The Zero100 Podcast

Think consumers just don’t get supply chain? Think again. Nearly half belong to personas that see its impact – and that awareness is changing how price increases land, how trust holds, and what “value” really means. On this episode, VP, Data & Analytics Cody Stack sits down with Chief Research Officer Kevin O’Marah and Director, Data Science Julia Dahlgren to break down what Zero100 learned from our survey of 14,000 shoppers across seven countries. For leaders still anchored to shelf price alone, this conversation offers a clearer view of what shapes consumer decisions as prices rise – and practical moves to use now.
The big question: Can supply chains under pressure keep customer trust? (01:15)
Inside Zero100’s 14,000-consumer survey – and where the data surprised us (02:23)
Breaking the myth of “the customer”: five emerging personas (04:21)
What shoppers are trading off and what’s keeping them loyal (11:54)
Keeping customers in a higher-price world: High-impact moves for supply chain leaders (18:36)
Where supply chain awareness goes next (22:27)

Is your annual planning cycle obsolete before it's approved? This week, Zero100 VP, Research & Advisory Services Lauren Acoba, VP, Research, Kelly Coutinho, and Principal, Research, Justin Gillebo break down Continuous Planning, a new operating model that shortens the distance between signal and response. They explore what Continuous Planning is (and what it isn’t), where AI genuinely helps, and why coordination matters as decision cycles compress. A practical guide to spotting bottlenecks, evolving planning roles beyond spreadsheets, and knowing where to start.
So… what is Continuous Planning? (01:53)
The Covid inflection point – and why legacy planning struggles under faster cycles (03:22)
Continuous Planning as a system, not a tool (04:57)
AI: The magic ingredient for modern planning (06:12)
Why planning speed needs orchestration (07:13)
The evolution of the planner: From spreadsheet mechanic to orchestrator (13:10)
How Novartis is making Continuous Planning work in the wild (17:40)
A practical path to Continuous Planning (18:50)
What changes next (and what won’t) (21:45)

Tariffs dominated headlines. AI moved from pilot to production. Automation got real. But what did 2025 actually look like for operators on the ground? New Balance COO Dave Wheeler joins Lauren Acoba, VP, Research Advisory Services at Zero100, to reflect on a year of “unpredictable disruption” – and reveal why the companies that thrived weren't chasing efficiency at all costs. From 806,000 square feet of robotic warehousing to the irreplaceable value of human craftsmanship, this is the 2025 year in review you need to hear.
2025 in two words: “Unpredictable disruption” (00:54)
Made in USA for 75 years – validation or new challenges? (1:41)
Private ownership's long-term advantage in a quarterly-obsessed world (3:19)
AI moves from pilots to real wins in supplier complexity and sourcing (05:49)
Staying the course on sustainability as the pendulum swings (07:51)
Robots, AVs, and 100K units per day: Inside New Balance’s new Salt Lake City DC (10:35)
What New Balance will never automate: the craftsmanship that defines the brand (13:06)
The skills gap reality check (14:38)
The 2026 defining move? Breaking out of operations’ four walls (20:00)

For over a decade, IoT failed to live up to the hype. Now? It's quietly become one of the most transformational forces in operations — not because the buzz came back, but because sensors got cheap, 5G arrived, and edge computing actually works. Join Zero100's VP, Research Advisory Services Lauren Acoba and Principals, Research Caroline Chumakov and Jenna Fink as they unpack why visibility tech is suddenly delivering ROI, where companies are still collecting data they'll never use, and how the best operators are moving from "find this thing" to preventing problems before they happen.
Why IoT endured when other hyped tech faded (1:01)
RFID vs BLE: When 4 cents beats $30 (03:36)
How edge computing finally unlocked IoT's promise (07:11)
IoT wins from Caterpillar, Maersk and Walmart (9:41)
Why connectivity is now a strategic differentiator (13:49)
"Instrumentation without intention": The expensive data trap (15:08)
Measuring ROI — beyond visibility (17:55)

What did Zero100 get right about 2025 — and what's coming in 2026? Chief Content Officer Matt Davis sits down with VP, Research Advisory Services Lauren Acoba and Principal Research Caroline Chumakov to grade last year's boldest predictions before mapping the forces that will reshape supply chains over the next 12 months. From AI agents moving into planning and sourcing, to clean energy as competitive advantage, to India's manufacturing rise and humanoid robots entering the workforce— this is your annual roadmap of trends worth watching and moves to make now.
Grading 2025: How Zero100's predictions held up (01:43)
Can AI move faster without cleaner data? Spoiler: probably not (05:25)
Nuclear's next mission: Powering the data center boom (06:29)
How AI agents are reshaping planning, sourcing, and orchestration roles (10:31)
Could India be manufacturing’s next superstar? (16:34)
Humanoids find their footing in real-life operations (18:36)