(click the image for a MUCH larger view)
One upon a time in a land of OZ, 110 supply chain leaders gathered in the desert to discuss supply chain progress. Nine out of ten were stuck. The fairy tale had ended. It was a perfect storm.
As they reflected on supply chain performance, and the lack of resiliency and ability, it felt bad. Each had tried to scale to great heights through a tight focus on profitability and inventory turns, but the results were short-lived:  usually only for a year.
As a group, they scratched their heads and talked about the future. The results today were not what they wanted. They were stuck. It was not sticky in a good way, like peanut butter on a cracker or caramel on an apple on a summer day. Instead, their organizations were stuck in a bad way, like the residue of road tar on your shoe when you step off the curb or a chocolate bar that you forgot and left in your car in a heat wave.
As they plotted the future vision, and gained insights on the Race for Supply Chain 2020, the discussion changed. It was about empowerment. Each began to imagine the supply chain that could be different. It was about convergence. It was about thinking differently. They decided that it was about building muscle at the core and driving innovation at the edge.  Each was challenged to think differently, drive new forms of leadership, and redesign the supply chain from inside-out to outside-in. The discussions were about the connected digital supply chain enabled by the Internet of Things and Cognitive Learning engines. It was a land where products were made, reclaimed, and materials were renewed back to the planet.  Suddenly with the introduction of 3-D printing and the collaborative economy, what was not possible before could now be a reality. The event challenged the leaders to think about the supply chain differently. It was not the supply chain that they have today, but the supply chain that could be….   And, thus we ended the Supply Chain Insights Global Summit.
But, it is not THE END.
To see the presentations from the summit, check out our links on the Supply Chain Insights GLobal Summit website and on slideshare.
And, mark your calendars. We will hold our second summit next year on September 10-11, 2014 at the Phoenician in Scottsdale AZ. We believe that it will sell out. It will be limited to 200 supply chain leaders (the ones that have the courage to think differently and challenge the norm). We hope to see you there!