A New Year's Resolution: Let's Learn Together

“The major pitfall of the 21st century’s teaching model is the belief that most of what we know will remain relatively unchanged for a long enough period of time to be worth the effort of transferring it,” state Douglas Thomas and John Seely Brown in their book A New Culture of Learning. “The old ways of learning are unable to keep up with our rapidly changing world.”

This is particularly true in supply chain management, where new technologies, business models, competitors, legislation, economic issues, and so on are constantly emerging, which requires companies to continuously evolve their supply chain processes, thinking, and networks.

The best source of practical knowledge and advice are your peers, other supply chain and logistics practitioners just like you who have already met and overcome the same challenges and opportunities you face today.

As Bill Taylor, cofounder of Fast Company magazine, writes in a blog post titled “Are You Learning as Fast as the World is Changing”:

These days, the most powerful insights often come from the most unexpected places – the hidden genius locked inside your company, the collective genius of customers, suppliers, and other smart people who would be eager to teach you what they know if you simply asked for their insights…Nobody alone learns as quickly as everybody together.

Enabling peer-to-peer learning in a rapidly changing world is why we created our Indago supply chain research community. It enables supply chain and logistics professionals from manufacturing, retail, and distribution companies to share insights and advice with each other in a confidential and trusted environment -- while supporting a variety of charities in the process.

Last year, we completed 31 surveys on a wide variety of industry topics and donated $3,950 to JDRF, American Logistics Aid Network, American Cancer Society, Feeding America, and Make-A-Wish. Since 2019, we have donated $16,325 to these charities!

This week, inspired by the recent breakdown of Southwest Airlines' operations, we’re exploring “Supply Chain Technical Debt” with our Indago members. How much technical debt -- i.e., relying on older or deficient software that needs updating -- exists in your supply chain operations? Which functions have the most technical debt? Is reducing technical debt in your supply chain operations a priority at your company this year? Indago members will receive the research results at the end of the week.

It’s that time of the year when people come up with New Year’s resolutions. Usually, the focus is on improving our personal lives, such as losing weight, quitting smoking, or spending more time with our family and friends. But what about resolutions to help us improve at work?

If you’re a supply chain or logistics executive and you’re looking for ways to improve as a leader this year, here’s one recommendation: commit to learning together with your peers in 2023.

Whether it’s by joining our Indago supply chain research community, attending industry conferences (in-person or online), or taking online courses: Let’s learn together this year.