January/February 2025

Cover Story

January 15, 2025

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Uncertainties and Unknowns — Again

More business-friendly policies are likely in 2025, but supply management organizations must contend with ‘significant wild cards,’ including many of the same dynamics that defined the first Trump administration.
Dan Zeiger

Featured Content

January 15, 2025

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Don’t Expect a Crystal Ball

But it’s safe to assume continuing supply chain disruption, digital transformation and risk — which will intensify demand for agility, mindset shifting and resilience.
Sue Doerfler
January 15, 2025

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Tariffs: No Longer a What-If

Protectionist policies like product duties have become a not-so-new normal, and avoiding or mitigating their impacts remains a complex, years-long endeavor for supply management organizations.
Dan Zeiger
January 15, 2025

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Road Team

Behind every college football program is a huddle of well-orchestrated sourcing, category management, transportation and delivery personnel who get players, coaches, staff, equipment and more to the next kickoff.
James Kirby Easterling, DBA, Joelle J. Ferguson

Economics

Articles

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December 2024 ISM® Report On Business®: Manufacturing
Articles

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December 2024 ISM® Report On Business®: Services
Articles

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December 2024 ISM® Report On Business®: Hospital
Articles

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Markets

Departments

Articles

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Just in Time
Articles

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Sustainability
Articles

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Point to Point
Articles

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Member Matters

Columns

January 15, 2025

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voices

A New Critical Skills Set for the ‘Butterfly Effect’ Era

From the mid-1990s to the 2010s, the global system of trade was stable and predictable, and operating principles were straightforward: leverage spend volume and seek lowest available cost (assuming quality as a constant). Then something happened.

Thomas W. Derry

January 15, 2025

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perspectives

Why should procurement professionals view suppliers as partners rather than just providers of goods and services?

Viewing suppliers as partners encourages long-term relationships built on trust and mutual benefit. This can lead to better pricing, improved service levels and greater flexibility during challenges.

Ulunda Baker

January 15, 2025

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competencies

Supporting Small and Diverse Businesses

Small and diverse businesses are the lifeblood of our economy. These businesses aren’t just part of the American dream — they’re the foundation.

Lisa Westgate

January 15, 2025

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technology

Barcodes Are Getting a Makeover

While artificial intelligence has been widely touted as a boon for many areas of supply management, another technology could potentially revolutionize retail and e-commerce: the two-dimensional (2-D) barcode.

Sue Doerfler

January 15, 2025

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talent

Roles of the Future Combine Soft Skills, Tech and More

Meet the representative supply chain worker of the future: Andi. Not only is she a technology whiz, but she also has domain and business skills.

Sue Doerfler

January 15, 2025

Member Only

research

Operational and Geopolitical Risk Amid ‘Slowbalization’

In recent years, supply chains have experienced unprecedented disruptions and face an increasing number of risks. These risks have many sources — known and unknown, controllable and uncontrollable.

Greg Collins, MBA, Adegoke Oke, Ph.D., MBA