Michelle Livingstone is the Vice President of Transportation for The Home Depot. She is a member of RILA's Transportation and Infrastructure Committee (TRIC) and a roundtable discussion leader at next month's 2010 RILA Women in Logistics Networking Event.
1. Tell me about your first job in retail.My first job in retail was as a cashier at Marsh Supermarkets in Indianapolis, Indiana. I worked at Marsh for five and a half years and was able to pay 100 percent of my college tuition at Indiana University in Bloomington by working weekends and summers.
2. What excites you most about the field of supply chain?Supply chain is a very exciting field because it is different every day. There are so many ways to have a positive impact on the business by improving service levels and reducing costs. What we do also has a direct impact on customers, from ensuring product is on the shelf, to letting a customer know when their home delivery will arrive so they can plan accordingly.
3. What is the biggest challenge your supply chain department faces right now?The Home Depot is in the process of totally transforming our supply chain. To achieve this, all areas of the logistics side of the business are being assessed and enhanced. We are moving away from a decentralized model where approximately 75 percent of our volume shipped from vendors direct-to-store (DTS) or through a transit facility. A centralized inventory management and replenishment model is quickly being executed to support our stores and customers. As a part of this, we are creating Rapid Deployment Centers (RDCs) to accelerate the flow of product through the supply chain to our stores. Twelve facilities are currently open and by the end of 2010 100 percent of our U.S. stores will be served via this part of our distribution platform.
Specifically within Transportation, we are implementing a Transportation Management System (TMS). The Transportation Procurement model allows us to expedite the carrier sourcing and selection process which is significant improvement based upon the amount of change in our network. We also implemented the TMS Outbound module and are planning store deliveries from 32 distribution centers. This allows us to optimize shipments from our DCs to stores by better cubing out the trailer and reducing miles. We are now piloting inbound shipments from vendors.
4. What new or recent trend will have the biggest impact on supply chain, and why?It isn’t exactly a new trend, but the biggest impact on supply chain is visibility. Having visibility and knowing exactly where product or shipments are in the supply chain is critical to success. Improved visibility allows retailers to know what levers to pull in order to improve service levels and reduce costs.
5. Who do you feel is the most influential person in the supply chain field, and why?I don’t feel there is a single, most influential person in the supply chain field. We are very fortunate the field of supply chain has become well respected and, in turn, has attracted a number of outstanding individuals in industry, academia and in the government. We are most influential when we work together.
6. What is your favorite quote?“If you’re not living on the edge, you are taking up too much space.” ~ Anonymous. A former colleague at Kraft Foods used to say it and I have adopted it as my own.
7. What’s your favorite non-job-related pastime?I love to ride jet skis. We have a house on Lake Hartwell and I ride every weekend in the summer.
8. What’s one thing your co-workers don’t know about you?I christened the NYK Atlas, a 6,300 TEU ship that was the first to use Alternative Maritime Power™, or “AMP™,” a one-of-a-kind air quality program that focuses on reducing emissions from container vessels docked at the Port of Los Angeles.
9. What’s the last book you read? / What book are you reading now?I’m currently reading Flawless Execution, by James D. Murphy.
10. If you could invite any four people (dead or alive) to a dinner party, who would you invite and why?My sister – she was my best friend and mentor, as well as one of the most intelligent folks I have ever known, who lost the battle to cancer.
Helen Keller – her strength and ability to overcome adversity is unmatched.
Warren Buffet – love his down-to-earth approach to business, not to mention his ability to turn (nearly) everything he touches to gold.
Margaret Thatcher – a powerful leader who was well ahead of her time
Bonus: Are you a dog, cat, bird or fish person?I am a dog, cat and a fish person. I have two Australian shepherds named CJ and Boomer; Sophie, a black and white tabby; and Bubbles, a beta fish.