Oliver Weisser's Profile

It’s ironic how the people supposedly most helped by isolationism – the working class put out of their jobs by cheaper overseas competition – are also the ones who would suffer most from the increased prices they would have to pay as a result of fewer cheap imports. I like how you highlight this dichotomy in your essay. I wonder how digitization and automation factor into this equation though – if Walmart’s suppliers could replace much of its labor with automation, would the price benefit come back to developed countries?

I’m curious what might happen if isolationism indeed does significantly hamper AZ’s internal R&D pipeline, forcing them to purchase R&D assets from the outside. This trend has been going on in the industry anyways for over a decade now – less in-house innovation and more M&A activity with early-stage startups. I wonder if Brexit will accelerate this trend in the UK?

Very interesting take on supply chain! I think it’s interesting to abstract from your essay a bit and think of all 66 million refugees as the input to the “process”, their temporary living quarters in refugee camps as “buffers”, and their final places of residence as the “finished product” of the “machine” that is displaced people in the world. Thinking of the problem this way, you can image really powerful applications of GIS in terms of minimizing throughput time (i.e. the amount of time refugees need to spend in temporary camps), while maximizing utilization (i.e. the efficient use of temporary housing provided by the UN). Tough questions but GIS seems like a great way to tackle it quantitatively.

How can digitization in the drug supply chain be used to lower drug costs? For instance, could more accurate tracking of drugs through the cold supply chain be used to deliver better quality drugs to very cost-sensitive third-world countries? One of the biggest issues is that, even if temperature sensitive drugs make it to remote villages in warm places, they are often expired by the time they get there. I’d be curious to see where digitization could be applied beyond the established markets. Great essay!

Given PepsiCo’s leading global position as a drinks manufacturer, do you think it has a responsibility to its customers in drought-prone areas to provide access to water during crises? Seeing as PepsiCo has enormous demands for water in some areas, as well as a supply chain to move liquids across the globe efficiently, PepsiCo is probably better suited than any governmental organization to respond quickly and effectively to water shortage crises. But is there a moral obligation for PepsiCo to “give back” some of the water it uses in times of need?

While I agree that your suggestions would help Constellation combat the effects of climate change on its vines and its wines, I question whether these changes would be accepted by an industry steeped in tradition. Perhaps more so than any other sector in the food and beverage industry, the wine industry is riddled with rules about where grapes can be planted, how they should be planted, what varietals can be used, how the grapes are processed, etc. that stand in contrast with the suggestions you make. As such, I wonder if the wine industry will be able to adapt and, if it is, what the effect of a break from tradition will be on consumer demand.