After a crisis: Operational restart and contingency planning in manufacturing

Author's Biography

Terry Onica is Director of Automotive at QAD and responsible for global marketing activities including strategy and positioning, product and offering, people and knowledge, and field and sales marketing support for the automotive vertical. Terry works in close concert with customers to drive best practices and earn preferred supplier status. She also is an industry leader in the development and global adoption of supply chain industry standards and best practices. Prior to joining QAD, Terry worked at GM, Ford and Johnson Controls. She has been immersed in the automotive supply chain and technology space throughout her entire career. Currently, Terry is an active member of the Automotive Industry Action Group (AIAG) Supply Chain Steering Committee. Terry is one of the authors of the Global Materials Management Operations Guideline/Logistics Evaluation (MMOG/LE) which is used by thousands of automotive suppliers globally. She has been awarded several times by AIAG and Odette for driving the development of global supply chain standards in the areas of assessments, key performance indicators, supplier agreements and electronic data exchange (EDI). Terry has been named a Pro to Know by Supply & Demand Chain Executive magazine on multiple occasions. The Pro to Know award is given to the manufacturing industry’s leading innovators who are working to advance supply chain performance and related technology. In 2018, Terry was a recipient of Crain’s Detroit Women in Technology and the Stevie Bronze Award for Women in Technology. In October 2021, she was inducted into the Women in Manufacturing Hall of Fame. Terry is a mentor at Wayne State University for supply chain students to help those who are firstgeneration graduates in their families.

Cathy Fisher is Founder and President of Quistem, LLC. With over 35 years’ respected expertise in the automotive industry, Cathy helps manufacturers throughout the automotive supply chain ‘find hidden money’ in their operations, eliminate customer complaints permanently and develop a proactive quality culture to achieve rapid business growth. She started her automotive career with General Motors in the 1980s, working for the AC Spark Plug division in Flint, MI, where she led product development efforts to support GM-sponsored NASCAR teams. In 1990, Cathy joined ITT-Teves to help with their launch of anti-lock brake technology in the US automotive market, including assisting with two plant start-ups. In 1993, Cathy became a member of BMW’s plant start-up team in Greer, SC, where she led the establishment of BMW’s North American supply base in support of the 318, 325 and Z3 Roadster vehicle launches. Cathy has worked with over 80 of the top 100 global original equipment manufacturers (OEM) suppliers as well as throughout the automotive supply chain, helping these organisations turn their management systems into ‘money-making machines’ while providing best-in-class quality and continuously enhancing customer satisfaction. Today, Cathy shares her automotive and plant start-up expertise with organisations which are expanding their business into the automotive sector, to become premier suppliers to the industry. Her proven approach to developing a proactive quality culture has been described by her automotive clients as ‘a licence to print money’ in their design and manufacturing operations.

Lori Sisk is a full-time Assistant Professor of Teaching of Global Supply Chain Management at Wayne State University for over five years and taught as an adjunct for eight years. She has over 28 years’ experience with growing responsibilities in purchasing and supply management both as a practitioner and a consultant. As a practitioner, she led teams to save millions of dollars through effective supplier relationships, Kaizen activities and negotiations. As a consultant, she trained and led teams who effectively improved Fortune 100 companies’ bottom line through process improvements and technology implementations to track and sustain savings achieved. Lori is a Certified Professional in Supply Management (CPSM) and a Lifetime Certified Purchasing Manager (CPM). She holds an MBA and a BSBA with a major in procurement and materials management from Bowling Green State University. She is also Green Belt Six Sigma Certified. In addition to her role as an Assistant Professor of Teaching, she is adviser to the GSCMA (Global Supply Chain Management (Student) Organization), Supply Chain Advisory Council Co-Leader, programme coordinator of WSU/AIAG Supply Chain Certificate Program, AIAG SC Steering Committee member, career coach and a member of several committees. She was awarded Inspirational Teacher of the Year Award 2021 by Wayne State and Teacher of the Year Award 2018 by the Denver Transportation Club. Lori is very active in her local community and has previously been president of Kiwanis of Troy, which provides support to the Key Clubs at high schools and improves children’s lives one community at a time. As a member of Troy Women’s Association (TWA), she is the chair of the school project and a member of Troy Chamber of Commerce and Detroit Chamber of Commerce. During 30 years’ membership of ISM (Institute of Supply Management), Lori has been active at national and regional levels, is currently vice president of the SE Michigan chapter and was its president in 1999 and 2018. Previous awards include the Leadership District Person of the Year and the Public Relations District Person of the Year.