Zero100

Most orgs are decisive at the extremes: hire the best, let go of the worst. But the wide middle – the "gray zone" – is where hesitation can remain unchecked – and that's a major liability for accelerating progress in the agentic age 🌫️   Our latest research shows COOs want to reclaim time for inspiration, which is crucial as AI automates workflows and analytics. But here’s the catch: a more vision-led operating cadence can’t happen if your culture rewards mediocrity and your model blocks the next generation of builders.   VP, Research & Advisory Services Lauren Acoba sees a clear path forward – create the conditions where capability can emerge:   🔄 Build a culture that rewards a reinvention mindset 🚀 Promote based on problem-solving and retain your Translators ⭐ Reward proof of capability over stability   Your talent floor is your AI ceiling. Find out how to raise it in this week's Field Note 👇

Last week's SCOTUS tariff ruling confirmed what many across supply chain already knew: the "wait-and-see" strategy won't cut it anymore.    Zero100 talent data backs it up – trade policy hiring is up 115% in two years. Pharma is responding fastest, with 4 of the top 10 companies building trade policy capabilities as they navigate high tariff exposure across Ireland, India, and China.    The new playbook:    🏛️ Build political fluency at every level of government  🗺️ Design regional supply networks now 🎯 Embrace local-for-local for long-term advantage   Nearly half of the 14,000 consumers we surveyed said they'll pay more for products made closer to home. The political winds are shifting toward regionalization – and the smartest companies are moving with them.   Discover how to lean into the shift in Kevin O'Marah's latest Signal 👇

"Unprecedented events" have become the only predictable thing in supply chain. In the latest episode of Supply Chain Unfiltered, Nikki Logsdon – Director, Demand & Supply Planning at General Motors – shares what constant volatility demands from leaders 🚀 For Nikki, the microchip crisis was the inflection point at GM. As vehicles grew more advanced, brute force hit its limits, turning supply chain into a mathematical equation 🧮 Her advice? Invest now – in better tools, stronger processes, and the right talent. 🤝 Develop Translators who bridge teams and tech Wizards who build advantage  ⚙️ Systematize your process to replace fragile tribal knowledge ⏰ Protect 30% of your time as a leader to prepare for what's next That's the difference between teams that survive disruption and those that lead through it. Watch Nikki’s full episode of Unfiltered 👇

The US Supreme Court’s decision to strike down President Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs may be good news for American companies importing products from countries like China and Vietnam, which will now be taxed at the lower maximum 15% rate permitted by his new Section 122 order. But for supply chain and operations leaders, any hope that the global trade environment might enjoy a period of relative stability and predictability (albeit at a higher cost) has been shattered. Uncertainty and volatility will continue to hamper companies’ efforts to rebalance their supply chains in an era where long-established rules no longer apply. Zero100 research among 100 chief operating officers found tariffs and trade restrictions second only to cyber-attacks in terms of external shocks they are most concerned about in 2026. As a new round of geopolitical wrangling between the US and its main trading partners gets underway, COOs and chief supply chain officers need to double down on their efforts to ensure “operational sovereignty”. This has two main components: First, developing deal-making expertise that can be used in negotiations with trade representatives, federal and state governments, lawmakers and judicial systems. Second, making no-regrets investments in regional and local supply chains that enhance agility, speed to market and customer experience. The fact that Trump’s executive powers have been reined in doesn’t mean the old order of supposedly “free trade” is coming back. Being able to navigate the constantly shifting new regime of “managed trade” is now a key test of business and supply chain leadership. https://lnkd.in/d9a8znkQ

Toyota practically wrote the book on continuous improvement. But can the plays that won championships before still win them today? 🏆 Kevin Austin – Group Vice President, Supply Chain at Toyota North America – opens up about one of the hardest leadership challenges: transforming a company built on discipline and proven systems without losing what made it great. In this episode of #TheZero100Podcast, he sits down with Chief Research Officer Kevin O'Marah, (yes, two Kevins) for a candid look at what transformation looks like when it runs on humility and shared values as much as technology. Inside the conversation: 🔓 The leadership shift that unblocked progress  🏃 Why TPS is the solid foundation (concrete, not sand) that makes transformation possible 🤖 What happens when AI meets the craftspeople who’ve spent 30 years building cars Listen wherever you get your podcasts 🎧  Apple Podcasts: https://lnkd.in/ePiYhJ4X   Spotify: https://lnkd.in/et_GcS6s   Amazon Music: https://lnkd.in/e_T4bHx7

AI is forcing us to answer an old question: What makes work worth doing? AI’s potential as a personal productivity tool is obvious. But University of California, Berkeley researchers discovered something more interesting: "work intensification." Workers using genAI are expanding their roles, working odd hours, and multi-tasking like never before. In this week's Signal, Kevin O'Marah argues this shift could mean more meaningful work – if you bring curiosity and creativity to the table, too. Check out his full take👇

📊 20 different addresses for the same order. Thousands of BOMs for one product. Million-dollar inventory discrepancies. (Sound familiar?) Supply chain leaders across industries are facing the same master data challenge. But here’s the thing: The companies winning at AI aren't waiting for flawless data. They're using AI to clean it 🔄 In this week's Field Note, Senior Research Analyst Jalen Thibou shares how, with examples from Walmart, Nestlé, and the 45% of AI-mature companies already using agents for data management. Check it out 👇 

“The secret of being a center of excellence: if you're not excellent, you're done.” Mike Polich doesn't hold back. And after 16 years at Ford Motor Company, building Tesla’s supply chain during the Model S ramp, and now as VP & Chief Procurement Officer, Logistics at Honeywell — he's earned it. This week on Supply Chain Unfiltered, he tells Zero100 what he thinks many companies get wrong about systems, data, and transformation (himself included at times 👀): 🔧 Stop automating bad processes: New system launches are rare windows to fix the foundation, not pave over the mess. 🧠 Tesla built their own TMS — while ramping production: They could've bought one. Instead, they embedded developers directly in logistics and built a competitive advantage money can't buy. 📊 Centers of excellence fail when they're not embedded in operations: At Honeywell, Mike didn’t advise from the sidelines. He took control of ops, procurement, and FP&A for 30 P&Ls. Own the numbers, change the numbers. Watch the full episode with Mike P. below 👇

The COO is about to become the most important person in the C-suite 🚀 Zero100 just surveyed 100 COOs at billion-dollar companies, and the findings challenge the AI hype cycle: 83% believe that CEOs are overselling AI timelines. But that doesn't mean they’re doubting its transformational power – they're just the ones who actually have to bring the vision to life. In this episode of #TheZero100Podcast, Chief Research Officer Kevin O'Marah and VP, Research & Advisory Services Lauren Acoba unpack why operations leaders are stepping into the spotlight – and what they're doing differently to deliver on AI's promise. They dive into: 🧱 Why COOs want to build on their existing tech stack, not rip and replace 📦 Why ops leaders are key to creating value beyond the point of sale  🎯 How to place Goldilocks AI bets that are just right – big enough for impact, small enough to get going 🧠 Why operators want to spend less time on execution and more on strategy (and what's standing in their way) The COO decade is here. Listen wherever you get your podcasts 🎧 Apple Podcasts: https://lnkd.in/emsJDyn5 Spotify: https://lnkd.in/effG42Kc Amazon Music: https://lnkd.in/eZyND8u4

"SaaS is dead" 🪦   It's catchy. It gets people talking. But it hides the real shift happening on the ground.   Last week, a COO told me the hardest part of their AI rollout wasn’t building the agent. It was connecting it to the systems that actually run the company.   For years, work started inside the application. A user logged in. A workflow lived there. You executed there.    Now work can begin across applications. Agents read signals, trigger actions, and coordinate steps end-to-end.   The application isn't going away – it’s just becoming part of something bigger.   Because let’s be honest: the business still runs on systems of record. Orders, inventory, revenue, compliance – that's where accountability lives.   As agents spread, those systems matter more, not less.   This isn't about replacing platforms. It's about unlocking their full potential.   The strategic layer becomes orchestration – turning signals into coordinated response across your entire stack.   📊 In Zero100’s recent survey of 100 COOs, 83% called the tech stack a “foundation,” “toolset,” or “data repository” to build on with existing technology partners. That tracks because agents and copilots don't replace the stack, they multiply its value.   So let’s zoom out.   Software valuations shifted not because the products lost value, but because the architecture evolved.   The question moved from “will we use this?” to “how do we connect execution across our entire ecosystem?"   Here are my two plays for COOs:    1. Architect explicitly. Systems of record = truth. Systems of action = execution.  2. Design governance before autonomy. Policies, traceability, rollback, human override built into execution, not added after failure.   SaaS isn't dead. It's evolving from standalone solutions to connected capabilities.   Software used to optimize functions. The next layer coordinates them — so the business responds faster.