Maine Pointe In The News

Bowen’s recognition highlights accomplishments, Total Value Optimization and Maine Pointe’s ability to address the most complex global supply chain challenges

As a featured winner of CEO Today magazine’s 2019 Management Consulting Award, CEO Steven Bowen was highlighted in the publication’s Winners Edition, in which his profile included a highlight of his landmark book, “Total Value Optimization: Transforming Your Global Supply Chain into a Competitive Weapon.” The TVO book introduces a transformative methodology for end-to-end supply chain collaboration and integration known as Total Value Optimization (TVO)™, which focuses on dynamically anticipating and meeting demand by synchronizing the buy-make-move-fulfill supply chain to deliver the greatest value to customers and stakeholders, at the lowest cost to business.

Originally Published in Global Trade Magazine

This article talks about digital transformation, and how technology serves a vital role for all parties along the end-to-end supply chain. The author quotes from Steve Bowen’s book, Total Value Optimization, talking about the need to get all trading partners to rally around the same objectives rather than splitting into functional silos, which Steve calls "one of the most pervasive and profound barriers to real competitive advantage in every company."

We hardly need reminding of the global challenges facing companies today, from increased competition from low cost foreign competitors, to tariffs and changing regulations. As if that weren’t challenging enough, there is the need to keep abreast of technology innovations such as digital business networks, artificial intelligence and blockchain, that are giving startups the opportunity to leapfrog more traditional and mature companies. Within this landscape, companies need to transact with more and more companies, using different systems and often in different time and regulatory zones, which increases the complexity of doing business exponentially.

So, how do you address these issues while modernizing and continuing your business?

With the pending March 1 deadline of the trade war "truce" between the US and China, Maine Pointe CEO Steve Bowen said that some companies have made the mistake of backing off of their contingency planning, but preparation is essential . 

Originally Published in Supply Chain Dive

There are opportunities hidden in the current trade uncertainties, economic populism and trade wars. In Kate Vitasek's column for SupplyChainBrain, she notes now is the time for supply chain optimization. Maine Pointe CEO Steve Bowen notes one of the most important factors in this environment is establishing a level of trust – a big challenge given that tariffs, according to Steve, are not conducive to cooperation. To achieve that level of cooperation, Kate suggests supply chain partners have to move away from their traditional transaction-based model that focuses on cost savings, to a model focusing on value creation instead.  

Originally Published in Supply Chain Brain

In the current climate of “economic populism,” tit-for-tat tariffs and the uncertainties surrounding Brexit, which can instigate trade wars and the disruption of global trade deals in Europe and the Pacific rim, buyers, sellers and their supply chains have an opportunity to step up and cope with major challenges through cooperation, transparency and flexibility.