Global Sourcing & Procurement

Carl’s Jr. Switches to Make-to-Order Burgers

Carl’s Jr. is a fast-food restaurant known for its charbroiled burgers.

It has over 1,000 restaurants, primarily in the Western and Southwestern United States. Recently, it switched to a make-to-order process that cooks fresh hamburger meat once the order is placed.

This departs from their batch process, which used frozen hamburger patties. Their batch process cooked several hamburgers at once through a conveyor broiler. They then held the cooked hamburger patties in a warmer […]

By Ross L. Fink, Ph.D.|2026-10-07T02:28:18+00:00October 7, 2026|Tags: assemble-to-order, batch system, inventory management, make to order, process, product design|

Mastercard Explores Agentic Commerce

Under the partnership of Mastercard and Alchemy, Mastercard holders can now let an AI agent make purchases online with spending caps and limits on selected retailers.

This ushers business transactions into a new era called agentic commerce, giving AI further inroads into autonomous activities on behalf of humans.

Video Spotlight:

Mastercard Joins Visa in Letting AI Bots Do Your Shopping (Sep 19, 2026, Real Story sharer)

This post is based on the Quartz article,

By Anita Lee-Post, Ph.D.|2026-09-29T07:00:07+00:00October 4, 2026|Tags: agentic commerce, artificial intelligence, automation, bots, GenAI, operational strategy, order fulfillment, technology|

General Motors Parts Agreement Addresses Supply Chain Challenges

General Motors (GM) agreed to a financing arrangement with Procura Auto Parts LLC, a supply-chain management firm, to secure critical parts for continuous production amid supply chain disruptions.

Under the arrangement, Procura will prepay suppliers and store inventory on behalf of GM. Once the inventory is consumed in production, GM will repay Procura with irrevocable payment undertakings backed by a bank syndicate.

Video Spotlight:

GM reaches up to $4.5 billion parts deal designed to […]

By Anita Lee-Post, Ph.D.|2026-09-01T17:25:14+00:00September 16, 2026|Tags: AI activity, inventory, MRP, procurement, sourcing, supplier relationships, supply chain disruption, supply chain management|

WD-40 Faces Middle Eastern Supply Constraints

Prices continue to rise on everyday products that are made—at least partially—with raw materials and components sourced from Iran and neighboring countries.

Americans are feeling a pinch in their wallets as the US-Iranian War continues. WD-40, the globally known manufacturer of lubricating products, is experiencing increases in costs due to chemicals sourced from Middle Eastern countries and associated shipping constraints in the Strait of Hormuz. Gas prices are affected given the Middle East has long been […]

By James Kirby Easterling|2026-08-19T06:58:30+00:00August 23, 2026|Tags: chemicals, constraints, cost increases, petroleum, sourcing|