Every year, thousands of chief supply chain officers (CSCOs) and supply chain leaders converge in Orlando, Florida for the Gartner Supply Chain Symposium/Xpo. This year’s event takes place May 6-8 and is being billed as the “must-attend supply chain conference” for 2024.
There’s going to be a lot to talk about at the symposium this year. Most organizations have shed the disruption brought on by the global pandemic, but there’s still plenty of supply chain risk lingering in the air.
Attacks on container ships in the Red Sea, ongoing geopolitical tensions, a persistent national labor shortage and the urgent need to develop more agile, integrated supply chains are just some of the top-of-mind issues that supply chain leaders are grappling with. There’s also inflation, high interest rates, rising costs for materials and cybersecurity threats, all of which contribute to a seemingly endless list of challenges impacting organizations right now.
“Opportunity is born out of adversity,” says Joanne Joliet, a Gartner VP analyst and this year’s conference chair. “In today’s business era, CSCOs and supply chain leaders must drive their organizations to achieve new levels of enterprise growth and efficiency.”
Addressing Mission-critical Priorities
Along with our 3,500+ industry peers, Arkieva will be exhibiting at booth #714 of the Gartner supply chain symposium. The conference promises “pragmatic advice and future-focused insights” that will help organizations deliver now and in the future. And if the symposium is anything like previous Gartner events, it will live up to this promise and probably even surpass it (and we should know – we’ve been to a lot of these events!).
The exhibition floor will be buzzing with activity and showcasing the latest and greatest technologies designed to improve supply chain performance, agility and flexibility. For example, the Arkieva booth will feature a range of advanced supply chain planning software solutions focused on demand planning, supply planning, S&OP management and inventory planning. For more than 30 years, our team has helped global enterprises drive business transformation through improved supply chain planning processes.
“We are change agents at our core and always push ourselves to create simple, intuitive solutions built for the challenges of today and tomorrow,” says Sujit Singh, COO, Arkieva.
Come Hear them Speak
Gartner’s supply chain symposium always features an impressive lineup of keynote and guest speakers who bring their A games to the table when discussing the top issues, challenges and opportunities that supply chain leaders are facing in the current environment.
This year’s event is no different. Some of the speakers that you won’t want to miss include Gartner’s Tom Enright whose keynote “From Drift to Drive: Own Supply Chain Value,” will focus on how outside forces have affected the supply chain and dictated where it must provide value. Ian Bremmer of Eurasia Group and GZERO Media will tackle the thorny topic of “Managing Risk in an Unstable World” and author Shankar Vedantam will address “The Challenge of Change.” Vedantam will talk about how human success is due to our ability to adapt, how the “hidden brain” shapes our capacity for change, and how to overcome common mistakes leaders and managers make as they implement their visions.
Another presentation you won’t want to miss is Haben Girma’s discussion on “Disability & Innovation.” Girma is a disability rights attorney and the first deaf-blind person to graduate from Harvard Law. She’ll cover how she became an advocate and how to make your communities more inclusive.
Get Your Education On
The conference includes six role-based tracks, including three industry and three topic tracks—all led by Gartner’s extensive team of analysts and experts. For the supply chain planning (SCP) track, key topics include:
- Planning as the Enabler of Innovation Success
- Hide and Seek: Where Is My Inventory Opportunity?
- Time to Act: Break the Barriers for Stronger Supplier Collaborative Planning
- Organizing Supply Chain Planning to Drive Digitalization
Another SCP presentation focuses on “4 Rules to Ignite Your Supply Chain Planning Transformation.” In it, Noha Samara, Gartner senior director analyst, is set to discuss how SCP transformations are the “catalysts to drive resiliency and embrace agility” and how most organizations have embarked on a journey of organizational transformation, digital transformation, or both.
This is just a sampling of what you’ll experience at this year’s symposium. If you want to taste the full menu, you’ll have to make the trek to Orlando in May to see for yourself.
Planning to attend Gartner’s Supply Chain Symposium in Orlando May 6-8? Be sure to swing by the Arkieva booth, #714 to learn more about how our suite of supply chain planning solutions can help your organization unlock its’ agile supply chain.
