Healthcare supply chain must keep moving forward
By Barbara Strain, MA, CVAHP
Chairman's Note 2025
Resilience, adaptability and forward thinking are characteristics of leaders in any industry or personal situation. In healthcare they must also be brave. With lives hanging in the balance on one hand and the support and trust of their staff on the other, every small action can yield a disproportionately large reaction. Bellwether League Foundation was founded to honor those who exemplify the traits of healthcare supply chain leaders who continually face challenges to ensure the safety and well-being of patients, staff and visitors.
We celebrate the 2025 Future Famers, Ammer Honorees, and Bellwether Honorees as they tackle rapid device and technology innovation, product disruptions, natural disasters and geopolitical situations that create turbulence. During a recent flight the captain announced that the flight attendants were to enact the violent turbulence protocol. Healthcare supply chain continues to learn how to use tools and data to scan the horizon for leading practices to locate the tip of the turbulence and put learning in motion, strapping their seatbelts to deliver service based on action plans and drills.
Peter Drucker counselled us that “the greatest danger in times of turbulence is not the turbulence, it is to act with yesterday’s logic.” This year BLF’s 11 awardees bring us to saluting 154 Hall of Famers, 45 Future Famers and eight Ammer Honorees, strong shoulders using yesterday’s experience and wisdom to seed and develop today’s and tomorrow’s generations.
BLF looks toward tomorrow’s generation as it actively reaches out to ensure healthcare supply chain leader succession planning, something we pioneered more than a decade ago. Beyond educational programming, BLF implemented a dual collaboration model between college and university supply chain undergraduate and graduate programs and provider supply chain management operations. This allows us to match teams of students to real-world healthcare initiatives using a “future think” lens to visualize mutually attainable outcomes. We appreciate applying younger minds to age-old and lingering challenges. Toward that end, BLF also established three named scholarships in 2024 that were awarded to applicants who were full- time, part-time or aspiring students across healthcare supply chain. The success of this program has been extended annually.
Next year, we plan to fully launch a “BLF Goes Back to School” program where BLF alumni leaders, Board members, Advisory Council members and Committee volunteers share their day- in-the-life healthcare supply chain experiences to inform, inspire and motivate career opportunities to students and aspiring supply chain professionals as a meaningful way to serve their community and responsibly manage healthcare resources.
We appreciate and thank our Board of Directors, Advisory Council members and Committee chairs and members for their voluntary support and the dedication of our executive director Rick Dana Barlow in making Bellwether sustainable and relevant during times of chaos. We also appreciate and thank our Sustaining and Event Sponsors – some of whom have been with us since the very beginning – and our growing donor and professional sponsor base. Deepak Chopra reminds us that “all great changes are preceded by chaos.” We strive to be good stewards through enhanced communication, social media presence, Fireside Chat and other programs, podium presentations and industry meeting attendance.
Since its inception in 2007, Bellwether League Foundation has been built upon a cornerstone of partnership with the healthcare supply chain community. The vision and commitment of our Sustaining Sponsors, program and event partners and alumni donors have been the driving force behind our mission. This shared investment in the healthcare supply chain of the future allows us to cultivate the next generation of leaders. We invite you to join us in continuing this legacy of leadership and innovation.
Barbara Strain, MA, CVAHP, Bellwether Class of 2021, Healthcare Supply Chain Leadership Hall of Fame, serves as Chairman, Board of Directors, Bellwether League Foundation