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The Fast Company Impact Council is an invitation-only membership community of leaders, experts, executives, and entrepreneurs who share their insights with our audience. Members pay annual dues for access to peer learning, thought leadership opportunities, events and more. Most of us have heard the phrase supply chain disruption a few times too many in recent years. An extreme weather event or material shortage in one corner of the earth can ripple through thousands of global businesses, causing major delays. As the CEO of a company that builds data centers for some of the biggest technology providers in the world, its a concept Im all too familiar with. Its also one I refuse to accept as blanket reality. Truth is that many supply chain disruptions are born out of the transactional nature of supplier-business partnerships. Companies over-rotate on getting the lowest prices for materials and components, and in the process they miss an opportunity to pursue high quality, collaborative relationships with suppliers. My company set out to reimagine the supply chain a few years ago. We wanted to make our supply chain flexible, resilient, and a powerful source of innovation. The benefits have been countless: better utilization, faster timelines, lower total cost, new product and service models, and partners to help us thrive in a rapidly growing and changing industry. So how did we get here? We reframed the relationship and changed how we get the job done. We dont have a procurement function; we have an innovation function. This way of thinking and working was a natural extension of already strong, decade-long relationships. Anything but transactional The bottom line is, we treat suppliers like partners. Recognizing that no one is immune to supply chain disruptions, in 2021, we started meeting with our suppliers more frequently, at least weekly. These meetings gave us a chance to ask questions, better understand the issues, and avoid surprises. That transparency goes in all directions. We also meet with our customers frequently, relaying updates on potential issues. We take an all-hands-on-deck approach to keeping available materials in the pipeline, so projects stay on track. This transparency means we can find ways to mitigate the impact of supply chain disruptions in real time. According to McKinsey, companies that regularly collaborate with suppliers see higher growth, lower operating costs, and better profitability than peers. That makes a lot of sense. The collaboration that has come from our supply chain has certainly paid dividends. Problem solving with partners is a two-way street As data center development skyrocketed at the beginning of the decade, our partner Schneider Electric, who provides prefabricated power modules for data centers, needed to expand its footprint and bring additional integration facilities onlineand fast. We invited them to be our neighbor. We had land, power, and the ability to build the type of facility they needed. Schneider could expand without taking on too much risk and didnt need to start from scratch to find land, secure power, and develop building plans. Now, Schneider can integrate our power centers and test our uninterruptible power supplies close to our campus. This collaborative approach resulted in faster delivery times and improved efficiency across the board. There was so much trust between our two companies, it guaranteed that we were working toward a common goal and making us better able to weather the inevitable challenges. Intimacy might be the mother of invention Close partnerships with suppliers also allow you to respond to market forces faster. Because of our close ties with Vertiv, we shaved months off the timeline to develop a new cooling system to meet the requirements of AI. Our customers were eager to adopt AI quickly, but not ready to say goodbye to traditional CPUs nor go down the high-cost path of a data center redesign or retrofit. To solve the challenge, we had to think inside the box and figure out how to adapt liquid cooling within our existing footprint. Retrofitting and re-engineering the buildings wasnt an option from a cost and timeline perspective. The result was a system that allowed deployments of AI to flex between air and liquid cooling, achieving the flexibility and energy efficiency our clients required while supporting the high-density computing needed for AI. Our engineers collaborated with Vertivs on this solution, and the initial units are already being deployed. With todays breakneck pace of AI innovation and adoption, this level of close collaboration was absolutely critical to meeting customer demand. One thing I know for sure: The supply chain can always improve. It can always be more flexible, more efficient, more resilient. Who knows where else well go with these partners, but knowing we share a continuous improvement mindset means every time theres a problem, well roll up our sleeves and figure it out. Temporary challenges always become long-term advantages if you use them to discover better ways of doing things. A closely-coupled supply chain is the future Transforming the supply chain takes time, significant effort, and most importantly, mutual trust. Coming together with your suppliers can create transparency. It can also create a continuous improvement mindset. With flexible approaches, you tackle challenges and innovate together. You create relationships that become your competitive differentiator and are valued from the C-suite all the way to the field. Thats what a closely-coupled supply chain means to me, and I wouldnt have it any other way. Chris Crosby is CEO of Compass Datacenters.
Category:
E-Commerce
The Fast Company Impact Council is an invitation-only membership community of leaders, experts, executives, and entrepreneurs who share their insights with our audience. Members pay annual dues for access to peer learning, thought leadership opportunities, events and more. Ive always considered immersive multimedia experiences as a medium that chips away at solitude. But never did I expect wed slide so far down the path of loneliness that it would be considered a global public health concern, an epidemic of loneliness, or a threat as harmful as smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day. Its official: Were living in an age of social isolation. And, yet, weve never been this connected. Advances in technology have bridged previously insurmountable distances, keeping friends and families in close and constant contact, and given us the ability to build and sustain communities in ways, and on scales, once unfathomable. For many, theyve proven indispensable for sharing ideas, expressing emotions, and offering support. Every single day, billions of text messages ping-pong across the world weaving us into a state of hyperconnection. So, why do we feel so alone? Connections should be social, not just digital At the heart of this paradox are two overlapping trends: a growing retreat from the physical world and a deepening plunge into the digital one. The internet has so overwhelmingly overhauled how we relate to each other and our world, that we now think of connections, friends, and engagement as the stuff of digitalnot physicallife. More and more, the same can be said for shopping, playing, working, and dating. Occupied by doom-scrolling for dopamine hits, binge-watching content on demand, and being otherwise swallowed into the glow of our devices, Americans are spending 20% less time socializing in person than they did two decades agoand plenty more within the comforts and confines of their own homes.But humans are social beings that evolved in close, physical proximity to other social beingsand are hardwired to feel better that way. Our need for social connection runs so deep that its been found to be as fundamental as our need for food, water, and shelter. Studies show that simply looking someone in the eyes can synchronize brain waves; physical touch releases feel-good hormones key for comfort and connection; and someones scent can convey their emotional state and trigger empathy in those around them. More than just a bad feeling or even an epidemic, our loneliness is a valuable sign that we arent spending enough time together. Its telling us that being chronically online may not be enough to combat isolationeven more, it might be getting in the way of the real-world closeness we need most. Real connection requires real presence In our digitally-driven world, entertainment that presents a compelling case to leave the comforts of home and gather in the real world, feels more necessary than ever. Grounded in space and in time, immersive experiences create the sense of being part ofand part of creatinga shared reality, unique and precious in its fleetingness. But immersive experiences arent just about bringing people physically together; theyre about making them feel together, too. After all, havent we all stood in a crowd, surrounded by others, only to feel completely and utterly alone, together?With interactive storytelling, multisensory environments, and digital art stretching into 3D, immersive experiences rely on new technologies to counter some of the very issues theyve been blamed for causing. They invite us to engage with our environment, to feed off each others emotions, to linger in the in-between, and ultimately connect to something real. The goal isnt an intensity that takes you out of your body, but rather an attention and presence that brings you deeper into itonly to then be collectively transported into something bigger. These experiences have a way of bringing us back to a simple truth: There are some moments that can only be shared in the here and in the now.So, perhaps the real challenge isnt resisting the pull of new technologies, but finding ways for them to inspire connection. Our designs can invite meaningful participation, create moments of empathy, and embrace the wonderfully unfiltered chaos of real life. With each new innovation, what constitutes togetherness will keep evolving. But if we prioritize depth over distraction, and immersion over detachment, the experiences we create can be part of what makes the world a little less lonely, after all.Now, its up to us to design them. Sakchin Bessette is cofounder and executive creative director at Moment Factory.
Category:
E-Commerce
As genetic testing company 23andMe heads to bankruptcy court, there is a lot of data at stake. The company, which analyses DNA through its salvia test kits and offers information about customers’ ancestry, health traits, and genetic risks, now seeks “authorization from the Court to commence a process to sell substantially all of its assets through a chapter 11 plan,” according to 23andMe’s press release. Your DNA data could be part of those assets. A close reading of the bankruptcy docket shows the company’s terms of service appear to allow 23andMe to transfer personally identifiable information in the event of “bankruptcy, merger, acquisition, reorganization or sale of assets.” That could mean millions of customers may have signed away their rights to their own DNA and genetic material without realizing it, paving the way for 23andMe to sell it to whomever buys their assets. The bankruptcy comes after the company rejected previous acquisition offers; saw a steep decline in market value, in part due to a�2023 data breach�that impacted millions of customers; and experienced a fair share of company drama, including the resignation of the board. If you’re one of the millions of people who shared your DNA with 23andMe, it’s now a good time to delete your data. That’s as New York’s Attorney General issued a rare “consumer alert” on Tuesday urging 23andMe customers to delete their accounts and data, following a similar warning from California’s Attorney General Rob Bonta on Friday, in which Bonta said customers should also ask California-based 23andMe to “destroy any samples of genetic material held by the company.” 23andMe customers take to social media to complain about deleting data However, as many customers scramble to delete their data to protect their privacy, some are finding that it hasn’t been as easy or straightforward as they had hoped. And they’re taking to social media to air their complaints. On a Reddit thread, a number of 23andMe customers said they are having trouble actually deleting their data, including Reddit user jacmrose, who complained, “tried canceling and never got the email they are supposed to send to confirm.” Another user responded, “I have tried 3 times over the last few months and NEVER got the email to confirm deletion.” Over on X, another social media user reported that people trying to delete their 23andMe DNA data are facing website issues, displaying the proof: a photo of an error message. That same user also shared another observation: “[people] who think they deleted it get a confirmation emailbut buried inside is a link they still have to click to ‘complete’ deletion.” “Looks like they really don’t want us to delete the data,” that user wrote. How do I delete my 23andMe data and test sample? According to a press release from the California Attorney General’s office, here’s how to delete your data on 23andMe: Log into your 23andMe account on the website Go to the Settings section of your profile Scroll to a section labeled 23andMe Data at the bottom of the page Click View next to 23andMe Data Download your data: If you want a copy of your genetic data for personal storage, choose the option to download it to your device before proceeding Scroll to the Delete Data section Click Permanently Delete Data Confirm your request:�Youll receive an email from 23andMe; follow the link in the email to confirm your deletion request Make sure to double check your spam box for that confirmation email, or visit 23andMe’s Help Page with any questions. If you previously opted to have your saliva sample and DNA stored by 23andMe, but want to change that preference to destroy your test sample, you can do so from your account settings page, under Preferences. If you previously consented to 23andMe and third-party researchers using your genetic data and sample for research, you may withdraw consent from the account settings page, under Research and Product Consents. If you live in another state besides California, you can also take these steps as a precaution, but check with your local state consumer protection agency for the laws governing your home state.
Category:
E-Commerce
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