In Conversation with Santosh: Blueprint for Effective Supply Chain Transformation

1. You’ve worked across planning, logistics, and tech-led transformation — where do most supply chains break down, and how can teams course-correct early?

Any transformation initiative impacts a company’s capabilities at three critical levels:

1. Resources – both tangible (people, technology, infrastructure) and intangible (skills, knowledge, relationships).

2. Processes – formal documented workflows as well as informal practices.

3. Values – the underlying principles and cultural norms that guide decision-making.

Successful transformation requires a top-down vision paired with broad-based buy-in from all team members. These three levels must remain aligned for changes to deliver measurable and visible results.

However, many transformations fail because change management is ineffective at one or more of these levels. The gap between the desired change and the actual outcome often emerges when initiatives focus on digitization (automating existing processes) rather than true digital transformation which reimagines and improves processes and values, not just tools.

For example, any technology deployment should deliver at least three clear improvements over the “as-is” process:

· Simplify and accelerate workflows

· Improve customer service responsiveness

· Create tangible and intangible value additions

When these criteria aren’t met, projects risk stalling, delivering only incremental automation instead of transformative impact.

2. How do you ensure that technologies like ERP systems, supply chain control towers, or predictive analytics don’t just get implemented, but get adopted and used for real decision-making?

To ensure technologies like ERP systems, supply chain control towers, or predictive analytics move beyond implementation to genuine adoption and decision-making, change management must address both processes and values.

Key enablers include:

1) Executive Sponsorship – Secure active buy-in and visible support from top management to set the tone and priority for the initiative.

2) Cross-Functional Alignment – Engage critical functional heads early to align objectives, eliminate silos, and ensure shared ownership.

3) Collaboration and Communication – Foster open dialogue, active engagement, and transparency to minimize resistance and quickly resolve roadblocks.

4) User Feedback Loops – Roll out in phases and leverage early adopters’ feedback to detect and address issues before they escalate.

5) Ongoing Training and Upskilling – Continuously develop team capabilities to make them agile, adaptable, and confident in using new tools, reinforcing adoption at the cultural level.

6) By combining strong leadership commitment with structured engagement, rapid feedback, and a learning-oriented culture, organizations can turn technology investments into everyday decision-making assets.

3. What are the top signs that a company needs to re-evaluate its supply chain network design, and what are your first few steps when leading such an initiative?

A company’s supply chain and operations strategy must align with its business strategy, and it can be evaluated across five key parameters: Quality, Cost, Dependability, Flexibility, and Speed. Any significant change in business strategy, whether driven by evolving customer service expectations, competitive pressures, or new regulations, should trigger a review of the supply chain network through the lens of all five parameters.

Examples:

1. A low-cost supply chain with minimal warehouses may be effective today, but if customers begin expecting 48-hour delivery, the operational strategy must adapt, possibly requiring more regional distribution centers.

2. In India, the shift from VAT to GST prompted many companies to consolidate their warehouse networks, since the state-by-state VAT advantage was no longer relevant.

Best practice:
Supply chain networks should undergo periodic reviews to uncover hidden value opportunities. When the potential impact is high, a network redesign can:

· Reduce overall costs

· Consolidate operations for efficiency

· Improve working capital

· Enhance customer service levels

By linking network design decisions directly to strategic objectives and measurable value drivers, organizations can ensure their supply chains remain agile, cost-effective, and customer-focused.

4. What are some practical ways to embed sustainability into everyday supply chain decisions?

Sustainability in supply chains rests on the three pillars (Three Ps): Profit,People, and Planet. The goal is to achieve more output with fewer resources using less energy, generating less waste, and ensuring that operations protect both people and the environment.

Practical approaches include:

1. Profit – Drive efficiency and cost savings while reducing environmental impact:

· Minimize excess waste through lean practices

· Reuse materials wherever possible

· Recycle to extend resource life cycles

2. People – Ensure ethical and safe working conditions:

· Enforce fair labor practices across the supply chain

· Maintain a healthy and safe workplace

· Invest in community development initiatives

3. Planet – Reduce ecological footprint:

· Transition to electric or low-emission vehicles for logistics

· Lower emissions and pollution through cleaner processes

· Reuse and conserve water and other natural resources

Embedding these principles into day-to-day procurement, manufacturing, and logistics decisions ensures sustainability is not a one-off initiative, but a core operating standard.

5. How do you foster cross-functional alignment between supply chain, sales, and finance, especially when priorities clash?

It’s simple in principle but challenging in practice, clashes occur when functional priorities outweigh organizational priorities. The overarching business objective is to serve the customer and generate value for share holders, and this must always take precedence over any single department’s targets.

Cross-functional or service-level objectives should be derived from the organizational strategy, not developed in isolation. When functions set goals independently, misalignment is inevitable, and in such cases, top management must step in to re-align priorities.

Example:

A plant’s KPIs may focus on Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) and reducing processing costs, which could drive higher production volumes. However, if customer demand is low, producing more would create waste and tie up working capital. Well-designed objectives anticipate such scenarios, balancing functional needs with enterprise-wide goals across different operational levels.

6. What’s a supply chain transformation you led that taught you the most, and what would you do differently today?

In any supply chain transformation, change management and people’s reaction to change are the most critical factors because such initiatives impact a large and diverse group of stakeholders.

One of my key learnings from multiple transformation projects is the importance of listening to early adopters. Their feedback often highlights where potential issues may arise. By capturing these signals early, you can anticipate challenges, adjust the rollout, and prepare mitigation strategies before problems escalate.

This proactive approach has consistently helped me steer projects more smoothly, improve adoption rates, and ensure the transformation delivers its intended value.

7. What are the three capabilities you would insist a young supply chain professional master in the next two years?

Technology is transforming supply chains globally, and young professionals must be ready to harness it for tangible business value. In my view, the three capabilities to master in the next two years are:

1. Technology Fluency & Data Mastery – Embrace emerging tools, particularly in data analytics and AI, which are rapidly becoming the backbone of supply chain decision-making. Go beyond using technology, learn to build business cases that clearly demonstrate its value.

2. Problem-Solving Mindset – Develop the ability to diagnose complex issues, identify root causes, and implement practical, measurable solutions.

3. Collaboration & Influence – Strengthen the ability to work across functions, communicate effectively, and align diverse teams toward shared objectives.

I often refer to the ABCD of Supply Chain as a guiding framework:

A – Adaptability, Agility, Availability

B – Best Practices, Benchmarking, Build for the Future

C – Collaboration, Communication, Coordination, Customer Centricity

D – Digital Enablement, Data-Driven Decision-Making

Mastering these will position a young professional not just to participate in change, but to lead it.