senior operations manager, Amazon; director, operations, Vistaprint; president and operational roles, H.P. Reid; instructor, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. Education M.S., aerospace engineering, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, 1992; B.S., chemistry and mathematics, Cumberland College, […]

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Average Is for Other People

Average Is for Other People

Derek Leathers embarked on his first big business venture when he was 12 years old. The scene was the circus, where his stepfather helped him get a job selling popcorn up and down the aisles. MORE TO THE STORY: Call Him Coach “They weren’t able to employ me officially, but I got to keep whatever […]

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Howie Mann: Helping to Train a New Generation

Howie Mann: Helping to Train a New Generation

Howie Mann is a founder and board member with the Urban Assembly School for Global Commerce in New York City, which provides opportunities for economic mobility through access to college and career pathways in supply chain management and freight logistics. Responsibilities Helping to guide the school in its CTE (career and technical education) program, including […]

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