{"podcast":{"title":"The Future of Supply Chain","slug":"the-future-of-supply-chain-5986965","podcast_index_feed_id":5986965,"rss_url":"https://anchor.fm/s/10cb2bb84/podcast/rss","website_url":"https://www.sap.com","image_url":"https://d3t3ozftmdmh3i.cloudfront.net/staging/podcast_uploaded_nologo/44980073/e4bc95413d8b05ed.png","author":"SAP SE","episode_count":174,"summary":"The Future of Supply Chain podcast is a show hosted by Richard Howells, Sin To, and Oyku Ilgar. The trio discusses hot topics, best practices, and the latest innovations to deliver a risk-resilient and sustainable supply chain. The show features interviews with experts from the world of supply chain, sustainability, AI and automation, who will address the issues of today and tomorrow. This is an ideal podcast for supply chain, R&D, manufacturing, logistics, and operations executives to learn and share ideas and best practices with their peers.","last_synced_at":"2026-06-22T08:17:58.095086+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-future-of-supply-chain-5986965"},"episode":{"title":"Episode 163: Supply Chain Logistics with Westernacher's Rafael Avila","slug":"episode-163-supply-chain-logistics-with-westernacher-s-rafael-avila","published_at":"2026-06-08T11:00:01+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-future-of-supply-chain-5986965/episode-163-supply-chain-logistics-with-westernacher-s-rafael-avila","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-future-of-supply-chain-5986965","url":"https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/future-of-supply-chain/episodes/Episode-163-Supply-Chain-Logistics-with-Westernachers-Rafael-Avila-e3kg5g5","audio_url":"https://anchor.fm/s/10cb2bb84/podcast/play/121164741/https%3A%2F%2Fd3ctxlq1ktw2nl.cloudfront.net%2Fstaging%2F2026-5-8%2F74852d18-a381-e2b7-8d5b-c6acba980eda.mp3","summary":"Today, we speak with Rafael Avila, who discusses how AI-powered logistics improves visibility, reduces emissions, and helps companies balance cost, service, and sustainability in transportation planning. Download the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ episode transcript ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ===== In this episode, Rafael Avila of Westernacher joins us to discuss the future of logistics. He explains how AI can make emissions visible earlier, improve mode and carrier decisions, reduce waste, and support better service. The conversation also explores workforce shifts and the importance of end-to-end supply chain visibility. ===== Guest: Rafael Avila, Supply Chain and Logistics leader, Westernacher Consulting Rafael Avila is a Supply Chain and Logistics leader specializing in SAP Transportation Management and end-to-end supply chain transformation at Westernacher Consulting. With over a decade of experience, he has worked across global organizations to design and deliver solutions that improve transportation planning, execution, and visibility across complex networks. A former IBM consulting leader, Rafael spent years supporting large-scale S/4HANA programs and shaping supply chain strategies across industries including consumer products, pharmaceuticals, automotive, and mining. His work has focused on helping organizations connect transportation with warehousing, trade, and order management to unlock more integrated and resilient supply chains. Today, Rafael continues to work closely with clients on modern logistics challenges, with a strong focus on simplifying complex topics, driving practical outcomes, and exploring how technologies like AI are reshaping transportation and supply chain decision-making. Host 1: Richard Howells ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Richard Howells⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ has been working in the Supply Chain Managem…","meta_description":"Today, we speak with Rafael Avila, who discusses how AI-powered logistics improves visibility, reduces emissions, and helps companies balance cost, servic…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":1614,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-future-of-supply-chain-5986965/episodes/episode-163-supply-chain-logistics-with-westernacher-s-rafael-avila/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-future-of-supply-chain-5986965/episode-163-supply-chain-logistics-with-westernacher-s-rafael-avila.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}