Ep. 90: Andy Kettlewell - Volatility of Supply and Demand

10/05/20 • 19 min

Contact Andy Kettlewell: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andykettlewell/

"Reimagining Supply Chains to Navigate a Pandemic and Beyond" with the Chicago Council of Global Affairs: https://youtu.be/zAGPc9vlaxU

Andy Kettlewell video for Satya Nadella, CEO, Microsoft, Inventory Management: https://youtu.be/vkSNW6CJN7Q?t=570

FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT
Mitch: (00:05)
Welcome to episode 90 of Count Me In, IMA's podcast about all things affecting the accounting and finance world. I'm your host Mitch Roshong, and I'm here to introduce you to our featured guest speaker for today's conversation, Andy Kettlewell. Andy is the Vice President of Inventory and Analytics for Walgreens after serving many years prior in various supply chain and inventory management roles with the company. He spoke to my cohost, Adam, about all the disruption across business and how he has managed to handle the volatility in the marketplace. Andy addresses the impact of supply and demand budgeting for these unexpected factors and how technology has enabled him to make better business decisions. Keep listening as we head over to their conversation now.
Adam: (00:54)
Andy, COVID-19 has been disruptive across all aspects of business. How have you handled the demand volatility in the marketplace, and then in turn its impact on operations?
Andy: (01:08)
It's a very important question for where we are in a post COVID-19 economy. So we've seen dramatic changes in not only the magnitude of demand changes and demand volatility, but also the frequency and the pace of those changes. And, and to make that real and what we've all experienced in our lives, it's everything from, you know, the run on toilet paper, and you've probably experienced those shortages firsthand and how the news media kind of helped to extrapolate and share that story widely, thus creating a run in a panic situation to other commodity items like hand sanitizer and masks and other items that were needed for a shift in consumer behavior, right? With, with COVID-19 that the marketplace has had to respond to, but what we're also seeing is a shift, in everyday items. So with the traffic patterns and how, how's it impacted all of our lives. So likely you're not going to your office right now. So that means you're not passing the convenient Duane Reade in Manhattan, or your Walgreens, you know across from your office in downtown Chicago and that's changed our consumer behavior away from maybe those instant consumption items to more of those take-home items, right? That as we shift our behavior. There's been a couple of other interesting transformations here across all aspects of the business. So Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft, in their last earnings call, likened the digital transformation of two years of digital transformation that happened in two months. McKinsey and Company's research has shown that we've seen 10 years worth of growth in eCommerce penetration in only three months. And so we're, eCommerce penetration is now North of 30% across all of retail. These are dramatic shifts in consumer behavior that, you know, our organization at Walgreens and every retailer is having to accommodate to. So in the reaction and the operationalization of that, right first and foremost, every firm is having to keep their team members safe and so when within a global supply chain, right, that means, you know, new protocols, new efficiency measures, but everything from how we keep our distribution center team members safe, to our truck drivers, to our store team members to keep operations moving was, was point number one. And that means everything from personal protective equipment to new policies, procedures, different shifts in labor management, to help keep our employees safe, to then keep the product moving. And then from there, very tactical impacts within our supply chain that we've had to address including, we've redesigned all of our demand, forecasting and replenishment algorithms. Now what that means is right, all those consumer behaviors, the systems that go behind that, that use artificial intelligence and machine learning to identify what you're going to buy in Walgreens tomorrow, have to be much more dynamic. I liken this to a, for most firms like a sand mandala, if you're familiar with that term.The Tibetan Buddhist monks, you know, spend hours and days, you know, building the perfect sand mandala and then they have to wipe it away and then start fresh. That's exactly what most firms are doing with their forecast models across their entire end to end supply chain to become more adaptive and responsive to consumer demand. And then sourcing, right. you know, at the heart of COVID-19, we found areas within the end end...

Contact Andy Kettlewell: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andykettlewell/

"Reimagining Supply Chains to Navigate a Pandemic and Beyond" with the Chicago Council of Global Affairs: https://youtu.be/zAGPc9vlaxU

Andy Kettlewell video for Satya Nadella, CEO, Microsoft, Inventory Management: https://youtu.be/vkSNW6CJN7Q?t=570

Previous Episode

Ep. 89: Mai Luu - Alternatives to Venture Capital for Small Businesses

Contact Mai Luu: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mai-luu-693596168/

"Small Business Planning During COVID-19": https://www.imanet.org/insights-and-trends/risk-management/small-business-planning-during-covid19

FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT
Mitch: (00:05)
Thanks for coming back for another episode of Count Me In this is your host Mitch Roshong, and I'm here to bring you episode 89 of our series. We all know small to medium sized enterprises are a huge part of our management accounting profession, and COVID-19 has greatly affected the way these businesses are run along with the economy as a whole. In this episode, my cohost Adam talks with Mai Luu. Chief Operating Officer at Commonwealth Capital, LLC. She has also funded businesses and is very familiar with the small to medium sized business landscape. While talking with Adam, Mai discusses various cashflow activities, venture capital funding, and other ways these businesses can obtain funding to renew themselves while still staying true to their original business purpose. Keep listening as we head over to their conversation now.
Adam: (00:58)
Small- medium sized enterprises have been affected greatly by COVID-19. How can businesses find a way to renew themselves and become new all over again?
Mai: (01:09)
COVID-19 has a far reaching economic impact in so many areas. Most every industry in every state has experienced the impact of COVID-19. Second quarter GDP job, 9.5%. To put it in perspective, since record keeping began in 1947, quarterly job has never been more than 3%. With so much spending, making up two thirds of the US economy declines 12% percent between April and June, 2020. National debt and monetary policy for coronavirus stimulus packages are added to the national debt. With the Fed loaning money and buying financial assets, 1.41 million daily, the money supply, and two has recent sharply despite the injection of money into the system. Inflation stays close to zero, which could be a signal of a looming deflation in a near future. Disrupted supply chains and shortage of products, especially PPE products. Employment has been heavily affected. Job losses were worse than in the Great d\Depression, 50 million people out of a job. As many businesses closed, permanently and restrictions continue in several parts of the country. How business reinvent themselves in the wake of COVID-19 requires serious reevaluation of their business models, product and service offerings and financing methods to adapt and thrive in the new normal. Some of the old way of doing business are no longer effective and some products and services are no longer relevant. So understanding the renewed needs for both customers and service providers should play the central role in researching for the new business models, strategies, and product and services. While the pandemic reveals business weaknesses, it also presents opportunities for resetting strategy and business residents. With working from home businesses, adapt and embrace flexibility. So work life balance becomes work life integration, automation, core self-service portals, virtual help desk, and the use of productivity tools increase efficiency and adaptation. So this set of changes in our lifestyle transform how we consume products and services and how business operates. One thing that I can think of is cashflow and liquidity. This is one of the most important areas of business continuity. I can think of a few basic principles in managing cash that include one, reduce cost as much as possible and seek alternative financing, including the use of government support policies and working with landlord vendors and suppliers for favorable payment terms. Two, focus on generating cash, also turning a profit. Three, be transparent and fair to employees and share resources in case you end up having to cut staff.
Adam: (04:48)
I think you gave some great advice as people are looking to start new, and one thing I didn't hear you mentioned was something like venture capital. what are some of the considerations that SMEs should look at when seeking venture capital funding if they are trying to use that as starting new
Mai: (05:05)
A traditional venture capital VC business model is built based on hitting a few home runs to make up for many losing backs. Due to the high-risk nature of startup and early stage companies, VCs are extremely selective, only 0.1% of new ventures receive venture capital in any stage that leaps 99 point 99% of startups not receiving VC funding. Ofthose that seek VC funding only 1.5% receives it. Even at this level of selectiveness, the majority of VC investments have attractive returns. VCs prefer to fund high potential disruptive...

Next Episode

Ep. 91: Deepika Chawla - Women in Finance

Deepika Chawla is a business woman, presently serving as Vice President of a Fortune 100 company. With 27+ years of rich and diverse work experience in Financial Shared Services and Banking Industry, Deepika believes She believes “Your legacy is in the leaders you create and the knowledge you share”. She is a Qualified Chartered Accountant who is extremely passionate about supporting women and the community she serves. Deepika has won various recognitions for promoting Diversity in the workplace & society. She has been named as one of the 25 most inspiring women in the Coffee Book ‘Big Dreams Bigger Achievement’s and has also been decorated with the Champion Award from ‘We Are The City, Organization in collaboration with EY, for her passion, resilience and tenacity in supporting diversity. She is actively involved in mentoring youth / next generation leaders across organizations & colleges and has attended a number of events at various universities and colleges as a speaker and panelist. A TEDx speaker, Deepika supports multiple NGO’s of Cancer, Education & Thalassemia and is also on the advisory board of two of them. A mother of two children - boy 24 and girl 20 - she recently celebrated 27 years of marriage.
Contact Deepika Chawla: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deepika-chawla-181a319/

FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT:
Adam: (00:00)
Welcome to episode 90. One of Count Me In, IMA's a podcast about all things affecting the accounting and finance world. I'm your host, Adam Larson, and I'm here to introduce you to our next featured guest Deepika Chawla. Deepika is a senior finance professional and qualified chartered accountant in India. She currently serves as the vice president of a fortune 100 company and has over 27 years of diverse work experience in financial services and the banking industry. In this episode, she speaks with my cohost Rouba Zeidan about her journey to the top, and the challenges she and other women face in the finance industry to hear Deepika’s, perspective on how women can make the most out of their careers and finance, keep listening as we head over to the conversation now.
Rouba: (00:55)
So good afternoon, Deepika, thank you so much for joining us.
Deepika: (01:01)
Hi Rouba, thank you so much for having me here to talk something, which I am so passionate about.
Rouba: (01:09)
Same here. I'm looking forward to your thoughts and your experience. So, women in Asia occupied just 1.1% of CEO and CFO positions and country held positions, according to a 2012 capitalist study, why do you think that is?
Deepika: (01:29)
Yeah, good question, and really close to a lot of women's heart. So, most of the people feel that women spend more time performing unpaid work in childcare and housework and may not be able to handle a senior position. Remember they feel that they may not be able to handle this a senior position. Not to shatter the unconscious bias that assumes women should be the sole caregiver or associated with housework organizations should really create a safe and inclusive workplace where men feel comfortable being with [inaudible] and do duties and household activities, giving both men and women an equal opportunity to look at their by supporting each other. Now, really from that perspective, it is so very important that that comfort should be there to the women that they can go and work or, you know, they could be CEOs and CFOs because somebody else can do the caregiver job. Now, secondly, as you go higher women themselves have self-doubts and this will come into our conversation very often because whether they can do the job or not, and they hold back because that is very, very important. They have this self-doubt. Should I be perfect before I applied to a job? While men, at the same time even if they are at a 60% at that job, they convince you that they're the right candidate. And thirdly, and lastly, in my mind, you know, unless the top leadership does not drive the message, this may still go on as these numbers, only what you shared with me. Whichever news you're hearing today, whether it is Uber, Fidelity, lots of companies or, you know, otherwise senior women positions are coming up. When you open the LinkedIn these days, you would see one announcement or the other coming. Now that's primarily because the top, you know, the top leadership approach is to focus on the, the women candidate on the CEO positions. So, I think that's really important. And in my early career, I have seen women having children and taking promotions in the same year. So, you need both the women and the company, and of course the men to believe in that they can do it. So really that is what I think.
Rouba: (04:07)
Makes a lot of sense, actually. I mean, that's, that was a, I'm going to ask you a bit more about your personal exp...