In this episode, I interviewed Cheryl Capps, Board Member at Integer Holdings (NYSE: ITGR), World 50 Group, Elementum, ketteQ, and o9 Solutions, Inc. We looked back at her career in the corporate world- how she successfully transitioned from one stage of her career to another and how speaking the language of different functions greatly helped her.
Cheryl shared with me an inspiring story about her time with a pharmaceutical company, where they succeeded in procuring and bringing medicine to the Dominican Republic to save a three-year-old girl’s life. She also shared the case study of Corning developing a Digitalized Global Risk Detection and Mitigation System.
Listen to the full discussion here:
Connect with the Guest:
Cheryl Capps is a technology-focused board director who has built, transformed, and run manufacturing, engineering, supply chain, and business operations at multiple global businesses at Corning Incorporated, Bristol Myers-Squibb (BMS), and GE. Cheryl is an innovative leader who has consistently delivered fast, flexible, low-cost solutions that increased competitiveness and enabled growth. She is an expert in enterprise risk management and sustainability and is highly qualified to advise CEOs and boards seeking to scale their businesses while growing bottom-line profits and increasing free cash flow.
Cheryl currently sits on the Integer Holdings Board of Directors (NYSE: ITGR) and has experience on Audit, Corporate Governance & Nominating, Compensation & Organization and Technology Strategy Board Committees. She also serves on the executive advisory board for Elementum, ketteQ, and o9 Solutions and is serving as a C-Suite advisor for World50. As Chief Supply Chain Officer at Corning, Cheryl was part of Corning’s Senior Leadership team and was a management representative at general board meetings and for the Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability Committee.
Questions I Asked:
- What are some highlights of your career that you are most proud of? Looking back at the 30-40 years you spent in the corporate world.
- Do you see more Chief Supply Chain Officers stepping up to be CEOs and to be leaders of companies? Do you see it being more attractive than it was 10 or 20 years ago?
- What advice would you give supply chain professionals or leaders when they are talking to board members to get them to listen and understand what they are trying to say or present?
- What urged you to develop a Digitalized Global Risk Detection and Mitigation System in Corning? What was the outcome, and what are the lessons you learned?
- How did you transition successfully from one stage of your career to another?
Show notes:
- [01:36] When you look back at the many years you spent in the corporate world, what were some of the moments you are most proud of in your career?
- [08:31] Do you see more Chief Supply Chain Officers stepping up to be CEOs to be leaders of companies?
- [14:31] Any words of advice or suggestions to supply chain professionals on what to do or not to do when pitching to the board of members in a sense that they will understand what is being presented?
- [19:55] In Corning, you were extremely successful in developing a Digitalized Global Risk Detection and Mitigation System. What was the situation or challenges before that urged you to develop that? What was the outcome once you had it in place? And what are the lessons learned in the process?
- [27:30] Implementation of new technologies for a business, how does it work for small and medium-sized businesses, considering the budget?
- [31:49] Can you share some words of advice on how you made that transition between the different stages of your career and how you did it successfully?
Quotes from the Episode:
Soundbite from the Episode:
About the Host:
What a great discussion I had with Cheryl Capps. I am your host, Radu Palamariu, Managing Director of Alcott Global for APAC and Europe, working on C-level and top management executive search assignments with Top Fortune 500 companies and local conglomerates in value chains for manufacturing, logistics, transportation, supply chain management, and e-commerce and also the co-author of “From Source to Sold – Stories of Leadership in Supply Chain”.
Alcott Global provides Executive Search Solutions for key positions at all pillars of the end-to-end value chain: planning, procurement, manufacturing, logistics, e-commerce, and overall supply chain operations.
In our Makers & Movers face-to-face events, we bring together value chain executives to connect, collaborate, and innovate – a forum focused on business value creation.
Yearly, we celebrate and award the Top 30 Leaders in Supply Chain for their achievements in digitizing operations, decarbonization, and sustainability, as well as in creating a diverse and equitable environment for supply chain teams to thrive and excel.
Related Episodes:
#169: Turning Academia into Sustainable Resilience
#170: How to Beat Distractions and Create a Focused Work Environment
#171: Managing Supply Chain in a Spin-Off and Navigating Purpose in Consumer Health
