Carlos Perico of ProcureAbility talks about supply chain resilience in 2026; tariffs & disruption; supplier relationships; & key strategies for the future.

[03.47] An introduction to Carlos, and how his international experiences helped shape his career.

"I'm passionate about travel, culture, food – and my career has supported that... My career has been very relationship driven, and that international exposure has helped me tremendously."

[07.40] An overview of ProcureAbility – who they are, what they do, and how they help their customers.

[09.11] The current landscape of ongoing disruption, the biggest industry challenges in 2026, and Carlos's advice to help businesses stay on top.

"Change is the only constant… We're getting more resilient – because of practice! But the impact is real."

[15.16] What supply chain resilience really means in 2026, the power of strategic partnerships, and the importance of traceability.

"It means knowing your risk and how you can manage it. And it implies you understand there's disruption ahead – in supply chain, we can't be naïve… 'Things will change and I need to adapt' should be your operational model."

"You need to have strategic partners. You need to understand your supply chain… Can we invest together, share information, co-create so we're more agile together?.. It's in our best interests to work closely, but that doesn't come easy."

[26.20] What ProcureAbility's recent survey, in partnership with ProcureCon, reveals about the biggest challenges in 2026, and how supply chain leaders are navigating impacts from disruptions to shortages.

[32.18] With tariff instability set to continue in 2026, how the issue interplays with other core industry challenges.

"There's a lot more cost. But that hasn't completely translated to the consumer… The market was expecting it to be worse. That tells me that the middle guy is the one absorbing that, and CEO's are hoping they can ride the wave. That's not sustainable."

[35.36] How equipped organizations actually are to adapt to tariff instability.

"The lack of visibility is the biggest risk."

[38.01] Changing supplier relationships: what organizations now expect from their suppliers, whether or not suppliers are actually meeting those expectations, and why it's crucial to remember that the best client-supplier relationships are two-way.

[44.03] The next steps listeners should take to navigate disruption and resilience in 2026.

Head over to ProcureAbility's website now to find out more and discover how they could help you too. You can also connect with ProcureAbility and keep up to date with the latest over on LinkedIn or YouTube, or you can connect with Carlos on LinkedIn.

If you enjoyed the show and want to hear more from ProcureAbility, check out 462: Procurement Unlocked: Sourcing Best Practices in a Tariff-Driven World, with ProcureAbility.

Check out our other podcasts HERE.

Tim Nagy of Samsara talks about tech & AI: what workers really think; agility; retaining talent; & shifting from reactive to predictive road safety & logistics.

[02.41] An introduction to Tim, his role as a sales engineer, and a reminder of how Samsara helps their customers.

"You get two different kinds of engineers: the kind who don't really want to be out in the field talking to customers, they do the coding and product development. And then you get my team, who love to be out there. We get to see a lot of different tech, and a lot of different businesses!"

[04.34] The biggest conversations happening at Manifest 2026, are about the impact of AI across the industry.

"There's a lot of talk about the impact of AI on supply chain and operations."

[06.59] How Samsara can monitor real-time issues, from weather to driver behavior, to help businesses shift from reactive to predictive road safety and logistics.

"Our job is to prevent accidents before they happen and AI, tech in general, is making that possible now. We're able to detect when a driver is becoming drowsy… and tell the driver to pull over."

[09.56] Samsara's recent advert at the Super Bowl, and their first celebrity coaching avatar.

[11.42] How Samsara see workers thinking about technology and AI, and a real-world example of driver feedback on Samsara solutions.

[14.33] How technology and AI can help businesses attract and retain talent, and Samsara's success with the gamification of driver safety.

"Driver churn is a big issue, it's hard to keep people employed and happy in a role that can be physically challenging and difficult… When you make their lives easier, it makes the world of difference."

[17.41] The continuing problem of data siloes, how Samsara are helping bridge the gap, and why that's so important.

"Companies have data in many different systems – even in physical operations, it's not uncommon for us to speak to people who have more than 10 systems just for transportation. And when data exists in different environments, it's almost impossible to make any correlations between it – even with AI."

[22.01] Why unification is so important, and how siloes prevent the success of new technology projects.

[23.31] The role of technology in supply chain agility.

[25.56] From routing efficiency to idling reduction, how sustainable decisions can also be leveraged for cost savings.

"A big part of environmental responsibility comes from using fuel efficiently, but right now it's surprising how many vehicles are still idling in supply chain fleets… If you take control of idling you can really drive down cost, and help the environment."

[28.48] The big challenges and opportunities for Samsara customers and the industry over the next year.

Head over to Samsara's website now to find out more and discover how they could help you too. You can also connect with Samsara and keep up to date with the latest over on LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook and X (Twitter), or you can connect with Tim on LinkedIn.

If you enjoyed this episode and want to hear more from Samsara, check out episode 524: Increase the Safety, Efficiency and Sustainability of Your operations, with Samsara.

Check out our other podcasts HERE.