Insightful Discussion with Paul Kretz: SCM Head at Church & Dwight Shares His Experiences!
At our platform, we share experiences and insights from experts across various industries worldwide. To further enrich your supply chain knowledge, here's an interview with a high-caliber leader in the field, Paul Kretz.
Paul has worked with multiple companies, starting off with a diploma in Industrial Engineering and a Business degree. His career has taken him on a journey through automotive parts manufacturing, third-party logistics, contract manufacturing, and retail logistics, among others. Throughout this journey, he gained expertise in lean operations, logistics costing, WMS installation, and much more.
One of Paul's most significant accomplishments was turning around a disastrous warehouse operation in Mexico. With a budget of $1.5M, new racking, a WMS, over 32k locations, and process improvements using six sigma tools, Paul and his team managed to fix the situation and impress everyone at the site. They even saved $400k from the initial budget.
The supply chain landscape has transformed significantly since Paul started his career. Once upon a time, the terms like "Supply Chain" and "C-level Executives" did not even exist. Now, supply chain needs to be a competitive advantage, commanding Board level scrutiny.
In Paul's opinion, the key change is the move towards optimization rather than minimization. Supply chain leaders need to understand how to trade off inventory and transport costs, find the lowest points on the cost curve, and make informed decisions using advanced supply chain tools. Moreover, a company-specific training is essential for Supply Chain personnel, as the skills required are transferable, but the tools and processes differ between companies.
Paul emphasized the importance of balanced, relevant, and valid metrics, having a hint of paranoia, enjoying the work, and always striving to be a great leader. Today, mental health issues are an increasingly pressing concern, and Paul believes that Supply Chain and Change Leadership have an essential role in addressing it. By creating work schedules that accommodate doctor visits, training leaders to help people with mental issues, and understanding best practices, the supply chain industry can foster mentally healthy environments for employees.
In conclusion, Paul is an accomplished professional who has worked tirelessly to optimize supply chains and drive positive change in the industry. Whether it's handling complex projects, overcoming challenges, or training future supply chain leaders, Paul is always up for the task. You can find more about Paul by connecting with him on LinkedIn.
- Paul Kretz, a esteemed leader in supply chain management, has gained expertise in various aspects of logistics such as transportation, warehousing, and distribution over his extensive career in multiple industries.
- Paul's impressive accomplishment includes turning around a struggling warehouse operation in Mexico by implementing cost-effective strategies like six sigma tools, new racking, and WMS, resulting in substantial savings.
- The landscape of supply chain management has evolved significantly since Paul started his career, making it a critical competitive advantage not just a operational function, necessitating boards level scrutiny.
- Paul Kretz emphasized the importance of developing company-specific training for supply chain personnel, employing advanced tools, cultivating balance, relevance, and valid metrics in decision making, and addressing mental health issues in the industry through flexible work schedules, leadership training, and best practices implementation.
