Art of Supply

20/03/2025

Love it or hate it, if you work in procurement, you have to watch what DOGE is doing. If you can’t bring yourself to review their strategies and tactics, at least watch the savings calculator.

🎧 https://artofprocurement.com/blog/supply-decoding-the-doge-savings-calculator

In this episode of Art of Supply, Kelly Barner takes a step back and then a close look at the DOGE savings calculator from a procurement perspective for what it can teach us about their approach and our own.

Discover how the Department of Government Efficiency is revolutionizing federal procurement with its transparent savings calculator and efficiency metrics.

18/03/2025

As consumers, we might see news headlines about a food recall or bacterial outbreak and think, ‘How did they let this happen AGAIN?’

There will always be risk in the food supply chain. Only understanding what can be done to prevent and catch risk can keep modern day producers out of 'The Jungle.'

In this edition of the Art of Supply newsletter, Kelly Barner speaks with Nathan Walts, CEO of WorkForge, about the importance of food safety training and culture.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/ongoing-fight-food-safety-kelly-barner-h1o4e

13/03/2025

Food safety regulations are only effective if people follow them. Intensive hiring and training efforts add significantly to the cost of running a business, but are often the last line of defense.
https://artofprocurement.com/blog/supply-investing-in-people-powered-safety-in-food-manufacturing

In this week’s Art of Supply interview, Kelly Barner speaks with Nathan Walts, CEO of WorkForge, about the food safety objectives producers are trying to achieve, the challenges they face, and the learning and development programs that aim to address both.

Investing in tailored training and building a safety culture in food manufacturing ensures employees are empowered and knowledgeable, fostering a safer and more efficient production environment.

11/03/2025

✍ It is union contract signing day!

The East and Gulf coast port strike was huge news for 3 days in October, when a labor stoppage cost the U.S. economy $3.8 - 5 Billion per day, raised the stakes for the Presidential candidates, and threatened our access to bananas, the process moved along fairly quickly.

After a temporary agreement continued discussions into January, the contract was ratified by union membership on February 25th and will be signed by both parties... TODAY.

In this edition of the Art of Supply newsletter, Kelly Barner brings the story of the East and Gulf coast port strikes up to date by discussing the compromises reached on automation and labor.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/striking-balance-automation-us-ports-kelly-barner-bsx5e

Although the East and Gulf coast port strike was huge news for 3 days in October, when a labor stoppage cost the U.S.

06/03/2025

Wages are usually the primary concern in collective bargaining agreements, but in the East and Gulf coast ports, it was automation - job impacting automation.

🎧 https://artofprocurement.com/blog/supply-east-and-gulf-coast-port-strike-part-2

Now that the International Longshoremen's Association and USMX have made a deal, we can look at the impact it will have on port operations through 2030.

In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner covers the major factors at play in this collective bargaining agreement and how each played out.

Explore how Trump's tariff policies and Stephen Miran's economic strategies aim to balance trade without causing inflation, focusing on monetary policy, national security, and domestic manufacturing.

04/03/2025

Stephen Miran is the author of "A User’s Guide to Restructuring the Global Trading System," the Trump Administration's underlying philosophy on the use of tariffs.

Miran's guide is a compelling and informative explanation of the "narrow path" he believes is available to the Trump Administration to leverage tariffs without placing an undue burden on American consumers.

In this edition of the Art of Supply newsletter, Kelly Barner shares her reading of the guide, both for the potential impact on supply chains and also for a better understanding of how the current administration plans to manage trade, currency, national security, and even manufacturing employment as interconnected policies.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/tariff-carrots-sticks-aligning-us-interests-trade-currency-barner-okq7e

We’re all keeping an eye out for the potential impact of tariffs, as consumers and supply chain leaders, but if we are only looking at the tariffs themselves, we are at risk of missing the bigger picture. Like policies on energy, immigration, trade, etc.

27/02/2025

Stephen Miran, President Trump’s pick to lead his Council of Economic Advisers, believes tariffs can be applied without adding to the costs paid by U.S. consumers, but he admits it is a “narrow path.”

🎧 https://artofprocurement.com/blog/supply-a-narrow-path-towards-noninflationary-tariffs-0

In this week’s episode of Art of Supply, Kelly Barner shares her reading of Miran’s A User’s Guide to Restructuring the Global Trading System, focusing on the policy and theories that will underpin U.S. tariffs for the next four years.

Explore how Trump's tariff policies and Stephen Miran's economic strategies aim to balance trade without causing inflation, focusing on monetary policy, national security, and domestic manufacturing.

25/02/2025

Are you asking questions? Interviewing? Or having a conversation?

Meaningful conversations don't happen by accident - especially when millions of people are listening. That is what we can learn by studying Joe Rogan and Charlamagne tha God.

In order to have a conversation, you have to put yourself into the exchange without going so far that you make it about yourself.

Joe and Charlamagne speak very little in their most newsworthy interviews. When they do speak, it is evident that they are prepared and actively listening. They leave interviewing in the dust. They are having authentic conversations.

In this week's Art of Supply, Kelly Barner shares the lessons that can be learned by listening to these two media personalities and cultural icons.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/having-conversation-joe-rogan-charlamagne-tha-god-kelly-barner-pexee/

The Joe Rogan Experience Charlamagne Tha God

“I talk to people and I record it. That’s it.

20/02/2025

“When I'm on the radio in the morning, I set the tone for conversation. That thing that everybody's going to be around their water cooler talking about or on social media talking about all day, we're the ones that usually give people, you know, that fodder. We're the ones that give them that content.” - Charlamagne tha God

🎧 https://artofprocurement.com/blog/supply-lessons-in-listening-from-joe-rogan-and-charlamagne-tha-god

In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner dissects what makes Joe Rogan and Charlamagne tha God so effective as conversationalists, and how it can help you listen better - at work and at home.

The Joe Rogan Experience Charlamagne Tha God

Discover how Joe Rogan and Charlamagne tha God master the art of listening and learn to apply their techniques to enhance your personal and professional conversations.

18/02/2025

A fragmented network of companies makes our supply chains work. Most are hardly in a position to challenge potential regulatory overreach by state and federal agencies or to question the anticompetitive behavior of major manufacturers.

That positions America's attorneys general as the last line of defense.

In the most recent edition of the Art of Supply newsletter, Kelly Barner shares a view from that line - speaking with Nebraska Attorney General Michael Hilgers about why companies should compete (!), why EV trucking regulations must be rolled out properly, and what can happen if the public assumes everything will be okay in the end.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/last-line-defense-against-regulatory-overreach-supply-kelly-barner-lefwe/

An Interview with Nebraska Attorney General Michael Hilgers Change is hard, even change for the better. But if change isn’t managed right, by people with proper authority and the consent of those affected, it can be highly problematic.

13/02/2025

Who will decide when EV trucking goes from being an option available to anyone to an enforceable mandate that everyone must comply with?

That question is at the heart of this week’s interview.

🎧 https://artofprocurement.com/blog/supply-who-will-decide-the-future-of-ev-trucking

Listen to this highly engaging discussion at the intersection of the law and the supply chain as Kelly Barner sits down with Nebraska Attorney General Michael Hilgers.

Nebraska's efforts highlight the challenges and legal complexities of transitioning to EV trucking, questioning feasibility, infrastructure, and regulatory authority in the U.S.

11/02/2025

The benefits of partnering with smaller companies are clear: agility, innovation, and a unique dedication to success.

But what happens when the size disparity becomes a liability–especially for the smaller company that has less leverage and fewer resources at their disposal?

Most importantly... who owns the customers?

Check out this edition of the Art of Supply newsletter to hear from Dylan Admire, Owner and CEO of Freight Essentials, who is fighting against his former brokers via an ongoing RICO case.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/dylan-v-goliath-story-kelly-barner-ztc5e/?trackingId=AqGZQeSmmX6B6oXwdU20jg%3D%3D

Large enterprises often talk about the benefits of partnering with small companies. They are agile, innovative, and will bend over backwards to make the relationship a success.

06/02/2025

On February 7th, a Texas District Court will decide whether or not to seal court documents related to a RICO case brought by Freight Essentials against their former brokers, Worldwide Express and GlobalTranz. That hearing will decide how much information is available to the public moving forward.

🎧 https://artofprocurement.com/blog/supply-systematic-issues-with-the-freight-agent-model

In this week’s Art of Supply interview, Kelly Barner speaks with Dylan Admire, CEO and Owner of Freight Essentials. They have brought two RICO lawsuits against connected brokerages, claiming multi-party intent to defraud customers and business partners through anticompetitive tactics.

Uncover the systematic issues plaguing the freight agent model and explore a high-stakes lawsuit involving Freight Essentials and major brokers Worldwide Express and GlobalTranz.

04/02/2025

Everyone makes mistakes - at home and at work.

In many cases, what matters most is how we react when we realize we have done so. The individual in this week’s story seems to have chosen… poorly.

Check out this week's Art of Supply newsletter to discover how one small parcel accounting employee at Macy's went from making mistakes to covering them up... to the tune of $150 Million.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/accounting-accountability-kelly-barner-qiu4e/

As late Tennessee Senator Howard Baker said in reference to Watergate, “It is almost always the cover-up rather than the event that causes trouble.” He was right then, and he is right now, as one Macy’s employee learned the hard way in the fall of 2024.

30/01/2025

We all make mistakes. The question is what we do once we realize it - do you own the error or try to cover it up?

🎧 https://artofprocurement.com/blog/supply-misfortune-on-34th-street-accounting-issues-at-macys

In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner explains what Macy's discovered in their own accounting records the day before an earnings announcement scheduled for November 26, 2024, and what we can all learn from the mistakes that were made - and then uncovered.

Macy's faces significant accounting issues due to an employee's error, revealing flaws in their financial practices and underscoring the complexities of modern accounting.

28/01/2025

Two things can be true at the same time.

California is right that regulation may be an effective way to drive change and spur investment and innovation in EV trucking.

But Nebraska is also right: EV trucking infrastructure and equipment are not there today, and trying to force change before the system is ready will likely lead to mass disruption and added costs.

Check out the most recent edition of the Art of Supply newsletter for the most recent developments in the (partially) mandated transition to EV trucking.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/misaligned-mandates-ev-trucking-kelly-barner-vw7qc/

Supply chains are currently faced with a classic ‘chicken and egg’ situation: if you can’t require fleet owners to buy EV class 8s, can you require manufacturers to sell them? The simple answer would be no, but in the transition from diesel-fuel powered trucking to EV powered trucking, nothing...

23/01/2025

“Now an unelected group of powerful actors has opened a three-front effort to transform the nation’s logistics fleet from diesel-powered to electric-powered at a breakneck pace. This terrible policy is being crafted almost entirely out of public view. Nebraska is fighting back.” - Mike Hilgers, Nebraska Attorney General (WSJ Op Ed, Jan 17 2025)

https://artofprocurement.com/blog/supply-nebraska-v.-california-the-ev-trucking-transition

In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly Barner covers recent legislative and legal developments in the EV trucking transition.

Nebraska and California clash over EV trucking regulations, revealing a complex legal and logistical battle that could shape the future of the trucking industry.

21/01/2025

Supply chain teams are used to having to know about a LOT of different things. But national security? Immigration? Drug enforcement?

In this edition of the Art of Supply newsletter, Kelly Barner speaks with Samir N. Kapadia, Managing Principal at Vogel Group and Founder and CEO at India Index about what we should expect from the likely intersection of trade and domestic policy being signaled by the Trump administration.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/year-global-trade-reciprocity-begins-kelly-barner-cvste/

I spent most of 2024 having ‘what if’ conversations. We were waiting to find out who would win the U.