This Week in Logistics News (November 7-11, 2016)

By Adrian Gonzalez

Brexit passed. The Cubs won the World Series. Donald Trump won the presidency. What’s next?

In each case, the sun rose and set the next day, and it rose again today.

There are already countless “What Will the Trump Presidency Mean for [Fill in the Blank]?” articles and blog posts being written. In the case of supply chain, the focus is on trade agreements and transportation infrastructure investments. The short answer is that we really don’t know yet. What candidates say on the campaign trail and what they actually do once they get in office don’t always line up — and as this election has shown, Donald Trump is the wildest card of all.

Another big question: Did Data Die on Election Day?, a question Tom Davenport addressed in a LinkedIn post yesterday. Here’s the chart that illustrates, yet again, how you can build the most sophisticated mathematical models and employ the smartest people, but if your data is flawed, the output is worthless. It’s also a reminder that predicting the future is risky business.

nyt_electionliveforecast_nov2016 — Real-time presidential election predictions on election day (Source: New York Times)

Which brings us to today, Veterans Day, where we celebrate the men and women who have served in the U.S. military, the men and women who have risked and sacrificed so much to protect our homeland and democracy, as we continue to work toward creating a more perfect union. Let’s not forget them today.

And with that, let’s move on to this week’s supply chain and logistics news, which I share without commentary this week.