TOP SUPPLY CHAIN LEADERS 2023
Annette Marie Danek-Akey
EVP Chief Supply Chain Officer Penguin Random House
Annette Danek-Akey is someone who has always loved books and spent her childhood in the library. In middle school, she even read a book on how to read faster. Her supply chain memoir began 28 years ago when she had the opportunity to work in publishing and improve the supply chain for her favorite authors and bookstores. She grew to love supply chain and talk about it so much, that her children made her an Instagram handle of @supplychainmom.
Message to the Supply Chain Community
This award is a tribute to the impact I’ve made on ESG initiatives at Penguin Random House and in my volunteer Board role at MHI. At Penguin Random House we reduced lead times to our customers which in turn made us more sustainable in terms of inventory levels in our total supply chain. In order to achieve this lead time reduction we needed to invest in material handling technologies and systems. At MHI I was responsible for developing the strategic directive focused on sustainability which resulted in the development of an overall action plan that included MHI’s 2023 Annual Industry Report – The Responsible Supply Chain, a sustainability education video series, a sustainability keynote panel and the launch of a sustainability training program which is available to the MHI members companies. As a result of my work at MHI, as we continue to invest in more material handling systems at Penguin Random House, we’ll be implementing solutions that are also more sustainable.
Our profession will champion ESG and change the world. My message is to never stop learning, learn from each other, find your diamonds in the rough, and teach them what you know. Grow outside of your own industry, volunteer your time, teach a class, and mentor as many people as you can along the way. This way you will always be surrounded by great people.
CASE STUDY
“Increase diversity and inclusion in the four main U.S. operations centers, each located outside of major cities, in a more rural farming/suburban environment, where the demographics are historically less diverse. We wanted and needed to do this for our Authors, our communities, and our employees as we believe culture is a verb. We are committed to fostering our DEI values: equitable practices, unbiased support, open communication, and perseverance.”
