Supply chain excellence stood out in the troubled years of the pandemic, and there was a general increase in knowledge and awareness of what supply chains are. The fluctuation of shipping rates and how a shipping boat stuck in a canal caused global ripple effects, that filled up the newspapers, have shown the world that the supply chains are the nervous systems of global companies.
There are various aspects and metrics of excellence in supply chain management, that can be assessed at the company level, or the department level.
The annual Leaders in Supply Chain Awards, organized by Alcott Global, celebrates and highlights the important work that the supply chain leaders are doing on digitizing operations, decarbonization, and sustainability, as well as on creating a diverse and equitable environment for supply chain teams to thrive and excel.
Yearly we invite the community of supply chain practitioners worldwide to cast their nominations for leaders they admire and who have made a significant contribution to their organization. In 2022, during the three weeks nomination stage, the profiles of 136 Supply Chain Leaders from 106 countries representing 110 companies, were highlighted. 49% of nominees were from North America, 31% from Europe, and the remaining 20% from the Middle East, Africa, and Asia Pacific. The overwhelming number of nominations received confirms that the Leaders in Supply Chain make an important impact in their organizations, and beyond. With these awards, the intention is to bring the leaders to the forefront, so that the wide supply chain communities find inspiration and follow in their footsteps.
The top 30 supply chain winners were selected based on case study submissions evaluated by a prestigious jury formed by authorities in the industry from various regions across the world. Additionally, over 500 C-level executives were invited to vote for the Popularity Awards.
The support from the jury members, Beth Morgan, Daniel Stanton, Deborah Dull, Raul Portela da Cunha, and Radu Palamariu, was invaluable; they contributed passion and a few weeks of investment in the ranking process for recognizing the global leaders’ hard work. We are grateful to the global supply chain community, as their engagement in nominating and voting for their colleagues, sets new heights for the following Leaders in Supply Chain Awards editions.
The submissions revealed inspiring stories documented with verifiable results of high-achieving individuals. “Shining the light” was not only a figure of speech, as the Gala Awards for Leaders in Supply Chain was a highly visible event. The supply chain was finally where it is supposed to be – celebrated through its leaders at Nasdaq on October 4, 2022. There were over 100 press features and an engagement of around 1.1 million audiences on LinkedIn.
The winners of the Gala Awards for Leaders in Supply Chain 2022 were understandably proud of their achievements. Here are some of the most memorable quotes from last year’s winners:
In her message for the global supply chain community Sandra MacQuillan, Former CSCO of Mondelēz International, the top winner of the awards, highlighted the influential role this function has, saying:
“I am so honored to win this award within the supply chain leader of 2022. I have no words to express how deeply grateful and humbled I am by this. It means a lot to me because this is a reflection of what my team and I have been doing over the years to really take any bold supply chain moving forward to the future, and doing what we need to do to support and enable businesses everywhere. My message to the supply chain people on the call and everywhere around the world is to keep doing what we are doing. We are essential to how companies operate and we are essential to how the world can change. We influence so much and we can make change. And don’t forget, we’re the biggest HR function in the world. We have so many people that are working within our organization that we need to nurture, develop, and really give direction to in terms of what they deliver, because that’s going to make a better world, a better performance, and make a better planet.”
Mourad Tamoud, CSCO of Schneider Electric, 2nd place in the top, had an optimistic message to the supply chain community, talking about the importance of having a holistic end-to-end view of the supply chain, saying:
“To all my supply chain colleagues, I’d like to offer a message of optimism. I know that all supply chain professionals are dealing with massive crises. But in every crisis, there is an opportunity. And we all collectively have been learning more in the last three years than I can mention. We profoundly transformed for more sustainability, agility, and resilience with a much stronger connection with our suppliers and customers. We clearly saw supply chains moving from a back office support function to becoming the key enabler for customers and for our businesses. It’s up to us to keep driving the transformation for more sustainable, more digital, more agile and resilient and customer-centric supply chains, integrating from end to end from the suppliers of our suppliers, to our customers.“
Supply Chain is worth being in the spotlight according to Roberto Canevari, EVP & CSCO of The Estée Lauder Companies, top 3, stating in his message to the global supply chain community:
“We are living in a period in which the supply chain is certainly under the spotlight for very many reasons. There are lots of challenges we have to manage and lots of challenges ahead of us, but also lots of opportunities. My message is very simple, very straightforward, and very clear: Team wins, never an individual. Be caring, be authentic, look after each other, and be at the service of your people via the service of your team. This always makes a difference and even more in challenging times. Put all the energy, all the passion you have on this, and let’s continue to make the magic happen for our brands, for our consumers, and for our people.”
Sami Naffakh, CSCO of Reckitt, top 4, in his message, celebrated the teamwork and great collaboration saying:
“My key message to the supply chain community is to always put your people first. You can achieve anything with the right team besides you. This award is not only an external recognition of all our hard work and the celebration of what we have achieved together. It is also reassurance that we’re going in the right direction, which I know will be greatly appreciated by everyone at Reckitt. For all of that,thank you again.”
Harald Emberger, CSCO of Beiersdorf, top 5, highlighted the importance of the supply chain role, saying:
“My message to all of you supply chainers: last years have proven that a strong supply chain is making a difference to every business in regards to business performance, sustainable impact, and talent development. So keep on moving and best regards.”
As organizers we know we speak for everyone in the supply chain industry: the work you are doing is significant and makes a difference to the planet, teams, and communities.
The Leaders in Supply Chain Awards 2023 is kicking off next week, with a one-month nomination period, between April 10 – May 10, 2023. We are, again, inviting leaders and the supply chain community at large, to nominate and showcase achievements and inspire future generations of Supply Chain Leaders.
Congratulations again to all winners of the Leaders in Supply Chain Awards 2022, and we are looking forward to uncovering, over the next 6 months, the winners of Leaders in Supply Chain Awards 2023!
