Exploring the untapped opportunity of Circular Supply Chains. This podcast, based on the book by Deborah Dull, answers the 17 common questions supply chain professionals are asking. Discover how to give materials another life, leverage technology, and take the next step to build resilient, sustainable operations that save the planet. A must-listen for anyone moving beyond the linear economy.
This final episode cuts through the complexity with five essential questions every supply chain team needs to answer now. We map the journey from identifying your most-traveled product and your largest waste stream, to pinpointing your single biggest vulnerability and confronting your carbon footprint.
8 Oct 2025
16. How do linear supply chains become circular?
This episode breaks down the seven-phase transition framework used by professionals worldwide. We move from mapping your hidden "fugitive value" and intensifying asset use, to predicting waste streams and deliberately slowing down your inventory's life cycle.
8 Oct 2025
15. What is the future of supply chains?
This episode moves beyond theory to tackle five real-world crises with circular solutions. Discover how to handle budget cuts by turning waste into revenue, bypass port closures with regional sourcing, and hit aggressive emissions targets by shortening your supply chain.
8 Oct 2025
14. What about technology?
This episode cuts through the hype of the fourth and fifth industrial revolutions to spotlight five practical technologies that actually matter. We explore the "digital bill of materials" that gives every product a unique life story, the modular connections that make partnerships snap together like LEGO, and the automated marketplace that could turn your waste into someone else's raw material overnight.
8 Oct 2025
13. What does it mean to interconnected?
This episode dives into the three critical touchpoints—physical, financial, and informational—that separate a simple network from a true circular ecosystem. Discover why money flows reveal more truths than your inventory data, how blockchain might finally solve the "new supplier" problem, and why your most creative (and chaotic) information workarounds are about to meet their match.
8 Oct 2025
12. Aren't supply chains already systems?
This episode argues that to build a truly circular supply chain, we need to rebuild the very systems they run on. Discover why "agile" and "cost" aren't enough, how a 20-year-old "turnkey" concept is making a comeback, and what it will take to measure circularity as a strategy, not just a goal.
8 Oct 2025
11. Isn't zero waste impossible?
This episode makes the case that it's not only possible but already happening inside forward-thinking companies. We break down the three-step playbook for achieving zero waste, from the radical efficiency of a pen with its own labeled spot, to a whiskey maker feeding cows with its leftovers, and a multi-billion dollar CPG giant that stopped throwing away its cardboard boxes. Discover why the ultimate goal isn't just to reduce waste, but to transform every single byproduct into a sold asset.
8 Oct 2025
10. How can another supply chain use my waste?
This episode dives into the surprising new revenue streams hidden in your supply chain's waste. Discover how "industrial symbiosis" is turning bean water into vegan mayo, why Ford is buying ketchup scraps from Heinz, and the three simple models for finding a buyer for your byproducts.
8 Oct 2025
9. Can we make our supply chains shorter?
How do we turn a dirty diaper into a business opportunity? This episode challenges the four fundamental assumptions that keep our global supply chains long, fragile, and wasteful. Discover why "centralized" doesn't always mean "optimized," how the very idea of "away" is a fantasy, and why the future of supply chain resilience might depend on partnering with an unexpected ally: your own garbage.
6 Oct 2025
8. I've already leaned out my supply chain. How is this different?
Is circularity just the next "Lean"? This episode uncovers the critical similarities and surprising differences. Discover why circularity shifts the core goal from inventory turns to asset utilization, how it turns waste streams into new revenue, and why it might be time to add a new type of "waste" to your vocabulary.
6 Oct 2025
7. What do smaller circles mean for my supply chain?
Moving to a circular model means shifting from a one-time sale to an ongoing relationship with products. This episode explores four key operational changes: the point of sale becomes just the beginning, repair overtakes building new, the crucial metric shifts from inventory turns to asset utilization, and wait times shrink dramatically. Discover how smaller, tighter loops create faster, more efficient, and more profitable operations.
6 Oct 2025
6. Where can I get circular materials?
Sourcing circular materials isn't a distant dream—it's happening now. This episode uncovers six practical sources, from harvesting waste in your own operations and trading with neighboring supply chains, to tapping into commodity markets and even mining landfills. Discover how to find the materials that will build your resilient, circular supply chain.
6 Oct 2025
5. What is a circular material?
This episode breaks down the five lifecycle stages—from simple reuse to complex recycling—that determine how materials circulate through our supply chains. Discover why keeping materials in the smallest, most valuable loop is the key to building truly circular operations and how to think about the inputs that power them.
6 Oct 2025
4. Why should we use circular supply chains?
This episode dissects the five powerful advantages of circular supply chains, exploring how it's about more than just sustainability and has the potential to be a superior operational model.
6 Oct 2025
3. How is this different from today?
This episode explores the four fundamental shifts from linear to circular supply chains: from inventory turns to asset utilization, virgin materials to reused inputs, waste streams to value streams, and siloed operations to interconnected ecosystems.
This is a complete operational redesign for lasting value.
6 Oct 2025
2. What does supply chain have to do with a circular economy?
The circular economy goes beyond recycling. This episode breaks it into six key parts—Materials, Business Models, Operations, Markets, Strategies, and Circular Supply Chains—and shows how they connect to create a value-driven system.
6 Oct 2025
1: Why are we talking about this?
Our first episode breaks down why the linear economy is a dead end and why a circular model is the necessary evolution for resilient, profitable, and sustainable supply chains.
6 Oct 2025
A Welcome Message from Deborah
Deborah welcomes you to the podcast adaptation of her book Circular Supply Chain: 17 Common Questions.
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