In the last episode of Auto Supply Chain Prophets, host Jan Griffiths and guests Cathy Fisher and Terry Onica discussed the evolution of supply chain management in a global marketplace. They agree that the pandemic served as a wake-up call for business leaders who thought Industrial Age management systems were good enough for the 21st century.

This time around, Cathy and Terry turn the tables and pick Jan’s brain to find out what she’s observed in her three-plus decades in the automotive industry. 

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Themes discussed in this episode: 

• The magic of setting foot on a shop floor for the first time
• The value of working in a different industry for a while
• Expectations versus reality, once you make it into the C-Suite 
• Why "command and control" supply chain models don’t apply now
• How leadership in an ecosystem model is about interdependent relationships, not about assigning blame when issues arise in the supply chain

Featured on This Episode: 

Name: Jan Griffiths 

Title: President and Founder, Gravitas Detroit

About: A veteran executive in the automotive industry, Jan previously served as chief procurement officer for a $3 billion, Tier 1 global automotive supplier. As the president of Gravitas Detroit, Jan provides online courses, speeches, podcasts and workshops designed to empower authentic leadership and accelerate high performance teams. Jan is the host of the Finding Gravitas podcast

Connect: LinkedIn

Name: Cathy Fisher

Title: Founder and President, Quistem

About: Cathy’s firm Quistem helps companies, particularly in the automotive industry, eliminate customer complaints and increase profits. She has worked in the automotive supply chain since the 1980s, when she started her career at General Motors. 

Connect: LinkedIn 

Name: Terry Onica 

Title: Director, Automotive at QAD

About: For two decades, Terry has been the automotive vertical director of QAD, a provider of manufacturing Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software and supply chain solutions. Her career began in supply chain in the late 1980s when she led a team to implement Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) for Ford assembly and component plants.  

Connect: LinkedIn

At the heart of The Prophets’ vision are “The 24 Essential Supply Chain Processes.” What are they? Find out, and see the future yourself. Click here

Episode Highlights

Timestamped inflection points from the show

[1:19] From farm to table saw: Jan recalls being a “rebellious, passionate farmer’s daughter from Wales” who took a temp job in the purchasing department of automotive supplier BorgWarner. This was her first exposure to manufacturing and the shop floor. 

[2:44] Opportunity knocks: BorgWarner sent Jan on what was supposed to be a 10-day business trip to the U.S. She decided to stay. It’s been 35 years and counting. 

[3:09] A brief detour: Jan was “in love with the automotive industry” and worked her way through several Tier 1 suppliers. However, she spent a year directing LeanSigma at Maytag and recommends trying out a different industry for a while to gain perspective. 

[4:22] Reality check: When Jan finally made it into the C-Suite, it didn’t meet her expectations. Supply chain itself hadn’t always been part of the C-Suite. When it finally got a seat at the table, it was a victory. Yet Jan remembers her surprise upon realizing that its role seemed to be “all about cost,” rather than getting the right product to the right place at the right time — and driving profits.

[6:16] Modern times require modern methods: Stephen Covey said that “operating today with command and control as your leadership style is like playing tennis with a golf club.” Jan loves this quote because it applies directly to the auto industry. Tier 1 auto executives continue to operate their supply chains on this outdated model Instead of seeing the need for change. 

[8:06] The importance of launch: Energy, focus and resources need to be concentrated during a program launch. This is essential to the health of the supply chain, Jan says.

[8:30] Neglected links in the chain: Cathy has seen some effort in terms of advanced product planning program launch, sourcing and preparing suppliers, and negotiating. But other equally important priorities, like transportation, need more attention.

[9:10] It’s (still) all about freight: Terry is frustrated at what she sees as an industry standard for supply chain based on avoiding premium freight charges.

[10:01] Collaboration as weakness: Jan says suppliers are automatically blamed when a problem occurs in the supply chain. Those who choose to work with suppliers (rather than attack them) to fix issues are generally viewed as weak. 

[11:41] Secret rendezvous: In a former role, Jan found herself holding meetings with suppliers off-site because upper management thought the only way to deal with suppliers was aggression. That way, “[management] couldn’t see that I was actually having a reasonable discussion,” she recalls.

[13:36] Beyond the silo: Once you start to think of the supply chain as an ecosystem with interconnected nodes that depend on each other, you realize silos no longer apply and won’t take the industry into the future. 

[14:54] The big picture: CEOs would be wise to look at the supply chain holistically and bring in people from other industries. Diverse perspectives and expertise is crucial, especially when it comes to improving things like speed and agility. 

[16:06] A different animal: While electronic vehicle manufacturers may seem comparable to traditional automakers, they are actually very different. “It’s technology they’re putting in something called a car," Jan explains. "The traditional OEMs [Original Equipment Manufacturers] are car manufacturers trying to add in technology. That’s a very, very different model.” 

[17:23] Bottom line: Over the course of her long career, Jan says that although it’s a “huge generalization,” she has observed that CEOs underestimate the supply chain’s power as a moneymaker.

Top quotes from Jan

[4:46] “The basic systems we have in place today haven’t changed. Cost is measured by standard cost and variance against that cost, and that’s what drives the behavior in the C-suite.”

[7:19] “If you're still operating with command and control in silos, with processes that haven't changed that much — really, how far can you advance?” 

[8:09] “The time to put the focus, the energy and the resources is during a program launch. To understand the full scope and complexity of the supply chain, and build in those processes early on. So often, we're just so quick to [say] we gotta get the thing launched. We don't spend the time to do it right.”

[10:01] “There's this … culture that says if something happens with a supplier-supplied part, it's the supplier’s fault immediately without question. And then I see supply chain is always scrambling to say … But no, actually, there's a little bit of both … we should actually work together and figure this out. When you provide a more collaborative approach, it’s often viewed as weakness, quite frankly.”

[10:43] “In many positions, I felt somewhat conflicted because the expected mold is very much command and control, and I am not. I am all about authentic leadership, collaboration, creativity and innovation. So I had to find a way to fit the mold, but not lose myself completely.”

[14:29] “Break through the paradigms. Stop thinking the way we always think, which is, Let's hire somebody with the same skill set in the same industry, who maybe worked in another Tier 1. Go completely different. Go outside of the industry. Know that supply chain has a heavy interaction and dependence on IT, on other functions in the organization. Look at it holistically. Bring that person in with a very different skill set and mindset, someone who understands speed and agility like we could never even think of in the automotive industry.”  

[18:09] “Supply chain clearly is where the money is.”  

You can find us here https://autosupplychainprophets.com/

We really can't predict the future because nobody can. What we can do though, is help auto manufacturers recognize prepare for in profit from whatever comes next. Auto supply chain prophets gives you timely and relevant insights and best practices from industry leaders. It's all about what's happening now in the automotive supply chain and how to prepare your organization for the future. Because the auto supply chain is where the money is.

Welcome to episode two of auto supply chain prophets. I'm Cathy Fisher, your co-host. Today, my co-hosts, Terry Onica of QAD and I are grabbing the mic from our guest host, Jan Griffiths. And we're turning the table to hear from Jan, about her career as an automotive supply chain leader. Jan, tell us how you got started in the auto supply chain initially. And then what led you to your role as Vice President of Global Supply Chain Management at a leading automotive tier one supplier?

How I started Wow, we're gonna have to go back aways for that. Well, let's go back to my farm girl days, as you know, I am indeed that rebellious, passionate farmer's daughter from Wales. And one day I was riding my pony across the field. And my mother said there was a phone call no cell phones back in those days. And she said it was a temp agency that needed somebody for BorgWarner. And I thought Borg Warner, I thought they made batteries, which is kind of funny. Now, looking back that that's what I thought maybe I had a vision of the future. I don't know. So I said, Oh, okay. So I remember coming in, you know, and I walked into BorgWarner as a temp in the purchasing department. And I walked onto that shop floor. And Cathy, I felt alive, I smelled the oil and the coolant. And this whole idea of manufacturing, I got it, it was in my blood. And I just loved it. And that's how it all began.

How amazing. You know, I actually feel the exact same way. And many years ago, when I was running the auto sports program for General Motors. In NASCAR, one of my bosses said to me, you absolutely have motor oil running through your blood. And it's because of being on the shop floor. It's so exciting, the smells and the sounds. It's just it's great. So that sounds like a really auspicious beginning to a supply chain career. What led you to continue in that supply chain?

Then BorgWarner decided they were going to send me to Muncie, Indiana on a 10-day business trip. Well, what are we looking at now, 35 years later...

You didn't go back.

I didn't go back. I didn't go back. I fell in love with the automotive industry. And I worked my way through several different tier ones. I actually jumped out of the automotive industry for a period of time. I worked for Maytag as director of Lean Sigma for their supply base, which I really, highly recommend that people who are so entrenched in automotive, take some time and work in another industry gives you a totally different perspective and allows you to come back in and challenge the things that we may not challenge because, you know, it's our world in automotive today. So I had this wonderful career, I was just so bound and determined to get to the top, I wanted to be in that C-suite no matter what. And I did it. And I got there. And I sat at that table. And it wasn't exactly what I thought it was going to be.

Wow, what does what does supply chain in the C-suite look like?

It looks like the same way that it's always looked to be perfectly honest with you. This idea that supply chain in first of all, you know, great that supply chain has a seat at the table. Because for many, many years we struggled with oh, you know we need to sit at the table. So yay. Right? Finally we got a seat at the table. Then it's all about supply chain being responsible for the suppliers and cost. It's all about cost. And we can talk about total acquisition cost. We can talk about supplier relationships, collaboration and strategy and innovation and on and on and on. But the basic systems that we have in place today haven't changed and that is cost is measured by standard cost and variance against that cost. And freight is measured by variants to a standard and premium freight and those things come together. And that's what drives the behavior in the C-suite.

So Jan, After saying that, what do you think if you are a CEO today and a tier one supplier? How would you strategically align the organization? What should they be doing going forward?

That's a great question, Terry, I think you have to go back and look at how the industry as a whole is changing, and the culture and the leadership model is changing before you can pinpoint supply chain. So it really goes back to how the industry operates, the culture that we've been working with, for the last I don't know how many decades and that is very much a command and control model. And you see that happening. Even today, you've got OEMs, many of them trying to make a difference to change the way that they operate. But then you've got Mr. Tavares, in Stellantis coming out very much with a command and control model, putting these extreme supplier terms out there. And many other things talking about driving cost, the EV costs into the supply base, it's very much command and control. And Stephen Covey says, and I love this quote, he says, quite simply, using command and control in today's world is like bringing a golf club to a tennis match. Those days are gone. They're completely gone. Some people and some companies in our automotive industry recognize that and are doing something about it, but many are not. And why should they because that model has assured their success. So they don't see the need for the change. And that's what's going to happen. Terry, we've got to change this industry right now. Not tomorrow, today.

Well, speaking of change, I'm interested to hear from your perspective, what have you seen as the evolution of supply chain in the automotive industry over your career?

In some ways, it's evolved a lot. When you talk about technology, yes, tremendous advancements and evolution and the technology side. But as we all know, the technology is only as good as the data and the information you put into it. And if you're still operating with command and control in silos, with processes that haven't changed that much, really, how far can you advance?

Yeah, absolutely. Do you recognize that there's, let's say, a level of focus about those key or essential processes of supply chain that's recognized to the level let's say, of quality processes, or even the technology development processes?

I'd love to say yes, but my experience and my interactions with my colleagues would, would imply No, because again, it goes back to cost. And I know from my experience, that the time to put the focus, the energy and the resources is during a program launch, to understand the full scope and complexity of the supply chain, and building those processes early on. And so often, we're just so quick to we got to get the thing launched, we don't spend the time to do it. Right.

Yeah, it's really interesting. What I tend to see as far as advanced product quality planning program launch, is that there is some effort in terms of sourcing and preparation of the suppliers, and of course, negotiating prices and that, but there's not as much emphasis on the other aspects of supply chain, which are equally as important, like how are we moving the material? Whether it's within our operations, or from the supplier out to the towards the customer. And even something as simple as packaging is oftentimes completely overlooked until the last minute, and then you're in a crisis, right?

Yeah. Yeah, that's exactly right.

You know, the other thing in addition to we have to change the leadership, It just drives me nuts. I still think we are a supply chain that is focused on premium freight Firefighting is our metrics and getting that, you know, premium freight to land at the customer in their cornfield, to feed parts to the organization, because we can't keep up with schedules is viewed as is the is the standard. And that's got to change. What do you think about that?

Yeah, that's a good point. Right? So there's this badge of honor. When you can be incredibly aggressive with the supplier, the more aggressive you are, the more you know, the tougher you are. That's great. You know, that's it's seen as a badge of honor. And this there's always people in an organization particularly in automotive supply chain, who are the recognized firefighters, and they're just good at it. Right. But they're obviously you know, they're very aggressive. With a supplier and there's this sort of the culture that says that if something happens with a supplier supplied part, that it's the suppliers fault immediately, immediately without question. And then I see supply chain is always scrambling to say, oh, but but but no, no, no, actually there's a little bit of both you we should actually work together and figure this out. And it when you do that when you provide a more collaborative approach is often viewed as weakness, quite frankly.

I'm interested to find out how you felt, being a leader of supply chain at a global tier one. What was that, like?

I felt, and I have, in many positions, I felt somewhat conflicted because the the expected mold is very much command and control. And I am not, I am all about authentic leadership and collaboration and creativity, and innovation. And so I had to find a way to fit the mold, but not lose myself completely. And let me give you an example of how that plays out. Back Oh, I don't even know how many years ago, maybe 15 years ago, resin prices started to rise. And I was dealing with DuPont recognized global resin supplier. And my boss expected me to have DuPont in the office, beating them beating their brains out every single day, right. At that point, we were talking about going into allocation. Beating somebody brains out for price and delivery is not the way to get something from somebody, you had to sit down and understand their agenda, your agenda and find a way forward. It's not about being right or wrong. It's about finding the right business outcome. So I would hold those meetings off site. So they couldn't see that I was actually having a reasonable discussion. I look back now. And I think, what was I thinking, if that happened today, I would be Hey, this is the way I'm operating. This is the way we're doing it. But you know, when you're earlier in your career, you don't have that strength to be able to do that.

Yeah, now oftentimes feel like we don't always apply over to the supply chain. Some of those great lessons learned from the manufacturing front. I'm just sitting here thinking to myself, I always used to say and my position in purchasing. Let's go to the supplier and I used to spend 90% of my time at the suppliers because we talk about gamba. Go to the shop floor gamba, go to the supplier be in their environment and understand what are the constraints and risks and issues that they're dealing with? That could have an impact on us? And how can we work together towards success for both?

What do you think about the silos? Did you experience that Cathy, and I really believe we just got to rip apart these. This philosophy, we work in silos that quality, you stick in your little area and supply chain, you stick in your area, and IT hopefully you can figure out how to make all the data work. What do you think about that? What was your experiences in that area?

It goes back to leadership, right? And it's about the blame game. And it's about, okay, let me blame somebody else so that I can look good. And I have never supported that type of leadership model. And people were sometimes aghast sometimes that when I would dump dirty laundry on the table and say, Okay, this is a problem, we got to figure it out. And that's that silo mentality is not going to move us forward in the future, we have to break through, think about we talk about a supply chain ecosystem, an ecosystem, think if you visualize it in your mind, it's a bunch of nodes that are connected. And think about it as at least a living, breathing ecosystem. They're all dependent on each other. There is not command and control there is not hierarchy, if we start to think of supply chain as this living, breathing ecosystem where we're all dependent on each other, that would change the way that we behave.

That's excellent advice. I wanted to also ask you along those lines, what advice do you have to CEOs in the automotive industry in terms of elevating supply chain as more of an ecosystem.

Break through the paradigms. Stop thinking the way that we always think which is let's hire somebody with this skill set the same skill set in the same industry that's maybe worked in another tier one. Go completely different go outside of the industry know that supply chain is a heavy, heavy interaction and dependence on IT on other functions in the organization. Look at it holistically. Bring that person in with a very different skill set and mindset. Somebody who understands speed and agility, like we could never even think of in the automotive industry, we talk about Amazon as being the example. I mean, you've only got to think about buying something, I swear it shows up on my doorstep the next day, that we need people that can think like that, put them at the table, on the seat in the C-suite reporting directly to the CEO, and make sure that you create a leadership culture, an environment where everybody can thrive.

What's your prediction? In the future? Yeah, look out further. When you look at the new startups, whether an OEM startup or a battery startup against the traditional OEMs, to traditional suppliers, what do you do you think they're going to do something different? Or do you think they're going to break this mold? And do it better? Is that a threat? Do you think toward the industry?

Yeah, they've broken the mold. The EV startups, so not a traditional OEM started from scratch. And they started with a technology mindset. So it's technology that they're putting in something called a car, the traditional OEMs, or car manufacturers that vehicle manufacturers trying to add in technology. And that's a very, very different model. And when I interviewed Stefan Krause, who's a leader in the EV space, he said, you know, what OEMs have to do is pretty much blow up their legacy organizations and start afresh, to be very difficult to transition into this new leadership model.

Yeah, it comes back to this idea of an ecosystem, because when we recognize all of the different players now that are going to be involved, we're no longer really talking about that supply chain, who's my customer and who's my supplier, but we're having to deal with so many different partners, especially on the technology front, that there has to be that that living organism that you're talking about. So I think that's a great analogy.

To think can based on your career, that CEOs didn't place enough emphasis on really using systems and automation throughout the entire organization, especially at the assembly plants. Do you think that was something that was missed in the past that we need to correct in the future? I think

there was an this would be a huge generalization, but I think there was an underestimation of the impact of supply chain to the bottom line. And if you assume that it's all about just pure peace, price and premium freight, and that's where you're going to fight the battles, then you're gonna miss a whole section of what supply chain is all about. And then you're not going to put the resources into it because you know, if you can't draw that line to piece price and premium freight, you're not going to do it.

So Jan, what is the one action that we want to encourage automotive manufacturers to take today in order to ensure a successful supply chain in the future?

To recognize that supply chain clearly is, where the money is?

Are you ready to find the money in your supply chain? Visit www.autosupplychainprophets.com to learn how, or click the link in the show notes below.