AI in Action: UPS Digital's Approach to Sustainable Supply Chain Management Artwork

Resilient Supply Chain — How Leaders Keep Business Moving

Resilient Supply Chain is for supply chain, operations, procurement and technology leaders who need practical ways to manage disruption, reduce risk and keep business moving.

Each Monday, technology and sustainability analyst, keynote speaker and former SAP Global VP Tom Raftery speaks with the executives, operators, founders and innovators redesigning how goods, information and decisions move through global supply chains.

These are candid conversations about what works in practice—not polished PR narratives or vague predictions. Guests explain how they are responding to supplier failures, geopolitical shocks, volatile costs, capacity constraints, changing regulations and rising pressure to improve both performance and sustainability.

The podcast examines:
Faster planning and decision-making under uncertainty
Supplier risk, sourcing strategy and business continuity
AI, automation, visibility and operational intelligence
Warehousing, logistics and fulfilment performance
Scope 3 emissions, circularity and responsible sourcing
The systems, incentives and organisational changes needed to turn data into action

The central question is simple: what helps a supply chain withstand disruption, adapt quickly and continue serving the business?

New episodes are published every Monday at 7am CET. Resilient Supply Chain+ subscribers also receive bonus analysis, highlights and briefings on emerging industry trends.

Follow Resilient Supply Chain for practical lessons from the people solving real operational problems—and building supply chains that perform when conditions do not go to plan.

All Episodes

Resilient Supply Chain — How Leaders Keep Business Moving

AI in Action: UPS Digital's Approach to Sustainable Supply Chain Management

September 30, 2024 • Tom Raftery / Dan Spitale • Season 2 • Episode 36

0:00 | 40:42

Send me a message

In this episode of the Sustainable Supply Chain podcast, I had a great chat with Dan Spitale, the head of sales for UPS Digital. We delved into how UPS is leveraging technology, particularly AI and predictive analytics, to enhance sustainability in the supply chain. Dan shared insights on how the pandemic has accelerated the demand for last-mile and same-day deliveries, prompting UPS to optimise route design and load management to reduce unnecessary trips and emissions.

We discussed the role of predictive analytics in risk mitigation, especially in identifying high-risk delivery locations to prevent wasted resources. Dan explained how UPS Digital is integrating legacy insurance services with new technologies to proactively address risks and improve customer experience.

Collaboration and partnerships emerged as key themes, with Dan highlighting how UPS is working with other companies to combine expertise and drive innovation. He emphasised that technology like AI will be crucial in the future of supply chain sustainability, enabling companies to understand consumer behaviour better and meet the growing expectations for faster, more efficient deliveries.

Key takeaways from our conversation include the potential of AI and predictive analytics to drive sustainability, the significance of proactive risk management, and the possibility of achieving business growth while enhancing customer experience and sustainability efforts.

If disruption hit tomorrow, would you know where your supply chain was most exposed? In 15 minutes my free scorecard helps you assess 27 resilience statements, calculate your score, and turn the result into three priorities and a 30 day action plan. You can download the scorecard free at tomraftery.com/scorecard.

Support the show

Podcast supporters
I'd like to sincerely thank this podcast's generous Subscribers:

Alicia Farag
Kieran Ognev
Gary Lynch

And remember you too can become a Resilient Supply Chain+ subscriber - it is really easy and hugely important as it will enable me to continue to create more excellent episodes like this one and give you access to bonus episodes of topical, timely supply chain resilience analysis.

🎤 Looking for a keynote speaker on supply chain resilience, AI, and sustainability?
I help leaders understand the forces reshaping global supply chains, from geopolitical disruption and climate risk to AI and real-time decision-making.

Download my Speaker Pack: https://tinyurl.com/spkrpck

Finally
If you have any comments/suggestions or questions for the podcast - feel free to just send me a direct message on LinkedIn, or send me a message using this link.

If you liked this show, please don't forget to rate and/or review it. It makes a big difference to help new people discover it.

Thanks for listening.