Author: CJ Nord

They say you are supposed, to begin with, the Why.

Nearly 30 years ago when I started in supply chain my Why was that my job paid the rent and I was hooked on the adrenaline rush we all know so well from solving unsolvable problems.
Now, so many years later my job pays a mortgage, and I am just as hooked on the above-mentioned rush as ever, but now I know the real, Why and it is, the financial well-being of families. The Why is so that children can grow up without worrying about money.
To some, this may sound like nonsense but any buyer that pulled off a herculean feat to keep a
factory in stock so people would not be sent home without a full days pay knows what I
mean. Any buyer that delivered so much year over year savings that their employer was
able to create new jobs, knows what I mean.
Today the Supply Chain Optimization (SCO) effort offers unique opportunities for improving operations in the LA/Long Beach Ports and ISM is honored to represent professionals that buy the cargo on the SCO Group. Forty percent of the nations imports come through these ports. As we all know reducing lead-time means we can reduce inventory.
How many billions of dollars could be freed up for job growth with just a one-day reduction in the number of days it takes for a container to get from the ships docks to our docks…on forty percent of the nation’s imports?
The potential is staggering, and the task is daunting, but we must do this work regardless of the difficulty because families in our communities, and all around the nation will benefit from us not giving up, and solving (So called!) unsolvable problems.
Families are The Why. They always have been.