From the Director's desk August 2021

Welcome to the second edition of Supply Chain Link for 2021!

We have been a bit quiet recently regarding events, partly because our energy has gone into successfully launching the next cohort of our Strategic Supply Chain Management Executive Programme. However, we are planning a workshop on supply chain resilience towards the end of the year so please stay tuned! In the meantime, we have some interesting articles for you to read.

First, we have Liz May, formerly GM of logistics for Countdown, introducing Shopcare and how it works as a platform to connect people across the supply chain for healthier workplaces. She explains how collaboration and knowledge sharing have been set at the core of Shopcare to improve health, safety and the wellbeing of workers in New Zealand.

Next, senior lecturer Subhamoy Ganguly takes us to grocery stores in Auckland searching for his favourite mango puree to tell us about the significant and palpable disruptions of food supply chains due to the pandemic, which are still lingering. He then discusses some solutions as it is now a necessity for supply chains to improve resilience and responsiveness.

PhD student Param Iyer then uses a family road trip to illustrate the Naïve Bayes theorem and get some insights on the recent Suez Canal obstruction which was the source of significant disturbances in the global supply chain.

Finally, PhD student Ruhi Bajaj discusses her research proposal on the huge opportunity digital technologies such as wearables, social networks and mobile applications have created for transforming reactive healthcare models to proactive treatments.

I wish you all a fruitful semester!