inbound
Picture the supply chain, and what comes to
mind? Perhaps speeding trucks, whirring conveyors, or self-driving robots? To the trade
group MHI, it’s a person … and one person in
particular.
In April, MHI announced it had chosen AriAnne Sproat, chief operating officer
(COO) of Phoenix-based steel products supplier
International Technical Coatings (ITC), as the
2017 Face of the Supply Chain. MHI judges
picked Sproat from a field of 16 finalists, citing
her inspiring story and calling her a role model
for the next generation of workers. She was presented with the award during a ceremony at the
ProMat trade show and conference in Chicago.
MHI launched its annual contest through the
#iWorkInTheSupplyChain campaign, an effort
to highlight the success stories and career paths
of supply chain stars (as well as promote career
opportunities in the manufacturing and supply
chain fields). Supply chain professionals who
shared their story at i WorkIn TheSupplyChain.
com were automatically entered to become
MHI’s 2017 Face of the Supply Chain.
Sproat, 37, shared her experience in an
entry titled “Shattering the Manufacturing
Glass Ceiling: How One Woman Rose From
Receptionist to Plant Floor to C-Suite.”
According to the essay, her Cinderella (or maybe
Horatio Alger Jr.) story began when she was
working as a customer service representative at
a department store cosmetics counter in 1999.
The then-ITC chief financial officer came into
the shop, mentioned an open receptionist position, and encouraged her to apply for it. Over
the next 16 years, Sproat seized every available
opportunity to learn more about the business,
volunteering for tasks that gave her exposure
to areas like customer service, parts procurement, shipping, and sales. Among other roles,
she served as shipping and inventory manager
and as the company’s production coordinator.
In 2015, she was promoted to chief operating
officer, a position she holds today.
AriAnne Sproat chosen as
“Face of the Supply Chain”
Here’s our monthly roundup of some of the charitable works and
donations by companies in the material handling and logistics
space.
b Truckload, logistics, and intermodal company J.B. Hunt
Transport Services Inc. is making a $2.75 million grant to the
University of Arkansas to create the J.B. Hunt Innovation Center
of Excellence. The center will be a collaborative effort between
the company, the college of engineering, and the Sam M. Walton
College of Business to study how to advance supply chain management efficiency through technology.
b Transportation and supply chain solutions provider Ryder
System Inc. has granted $30,000 to Florida International
University (FIU) in support of two of the university’s educational programs in Washington, D.C. One of the grants will fund the
Ryder Women in Leadership Scholarship, which was created to
give promising female leaders greater access to advanced educational and leadership development opportunities. The second
grant will help a promising FIU undergraduate or graduate
student with an interest in transportation/logistics gain valuable
internship experience.
b Athens, Ga.-based
transport refrigeration
equipment maker Carrier
Transicold announced a
program to donate truck
and trailer refrigeration
units to individual food
banks in the Feeding
America network. Funded
by a $150,000 grant from parent company United Technologies
Corp., the program provides for the donation and installation
of transport refrigeration units to seven food banks, located in
Louisiana, South Dakota, Michigan, California, Georgia, and
Nevada.
b The UPS Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Atlanta-based
transport and logistics giant UPS Inc., will award $14.1 million
in grant funding and in-kind support to advance global humanitarian relief and community safety initiatives. Recipients include
Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, UNICEF, the American Red Cross,
and the World Food Program USA.
b Omaha, Neb.-based transportation and logistics service provider Werner Enterprises has presented the nonprofit Nebraska
State Patrol Foundation with a donation to cover all costs for an
additional police service dog. The firm says its partnership with
law enforcement will continue to make roads and communities
safer by aiding the Police Service Dog Division in its mission of
detecting controlled substances, locating lost or missing persons,
and apprehending suspects.
Logistics gives back
