Resilient Supply Chain— stories and strategies that keep business moving cover art

Resilient Supply Chain— stories and strategies that keep business moving

Resilient Supply Chain— stories and strategies that keep business moving

Written by: Tom Raftery
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The Resilient Supply Chain Podcast is where global leaders explore how to make supply chains stronger, smarter, and more sustainable.
Hosted by Tom Raftery, technology evangelist, sustainability thought-leader, and former SAP Global VP, the show features C-suite executives, founders, and innovators from some of the world’s most influential companies. Together, we examine how organisations are building supply chains that can withstand shocks, adapt to change, and compete in a decarbonising economy.
New episodes drop every Monday at 7 a.m. CET, packed with real insight, not PR fluff.
From resilience and risk mitigation to AI-driven visibility, circular design, and ESG transformation, the podcast unpacks the data, systems, and strategies shaping global operations.
You’ll hear from the people doing the work on:
  • business continuity and crisis response
  • Scope 3 emissions and supply chain sustainability
  • digital twins and predictive resilience
  • ethical sourcing and due diligence compliance
  • nearshoring, automation, and future-ready logistics
Because a supply chain can’t be sustainable unless it’s resilient, and it can’t be resilient unless it’s sustainable.
Resilient Supply Chain+ subscribers also get access to bonus episodes, including highlight reels, extra analysis, trend briefings, and other subscriber-only insights.
If you’re a supply chain executive, sustainability strategist, or technology leader, this show gives you an edge.
Subscribe now and join the global conversation redefining how the world moves, makes, and measures everything.


© 2026 Tom Raftery
Economics Management Management & Leadership
Episodes
  • Why Yard Automation Is Harder Than Autonomous Trucking
    May 25 2026

    Send me a message

    Most supply chains talk about AI and automation. Meanwhile, many yards are still running on pen, paper, radio calls, and chaos.

    In this episode of the Resilient Supply Chain Podcast, I’m joined by Adam Newsome, CEO of Lazer Logistics, Blaine Dirker, CTO at Lazer and leader of Yard Nexus, and Pini Usha, CEO of Buffers AI, to unpack one of the most overlooked bottlenecks in modern logistics: the yard.

    And this matters far more than most companies realise.

    We explore why yard operations have become a critical pressure point for supply chain resilience, visibility, labour efficiency, and operational performance. You’ll hear how fragmented data, disconnected systems, and poor forecasting ripple across transport, warehousing, inventory, and customer service. We also break down why yard automation may actually be harder than autonomous trucking because of the sheer number of constantly changing variables happening simultaneously in confined spaces.

    You might be surprised to learn how many facilities still rely heavily on clipboards, spreadsheets, and manual processes despite massive investment in digital transformation elsewhere in the supply chain. Kismet: Lazer manages more than 30 million trailer moves annually across North America, so the operational realities discussed here are happening at enormous scale, not in theory.

    If you care about supply chain resilience, logistics visibility, operational risk, AI, automation, labour challenges, or execution under pressure, this episode connects the dots in a very practical way.

    🎙️ Listen now to hear how Lazer Logistics, Yard Nexus, and Buffers AI are rethinking supply chain visibility and execution where the physical world meets operational reality.

    Executive Wins Podcast

    The Executive Wins Podcast features inspiring Executives who share their biggest wins.

    Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify

    Support the show


    Podcast supporters
    I'd like to sincerely thank this podcast's generous Subscribers:

    • Alicia Farag
    • Kieran Ognev
    • Gary Lynch

    And remember you too can become a Resilient Supply Chain+ subscriber - it is really easy and hugely important as it will enable me to continue to create more excellent episodes like this one and give you access to bonus episodes of topical, timely supply chain resilience analysis.

    Podcast Sponsorship Opportunities:
    If you/your organisation is interested in sponsoring this podcast - I have several options available. Let's talk!

    Finally
    If you have any comments/suggestions or questions for the podcast - feel free to just send me a direct message on LinkedIn, or send me a text message using this link.

    If you liked this show, please don't forget to rate and/or review it. It makes a big difference to help new people discover it.

    Thanks for listening.

    Show More Show Less
    46 mins
  • When Critical Software Becomes a Supply Chain Risk
    May 18 2026

    Send me a message

    What happens when the software your business depends on simply disappears?

    In this episode of Resilient Supply Chain, I’m joined by Wayne Scott, GRC Solutions Lead at Escode, the world’s largest source code and cloud escrow provider. We talk about a risk hiding in plain sight: critical software, SaaS platforms, and cloud services that businesses depend on every day, but may not be able to keep running if a supplier fails.

    You’ll hear how supplier risk is shifting from a procurement issue to a board-level supply chain resilience concern. Wayne explains why outsourcing a service does not mean outsourcing responsibility, and why concentration risk in software and cloud infrastructure can quickly become operational disruption. In his words, it’s like buying a car from a manufacturer, then watching the car disappear when the manufacturer goes bust. Absurd. And yet, with software, we do it every day. Because apparently business continuity needed one more trapdoor.

    We also break down why visibility, data, fourth-party dependencies, and stressed exit planning matter far beyond financial services. From SaaS services that can go instantly dark, to AI reshaping the viability of software suppliers, this is a conversation about resilience before the failure, not panic after it.

    For supply chain, operations, procurement, sustainability, and risk leaders, the practical question is simple: if a critical provider failed tomorrow, could you keep operating?

    🎙️ Listen now to hear how Wayne Scott and Escode are reframing supplier risk, software resilience, and the hidden dependencies keeping modern supply chains moving.

    Executive Wins Podcast

    The Executive Wins Podcast features inspiring Executives who share their biggest wins.

    Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify

    Support the show


    Podcast supporters
    I'd like to sincerely thank this podcast's generous Subscribers:

    • Alicia Farag
    • Kieran Ognev
    • Gary Lynch

    And remember you too can become a Resilient Supply Chain+ subscriber - it is really easy and hugely important as it will enable me to continue to create more excellent episodes like this one and give you access to bonus episodes of topical, timely supply chain resilience analysis.

    Podcast Sponsorship Opportunities:
    If you/your organisation is interested in sponsoring this podcast - I have several options available. Let's talk!

    Finally
    If you have any comments/suggestions or questions for the podcast - feel free to just send me a direct message on LinkedIn, or send me a text message using this link.

    If you liked this show, please don't forget to rate and/or review it. It makes a big difference to help new people discover it.

    Thanks for listening.

    Show More Show Less
    40 mins
  • AI in Supply Chain: Automation Is Not Autonomy
    May 11 2026

    Send me a message

    Can AI make better supply chain decisions, or just make bad ones faster?

    In this episode of Resilient Supply Chain, I’m joined by Simon Bezrukov, Chief AI Officer at Bristlecone, for a grounded conversation about AI in supply chain, resilience, risk, data, visibility, and the uncomfortable bit nobody likes to put on the first slide: accountability.

    Simon’s core point is sharp: AI agents are great at doing the paperwork of decisions, but they’re not yet great at owning the consequences. And that matters now because supply chains are under pressure from volatility, geopolitical shocks, cost constraints, sustainability demands, and the growing temptation to automate first and ask governance questions later. A marvellous human habit, really.

    You’ll hear how agentic AI can help with micro-decisions, missing data, supplier communications, replanning, and playbook orchestration, but also why autonomy without guardrails risks creating “fast and confident mistakes”. We break down why LLMs are brilliant explainers, but not supply chain decision engines, especially when the real problem is optimisation across service, cost, cash, carbon, and risk.

    You might be surprised to learn why more data does not always mean better forecasts, why stress testing may matter more than forecast precision, and why a smaller, well-governed model can beat a perfect digital twin nobody trusts. Simon also explains why human expertise is not being replaced. It is being amplified. For better and worse.

    🎙️ Listen now to hear how Bristlecone is cutting through the AI hype and helping build more resilient, practical, and sustainable supply chains.

    Executive Wins Podcast

    The Executive Wins Podcast features inspiring Executives who share their biggest wins.

    Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify

    Support the show


    Podcast supporters
    I'd like to sincerely thank this podcast's generous Subscribers:

    • Alicia Farag
    • Kieran Ognev
    • Gary Lynch

    And remember you too can become a Resilient Supply Chain+ subscriber - it is really easy and hugely important as it will enable me to continue to create more excellent episodes like this one and give you access to bonus episodes of topical, timely supply chain resilience analysis.

    Podcast Sponsorship Opportunities:
    If you/your organisation is interested in sponsoring this podcast - I have several options available. Let's talk!

    Finally
    If you have any comments/suggestions or questions for the podcast - feel free to just send me a direct message on LinkedIn, or send me a text message using this link.

    If you liked this show, please don't forget to rate and/or review it. It makes a big difference to help new people discover it.

    Thanks for listening.

    Show More Show Less
    40 mins
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