Burning out: supply chain professionals are on the brink
Good morning! On this wonderful National Pie Day, let's not forget the crucial role of the supply chain in getting that delicious pastry to our plates… because without it, it would be nothing more than a mere crust of an idea. 🥧
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Supply chain professionals are stressed, according to a recent survey conducted by autonomous sourcing solutions specialist Keelvar. One of the main reasons is the increasing pressure to meet the demands of customers and stakeholders while also maintaining efficiency and cost-effectiveness. This can lead to long working hours, tight deadlines, and high levels of stress. Additionally, supply chain professionals are also facing increased competition, volatility in global markets, and disruption caused by technology and automation, which are also contributing factors.
Check out today’s featured article from Supply Chain Digital to read about the mounting stress supply chain professionals are reporting and what it could mean for the future of labor on this career path. ☕️
Featured Article:
Supply chain professional on brink of burnout, study shows | Supply Chain Digital
“A new study shows that 91% of supply chains have been impacted by inflation, and that the pressure on procurement teams to cut costs is leading to high levels of stress and burnout.”
Electric Vehicles & Stocks 🔋
Tencent is still banking on Tesla, despite Musk’s Twitter controversies
Tencent is a Chinese multinational conglomerate holding company founded in 1998, with a diverse range of businesses, including internet-related services and products, entertainment, artificial intelligence, and technology. Tesla, Inc. is an American multinational corporation that specializes in electric vehicles, energy storage, and solar panel manufacturing based on an integrated sustainable energy approach.
In March 2017, Tencent Holdings Limited acquired a 5% stake in Tesla, becoming one of the company's largest shareholders. The investment was part of a funding round in which Tesla raised $1.4 billion. The two companies have also reportedly been in talks to collaborate on developing autonomous driving technology. While Tesla has developed its own autonomous driving technology, Tencent's expertise in artificial intelligence and computer vision could potentially be used to enhance Tesla's systems further.
Fast forward to today: David Wallerstein, chief “eXploration” officer at Tencent, has voiced Tencent’s trust that Tesla will continue to impress, regardless of its CEO’s recent string of controversies. Some have accused Musk as buying Twitter as a “distraction” to the problems brewing at Tesla.
Driver Issues & Hours Of Service 🚛
OOIDA Foundation criticizes the pay-by-the-mile system for drivers
Tom Weakley of the OOIDA Foundation is speaking out against a pay-by-the-mile system for drivers, which he claims encourages safety violations and takes money out of their pockets. Most truck drivers are already paid by the mile instead of by the hour and this may result in several pitfalls.
Safety concerns: Paying truck drivers by the mile may create an incentive for them to drive faster or longer than they should, in order to earn more money. This could lead to increased accidents and put the safety of the driver and other drivers at risk.
Increased wear and tear on the vehicle: Paying truck drivers by the mile may also create an incentive for them to drive more, which could lead to increased wear and tear on the vehicle. This could result in higher maintenance and repair costs for the trucking company.
Reduced driver satisfaction: Truck drivers may not be satisfied with being paid by the mile instead of by the hour. This could lead to a higher turnover rate among drivers and make it more difficult for trucking companies to retain experienced drivers.
Inequity: Paying truck drivers by the mile may be unfair to those who drive shorter routes, as they would earn less money than those who drive longer routes, even if they have the same number of hours on the road.
Inflexibility: Paying truck drivers by the mile is a fixed rate and does not take into account factors such as traffic, weather, and other unforeseen circumstances that can affect the time it takes to complete a route.
It's worth noting that a pay-by-the-mile system, could be combined with other factors such as safety records, experience, and other performance indicators to create a comprehensive payment system for truck drivers.
iLevel With You 🏡
More topics for the average American household to consider…
🛏️ Curious about how IKEA’s supply chain works? Everything Supply chain put together a brief video explaining it all. The supply chain of IKEA, the Swedish multinational furniture retailer, is a complex and global network of suppliers, manufacturers, logistics providers, and retailers. It starts with the sourcing of raw materials and components from suppliers around the world. These materials are then transported to manufacturing facilities, where they are transformed into finished products, such as furniture and home accessories. Once the products are manufactured, they are then transported to IKEA's distribution centers, where they are consolidated and prepared for shipment to the company's retail stores. IKEA operates over 400 stores in 52 countries, and they also have an online store. The products are then sold to customers either in-store or online.
🧢 Walmart’s Associate-to-Driver training program has expanded to 400+ locations. Walmart's Associate-to-Driver training program, also known as the Walmart Transportation Driving Academy, is a program designed to train and certify Walmart associates to become professional truck drivers. The program was launched in 2018 as a way for Walmart to address the shortage of truck drivers in the industry and to help its associates find new career opportunities. The program is open to any Walmart associate who holds a valid driver's license and is willing to commit to the training and certification process. The training typically takes about 8-12 weeks, and it includes both classroom instruction and on-the-road driving experience. Trainees learn about federal and state regulations, defensive driving, and other important skills needed to be a professional truck driver.
✈️ FAA places blame for nationwide outage squarely on one contractor. Approximately 10,000 flights were delayed last week due to what’s being called a “human error” by the Federal Aviation Administration. The FAA claims that after an internal review, it’s been concluded that personnel unintentionally deleted files while “working to correct synchronization between the live primary database and a backup database”. Some had worried that there was an issue of a cyberattack on the FAA, but the agency has repeated that they have found no evidence to support that theory.
Get Smart 🧠
Ramp up that brain power for these advanced topics…
🥂Nikola Corp. has a new CEO! Michael Lohscheller has been appointed as the chief executive officer after the company’s founder and then-CEO, Trevor Milton, was convicted of white-collar crimes last fall. Nikola Corporation designs and manufactures electric and hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles, energy storage systems, and hydrogen fueling stations and plans to develop and manufacture batteries, and energy storage systems to store and distribute renewable energy. The company's hydrogen fuel-cell semi-trucks are designed to have a range of up to 800 miles on a single fill, and they can be refilled in as little as 15 minutes.
🧰 Your equipment could use an ADAS. An Advanced Driver Assistance System is a collection of technologies and systems that are designed to assist the driver in various driving tasks, improve vehicle safety, and enhance the overall driving experience. These systems may include features such as lane departure warning, forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking, and adaptive cruise control. The goal of ADAS is to help reduce the number of accidents and improve overall driving safety.
The Workday Dash is an aggregation of articles regarding the transportation logistics, trucking, and supply chain industries for November 28, 2024, from iLevel Logistics Inc.