Tennessee on Supply Chain Management

In this episode, hosts Ted Stank and Tom Goldsby welcome Wally Shaw, CEO of Red Stag Fulfillment , to explore how a purpose-built 3PL is carving out a competitive edge by focusing on what others avoid. Shaw shares how Red Stag built its model around big, bulky products—an overlooked segment of the fulfillment market—and why that specialization enables stronger service performance, tighter quality...

In this episode, hosts Ted Stank and Tom Goldsby welcome Todd Steffen , market leader at KBC Advisors, to discuss how the industrial real estate market is both a mirror and a leading indicator of supply chain health. Steffen, a longtime GSCI Advisory Board member, brings a practitioner's eye to the industrial market, drawing on his background running distribution and logistics technology at W...

What does it take to keep a refinery running when the world won't stop throwing curveballs? In this episode, Ted Stank and guest co-host Lance Saunders speak with Tom Johnson , VP of procurement at HF Sinclair, an independent petroleum refiner with operations throughout the mid-continent, southwestern and Rocky Mountain regions. Recorded live at the Supply Chain Forum , the conversation pulle...

Forecasting has been blamed for supply chain problems for decades. But what if the real issue isn’t the forecast itself?  In this episode, Tom Goldsby and Scott DeGroot speak with Mike Burnette , Lance Saunders , and Dan Pellathy about new research from the University of Tennessee’s Global Supply Chain Institute examining why forecast-driven planning continues to fall short and how leading compani...

For our latest episode, guest hosts Scott DeGroot and Lance Saunders spoke with Kevin O’Marah , co-founder of Zero100 and GSCI Distinguished Fellow, about structural shifts in global trade policy, the acceleration of agentic AI in supply chain workflows, and the widening performance gap between early movers and holdouts. The conversation explored how industrial policy and tariff normalization are...

For the third episode of Season 4, co-hosts Ted Stank and Tom Goldsby are joined by Stuart Sandlin , president of Hapag-Lloyd North America, for a candid conversation about how global supply chains hold together when conditions refuse to stabilize.  Drawing on extensive experience in ocean shipping and global trade, Sandlin shares insights on Red Sea disruptions, Panama Canal capacity, shifting tr...

In this holiday-season episode, co-hosts Ted Stank and Tom Goldsby sit down with incoming department head Yemisi Bolumole to explore how the University of Tennessee’s supply chain management program balances academic rigor with real-world relevance. Yem and the hosts discuss the program’s evolution from its transportation roots to a comprehensive end-to-end supply chain focus, the opportunities an...

For the Season 4 premiere, co-hosts Ted Stank and Tom Goldsby  sat down with retired Rear Admiral Kevin Sweeney to explore how military leadership principles translate to the business world.   Throughout his remarkable career in the U.S. Armed Forces, Sweeney commanded the USS Cole during its historic rebuilding and served as chief of staff to Defense Secretary James Mattis. He is now a trusted se...

In this special episode, regular co-host Tom Goldsby and Scott DeGroot , managing director of UT’s Global Supply Chain Institute, catch up with Mark Baxa, president and CEO of the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals , at the organization's EDGE 2025 Conference in Washington, DC. Earlier in the week, Tom was recognized as a CSCMP Distinguished Fellow , while Scott and other UT sup...

For the final episode of Season 3, co-hosts Ted Stank and Tom Goldsby spoke with supply chain consultant and former Procter & Gamble senior director Andrew Byer to explore how people, culture, and technology intersect to shape resilient supply chains.  Byer shares lessons from his long career at Procter & Gamble, where he supported global operations for health, hygiene, and cleaning produc...

For the August 2025 episode, co-hosts Ted Stank and Tom Goldsby spoke with Doug Gray , VP of integrated supply chain for Trane Technologies, about driving resilience in the aftermarket business, embedding sustainability into strategic decision-making, and upskilling long-tenured employees to create value in a landscape of AI and automation.  Gray, a member of the GSCI Advisory Board, joined Trane’...

For the July 2025 episode, co-hosts Ted Stank and Tom Goldsby spoke with Amalia Londono , EVP of end-to-end supply chain North America for Colgate-Palmolive, about trends in consumer packaged goods, delivering value to customers, using AI and technology in demand planning, and the importance of personal resiliency for up-and-coming supply chain professionals.  Londono, a member of the GSCI Advisor...

For the June 2025 episode, co-hosts Ted Stank and Tom Goldsby spoke with Matt Stites , president of Clayton Supply and SVP of supply chain for Clayton Home Building Group, about dealing with disruptions, addressing the national housing shortage, and building growth-minded teams that pursue excellence in operations and customer service.  Stites, a member of the GSCI Advisory Board, leads the supply...

For the May 2025 episode, co-hosts Ted Stank and Tom Goldsby spoke with Stephanie Pierce , director of warehouse foods planning for PepsiCo, about wide range of relevant business topics, including the changing work modalities that have impacted talent retention and recruitment, leading hybrid teams, and adapting planning for shifting customer habits in snacking.  Pierce, a 2011 alumna of UT’s supp...

For the April 2025 episode, co-hosts Ted Stank and Tom Goldsby were live at the Spring 2025 Supply Chain Forum with Colin Yankee chief supply chain officer for Tractor Supply Company, to discuss the supply chain strategies and operational efficiencies that help companies thrive in uncertain times.  Their in-depth conversation explored Tractor Supply’s transportation and distribution center operati...

For the March 2025 episode, co-hosts Ted Stank and Tom Goldsby are joined by guest host Thomas Deakins , managing director of the Global Supply Chain Institute, and Jason Murray , CEO and co-founder at Shipium to explore how data-driven decision-making fuels modern supply chain success.  Their in-depth conversation touches on the power of predictive technology and Agentic AI, the complexities of i...

For the February 2025 episode, host Ted Stank and guest host Josh King speak with Barbara Melvin, CEO and president of the South Carolina Ports about everything from U.S. trade and tariffs to the impact of labor and economic development on port operations.  A member of the GSCI Advisory Board Melvin runs one of the fastest-growing ports in the country, and the fourth-busiest gateway on the East Co...

For the first episode of 2025, co-hosts Ted Stank and Tom Goldsby spoke with UT Knoxville experts Huseyn Abdulla and Seongkyoon Jeong about their research in the areas of returns management and supply chain cybersecurity.  Assistant professors and esteemed scholars in their disciplines, Abdulla and Jeong’s insights are a deep dive into the challenges and innovations shaping supply chain management...

For our December episode, co-hosts Ted Stank and Tom Goldsby spoke with Marianne Wanamaker, dean of UT's Howard H. Baker Jr. School of Public Policy and Public Affairs and a professor of economics and public policy.   Wanamaker, who served as the chief domestic economist for the White House Council of Economic Advisors during the first Trump administration, is a recurring guest on the podcast...

For our November episode, co-hosts Ted Stank and Tom Goldsby were live at the Fall 2024 Supply Chain Forum , where they spoke with Robert Martichenko, board chair for TrailPath Workplace Solutions, and Sunland Logistics Solutions' CEO Arch Thomason and VP of Human Resources Diane Lowman. With fundamental forces, from population demographics to shifting societal attitudes, shifting the nature...

For the first episode of our third season, co-hosts Ted Stank and Tom Goldsby speak with Haslam College of Business lecturer Paul Fortunato and partners from his Supply Chain Project Management (SCM 430) course at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.  Fortunato, a former executive with Dow Chemical Company, invited Lori Maurer, director of the center for supply chain excellence, and Riley Clayt...

In between Seasons 2 and 3, co-hosts Ted Stank and Tom Goldsby were at the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP) Conference, where they caught up with Kate Vitasek, a GSCI Fellow and internationally renowned business leader, educator, and founder of Vested, a model for creating highly collaborative business relationships in which both parties are equally committed to each other’...

In the final episode of Season 2, co-hosts Ted Stank and Tom Goldsby speak with Elijah Ray, chief customer officer of Sunland Logistics Solutions about the evolution of third-party logistics, the importance of company culture, employee retention, and creating trust with clients.  With nearly four decades of experience in logistics and supply chain management, Ray has contributed to a culture of co...

For our July episode, co-hosts Ted Stank and Tom Goldsby speak with Dave Clark, former CEO of worldwide consumer business for Amazon.  In two decades at Amazon, Clark, a graduate of UT’s MBA program, helped build one of the most extensive supply chain operations in the world, with hundreds of fulfillment centers and transportation facilities, a fleet of several dozen dedicated aircraft, 100,000 de...

For our June episode, co-hosts Ted Stank and Tom Goldsby speak with University of Tennessee colleagues Joe Buckley executive education director for supply chain management, and Dan Pellathy , assistant professor of practice for SCM.   Buckley, who spent three decades in industry (including seven years as director of materials management and transportation for the Tennessee Valley Authority), is th...