183: A New Way of Thinking, with E2open

Today I'm delighted to be joined by E2open, a company who believes that the level of agility required to capture growth opportunities – plus the resiliency to manage today's risks – demands a new way of thinking. Their range of intelligent applications allow supply chain leaders to make the best business decisions using real-time information from across their entire internal and external ecosystems. From channel shaping and demand sensing, to business planning and global trade management, E2open offers a full suite of intelligent applications for every stage of your businesses supply chain journey. They aim to unlock your potential with their expertise, delivering you end-to-end visibility, planning and execution, all in real time. I'm joined by Michael Farlekas, President and Chief Executive Officer at E2open, to talk about why the company is a market-leader, the impact of issues like COVID and Brexit on supply chain and why they chose 2021 to take E2open public.   IN THIS EPISODE WE DISCUSS: [07.07] A closer look at what E2open does, and their recent big announcement. "We help our customers to connect what is really a disconnected world." [09.39] Why E2open chose 2021 to take their business public. [11.31] How E2open was founded and why it led to a continuing culture of collaboration. "Collaboration is the foundation of our business." [14.23] Michael's advice for businesses considering the route of mergers or acquisitions. "How you technically integrate is the foundation, but it goes much deeper than that – you also need to consider go to market, cultural and back office integration." [18.14] Why visibility is a growing supply chain trend, and how you create it. "Visibility is what you get when you have a well-constructed supply chain architecture." [22.28] How customer demand drives business, and how E2open's software can deliver connectivity to help create a seamless and proactive supply chain, from sales predictions to inventory management. [25.03] E2open's COVID experience, how they helped their customers and Michael's reflections on how the pandemic has impacted the future of the industry. [28.14] A customer success case study. [29.54] From an increase in ocean shopping to more manufacturing, Michael's trends and predictions for 2021 and beyond. [35.21] The future for E2open.   RESOURCES AND LINKS MENTIONED: Head over to E2open's website to find out more and discover how they could help you too. Check out our other podcasts HERE.