42 DC VELOCITY JULY 2016 www.dcvelocity.com
t
h
ou
g
ht
l
e
a
de
rs
Kevin O’Marah believes deeply in the
power of supply chain management to
solve problems. As a long-time supply
chain management consultant and analyst, currently at the firm SCM World
and previously with AMR Research and
Gartner, O’Marah has spent years helping companies improve their operations
by implementing new supply chain technologies and processes.
But the problems that O’Marah believes the supply
chain can solve are even grander than helping a company improve its profit-and-loss statement. According
to O’Marah, supply chain management holds the key
to resolving some of the world’s most intractable problems, such as hunger, providing affordable health care,
and answering the challenges of climate change. He first
pursued these ideas in the book Supply Chain Saves the
World, which was published while O’Marah was at AMR
Research. He now serves as chief content officer for SCM
World, an organization that seeks to turn that vision of
leveraging the supply chain to solve world problems into
reality.
Q How did you become interested in conducting research in supply chain management, and why do
you continue to be interested in the field?
A I took a course at Stanford in 1991 called “Integrated Design, Manufacturing, and Marketing,” which was
jointly taught by the business school and the engineering school. We competed as teams of four (two M.B.A.s
and two engineers) designing, prototyping, costing, and
marketing a product—can crushers in this case—for a
business simulation game. The main takeaway was that
integration across functions is the key to value. Ever
since then, I’ve studied economics, business, and technology and have been amazed at how these disciplines
intertwine in supply chain management.
In more recent years, I’ve become aware
of how huge an impact all of this can have
on the global economy and society. That
is why above all else I am motivated by
the productivity effects of supply chain
management and the way this enables
advancement of human society within the
bounds of a materially limited planet.
Q What is your proudest professional achievement, and why?
A I am especially proud of having created the Supply Chain Top 25 at AMR Research (now Gartner)
back in 2004. The Top 25 was not an analytical breakthrough at all but was transformative to the idea that
supply chain is a topic that can be exciting and even
inspirational. The Top 25 is still an important conceptual artifact and motivator for many senior supply chain
leaders today.
Q SCM World is a bit different from other research organizations in that it explicitly states that its purpose is to help members provide lasting solutions to the
world’s fundamental challenges. Why is that something
that appeals to you personally?
A Supply Chain Saves the World was the title of a book I put out about 10 years ago. In the last few years
at SCM World, we have taken the core ideas underpinning this audacious title and driven hard to make
them a reality. Our executive advisory board (EAB)
strongly supports this effort and in so doing, brings
enormous resources to the quest. Leaders from companies like Chevron, General Mills, Nike, and Caterpillar
are included on the EAB and as such, represent massive
global footprints for sourcing, manufacturing, and logistics, all of which are increasingly dedicated to doing right
in the world.
The critical understanding about supply chain and
Kevin O’Marah
Q What is the biggest challenge you see facing practi- tioners, and how do you suggest they prepare for it?
A The biggest challenge is keeping up with technol- ogy while maintaining personal relationships and
communications. We have lost so much of our personal
face-to-face interaction, and I believe it has worked
against us. The technology is great, but I think we must
keep talking to each other. We preach collaboration, but
to many, that has meant my computer talking to yours.
I don’t believe we are adequately teaching the concept
of person-to-person collaboration to new practitioners,
either in the classroom or on the job.
Q You are in the late innings of your career. With the benefit of historical insight, what advice would you
give someone just starting out in the supply chain management profession?
A We are going to be living with technology. Study it, understand it, and embrace it. At the same time, do
not lose sight of how to communicate effectively—not
by e-mails and text messages but through face-to-face
communication.
