I turn 65 on July 21st. The other day, thanks to a post and tag from Tom Craig, I received an early birthday present.
The gift to which I am referring came in the form of two of three young Professors whom I have never met or talked to in the past – by the way, one reached out to connect on LinkedIn, getting IT! When I say getting IT, I am talking about expanding their understanding of using an agent-based model to enable procurement to finally leverage technology to deliver the long-promised “technology” results for which our industry has been looking for decades.
Here are excerpts from the discussion stream. By the way, be sure to follow the three professors – I know I will be following them closely:
Hafez Shurrab – Assistant Professor @ Penn State | PhD, Supply Chain Management
Dr. Fabienne Chedid – Assistant Professor of Operations Management & Logistics
Amer Jazairy – Assistant Professor of Supply Chain Management at Texas A&M University
Added Note: Be sure to check out the comments from Per Starup Sennicksen in the same discussion stream.
Strategic Advisor/Analyst Specializing in Emerging AI Tech, Sales and Marketing (Procurement) Thinkers360 Top 50 Global Thought Leaders & Influencers on Procurement! (April 2021)
The short answer, Tom Craig, is problem-solving using an agent-based versus equation-based model regardless of technology.
⚡ The above was accomplished in the late 1990s through an agent-based approach to solution modeling. Yes, the technology was built using advanced self-learning algorithms and AI. But the tech wasn’t the star—it was the expertise behind the technology.
⚡ 10 years from now, we will look back at today’s technology with the same dismissive attitude we now have for floppy drives, 2800bpms modems, and dot matrix printers.
ERP, SaaS, digital transformation, data intelligence, and AI alone will not solve problems. They are tools of enablement only after a solution has been found, not the source of the solution.
Assistant Professor @ Penn State | PhD, Supply Chain Management
We are (Dr. Amer Jazairy, Dr. Fabienne Chedid, and myself included) doing research on this hot topic, and we are happy to collaborate with those interested. Currently, this big question is being broken down into smaller function-/process-specific questions. Instead of talking about AI for the entire supply chain domain, the way forward is to focus on specific potentials, prerequisites, and consequences for specific business processes. We focus on supply chain planning, and we’ll let you know once our work is published. It has many answers to your question in the context of S&OP.
Strategic Advisor/Analyst Specializing in Emerging AI Tech, Sales and Marketing (Procurement) Thinkers360 Top 50 Global Thought Leaders & Influencers on Procurement! (April 2021)
Hafez Shurrab, I have just one question – are you using an agent-based model?
Assistant Professor @ Penn State | PhD, Supply Chain Management
Thank you for your question. Right now, our research is mainly empirical. We’re focusing on identifying and analyzing gaps within the supply chain. We aren’t yet at the stage where we’re using simulation models like agent-based models to explore the consequences or emergent behaviors. Honestly, the field isn’t quite mature enough to support comprehensive simulations due to the complexity and variability in real-world supply chains. Our goal at this point is to gather solid data and insights that will eventually allow us to run those simulations. If you have any other questions or need more details, I’m happy to chat further.
Strategic Advisor/Analyst Specializing in Emerging AI Tech, Sales and Marketing (Procurement) Thinkers360 Top 50 Global Thought Leaders & Influencers on Procurement! (April 2021)
Agent-based modeling at the stage you are discussing is too late. In short, you don’t require a simulation model. You require a manual process structure that considers the unique operating attributes of disparate stakeholders.
By the way, the model I developed in the late 1990s and early 2000s was based on my theory of strand commonality, in which attributes within seemingly disparate events or data streams are actually related. My work was funded by the government’s Scientific Research & Experimental Development Program (SR&ED), which resulted in my creating a self-learning algorithm AI platform to procure MRO parts for the DND’s military bases nationwide.
I sold that company in 2001 for $12 million, and to this day I regret it 😉
Procurement Insights
Three Professors Walk Into A Discussion On Procurement . . .n
Posted on July 10, 2024
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I turn 65 on July 21st. The other day, thanks to a post and tag from Tom Craig, I received an early birthday present.
The gift to which I am referring came in the form of two of three young Professors whom I have never met or talked to in the past – by the way, one reached out to connect on LinkedIn, getting IT! When I say getting IT, I am talking about expanding their understanding of using an agent-based model to enable procurement to finally leverage technology to deliver the long-promised “technology” results for which our industry has been looking for decades.
Here are excerpts from the discussion stream. By the way, be sure to follow the three professors – I know I will be following them closely:
Hafez Shurrab – Assistant Professor @ Penn State | PhD, Supply Chain Management
Dr. Fabienne Chedid – Assistant Professor of Operations Management & Logistics
Amer Jazairy – Assistant Professor of Supply Chain Management at Texas A&M University
Added Note: Be sure to check out the comments from Per Starup Sennicksen in the same discussion stream.
Discussion Stream Excerpts
Jon W. Hansen
Strategic Advisor/Analyst Specializing in Emerging AI Tech, Sales and Marketing (Procurement) Thinkers360 Top 50 Global Thought Leaders & Influencers on Procurement! (April 2021)
The short answer, Tom Craig, is problem-solving using an agent-based versus equation-based model regardless of technology.
Here are two excerpts from a recent post regarding the above – https://bit.ly/3RVVO5h
⚡ The above was accomplished in the late 1990s through an agent-based approach to solution modeling. Yes, the technology was built using advanced self-learning algorithms and AI. But the tech wasn’t the star—it was the expertise behind the technology.
⚡ 10 years from now, we will look back at today’s technology with the same dismissive attitude we now have for floppy drives, 2800bpms modems, and dot matrix printers.
ERP, SaaS, digital transformation, data intelligence, and AI alone will not solve problems. They are tools of enablement only after a solution has been found, not the source of the solution.
Hafez Shurrab
Assistant Professor @ Penn State | PhD, Supply Chain Management
We are (Dr. Amer Jazairy, Dr. Fabienne Chedid, and myself included) doing research on this hot topic, and we are happy to collaborate with those interested. Currently, this big question is being broken down into smaller function-/process-specific questions. Instead of talking about AI for the entire supply chain domain, the way forward is to focus on specific potentials, prerequisites, and consequences for specific business processes. We focus on supply chain planning, and we’ll let you know once our work is published. It has many answers to your question in the context of S&OP.
Jon W. Hansen
Strategic Advisor/Analyst Specializing in Emerging AI Tech, Sales and Marketing (Procurement) Thinkers360 Top 50 Global Thought Leaders & Influencers on Procurement! (April 2021)
Hafez Shurrab, I have just one question – are you using an agent-based model?
Hafez Shurrab
Assistant Professor @ Penn State | PhD, Supply Chain Management
Thank you for your question. Right now, our research is mainly empirical. We’re focusing on identifying and analyzing gaps within the supply chain. We aren’t yet at the stage where we’re using simulation models like agent-based models to explore the consequences or emergent behaviors. Honestly, the field isn’t quite mature enough to support comprehensive simulations due to the complexity and variability in real-world supply chains. Our goal at this point is to gather solid data and insights that will eventually allow us to run those simulations. If you have any other questions or need more details, I’m happy to chat further.
Jon W. Hansen
Strategic Advisor/Analyst Specializing in Emerging AI Tech, Sales and Marketing (Procurement) Thinkers360 Top 50 Global Thought Leaders & Influencers on Procurement! (April 2021)
Have a read of this, Hafez Shurrab – https://bit.ly/3FBnFRr
Agent-based modeling at the stage you are discussing is too late. In short, you don’t require a simulation model. You require a manual process structure that considers the unique operating attributes of disparate stakeholders.
By the way, the model I developed in the late 1990s and early 2000s was based on my theory of strand commonality, in which attributes within seemingly disparate events or data streams are actually related. My work was funded by the government’s Scientific Research & Experimental Development Program (SR&ED), which resulted in my creating a self-learning algorithm AI platform to procure MRO parts for the DND’s military bases nationwide.
I sold that company in 2001 for $12 million, and to this day I regret it 😉
Outcome – They Get It!
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