WMS Pioneers Episode 12: Navigating Tariffs and Uncertainty
by Mike Catalino
At Softeon, we believe our strength lies in our ability to adapt together. Whether it’s navigating tariffs, shifting supply-chain footprints, or re-thinking network optimization, agility is essential.
In the latest episode of The WMS Pioneers, Softeon CEO Jim Hoefflin and CTO Mark Fralick discuss the ongoing tariff war, supply chain uncertainty, and how businesses can stay agile amid change.
Softeon’s CEO, Jim Hoefflin, opens the episode by reflecting on the challenges of the past few years.
“The tariffs have a lot of people reevaluating and trying to figure out what it means. There’s still a massive amount of uncertainty about impacts. It will have an impact for the next couple of years. Any shift you make in your footprint or supply chain is not done in a couple of weeks.”
CTO Mark Fralick builds on that theme, emphasizing the importance of adaptability.
“I think when you look at the history of creatures on earth, the ones that can be nimble and agile are the ones that survive. I think it’s the same in being nimble as an organization.”
Mark Fralick, CTO, Softeon
Hoefflin goes on to discuss network optimization and how importers can take advantage of shifting trade routes to better serve regional markets.
“A lot of end-shippers will go to our 3PL customers and say how hard is it to set up a facility in Canada or Mexico? It’s exactly about being agile and grabbing the process flows and moving quickly. It’s really not that big of a deal to set up a new facility.”
Later in the episode, Hoefflin highlights the downstream effects of tariffs, cautioning against underestimating their impact.
“If it’s negotiation and it keeps back to something reasonable, life will continue as it has. If it turns into some massive additional cost, consumers impact and buying will go down. I don’t see how you can avoid that.”
The episode concludes with advice for organizations facing uncertainty.
“There’s a lot of uncertainty in the market and the advice is to keep moving and be agile. If you sit around and wait for it to play out it could go on for many months and you’ve lost a lot of opportunity and valuable time.”
Jim Hoefflin, CEO, Softeon
Listen to the full episode today and subscribe on Spotify, YouTube, or other popular podcast channels.
