Elliott joined 4flow two years ago and now works as a consultant in our Detroit office. In this interview, he talks about his passion for AI, the top AI trends in supply chain and why his hometown is still his favorite travel destination.
How has your journey at 4flow been so far?
It’s been amazing. I started at 4flow a bit over 2 years ago, after my studies in logistics and supply chain. I fell in love with the subject in my first supply chain class because I enjoy the way of thinking. It feels like putting a puzzle together. Now at 4flow, I get to learn about all these different supply chain aspects in practice and grow my skill set. Most recently, I’ve been working on different transportation management topics. I also got the chance to dive into AI trends in supply chain for a research project. This was great because I have a big passion for AI.
Which AI top trends did you observe?
One of the top trends is definitely the integration of chatbots in all sorts of applications. This has great potential to change the interaction between humans and technology. In the future it might be possible to even talk to the software to solve problems together. For highly complex supply chain solutions such as digital twins or transportation management software this could make working with it much more accessible.
My second top trend is the use of AI in data collection, where it’s much faster and more reliable than humans. Flawed data is one of the biggest challenges in supply chain. In the future, data collection could be almost entirely performed by AI, which would give us a perfect database. This could change the supply chain industry completely.
How could AI-based data collection improve supply chains?
It will allow us to achieve real-time transparency and make improvements to the supply chain where problems arise immediately. For example, in shipment orders it is particularly important because small human errors can lead to large problems for the entire supply chain. With AI we will be able to optimize supply chains like never before.
Another important trend is multi-modal AI, which means that the AI is integrated across different branches of a business. This does not only affect supply chain, but also marketing or finance. This way, they can all be connected to increase efficiency across the entire organization. This will affect the daily work of everyone.
How do you think AI will change the way we work and live?
I believe that AI will change everything. Its ability to do repetitive tasks will grow exponentially, which will offer many opportunities for automation. This is a big opportunity because it will make us and supply chains extremely efficient. I think that if we manage this transformation correctly it will improve our lives a lot. That’s why AI is such a big passion of mine. It’s great that I get the chance to work on these topics. This shows the supportive culture we share at 4flow.
How would you describe work at 4flow?
We have a very friendly and collaborative work environment. There is always someone who is willing to support. What also makes 4flow special in my opinion, is our commitment to the quality of our work. We are always striving to deliver the best result possible to our customers and support whenever our help is needed. But my favorite part of my job is that I get to travel a lot. I enjoy meeting our customers onsite and getting to know people from all around the world. I think that’s a great part about traveling because it really opens your eyes for different perspectives.
What is your favorite place to travel to?
With 4flow I’ve travelled to a lot of places across the US. But I guess my favorite travel destination is still my hometown South Haven in Michigan. It’s a nice beach town on lake Michigan. I think it combines the best of both worlds, since it’s summery and beachy in summer and quiet and calm in winter. I love going to the beach there for swimming, surfing and playing some beach volleyball. That’s my idea of a perfect day.
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