Ann Drake, Founder of AWESOME and CEO of DSC Logistics, was a panelist at the National Summit, “America on the Move: Transportation and Infrastructure for the 21st Century,” at Harvard Business School in February. And, she participated in the recent forum on advancing infrastructure projects in the U.S. presented by the Clinton Global Initiative and co-hosted by the West Coast Infrastructure Exchange.
The National Summit on Transportation and Infrastructure at Harvard Business School was led by HBS Professor Rosabeth Moss Kanter. Drake joined executives from Staples, Walmart, FedEx Freight, GE Aviation and BJ’s Wholesale Clubs on the panel, “Getting the Goods – In moving goods across the supply chain what works well, what doesn’t?” She and the other panelists addressed such topics as pain points and bottlenecks in global movement of goods and local access, changes that should be made to facilitate getting goods to market, and topics that are high on priority wish lists.
“The Summit reflects a growing realization that transportation and infrastructure are critical issues for America’s future competitiveness,” said Drake. “It convened top people from so many important areas and stakeholder groups and got them discussing the WHOLE SYSTEM, and all the issues that need to be tackled to get forward momentum in a plan for making an impact…as a nation.”
At the Clinton Global initiative forum in April, “21st Century Infrastructure and Innovation for a Resilient Economy” was the topic addressed by President Bill Clinton, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and other political and business leaders at the Los Angeles City Hall on April 3. Drake’s discussion group covered the topic, “Funds, Trusts, and Best Practices: Innovations in Infrastructure Financing.” The group addressed the issue of how the public and private sectors can design vehicles that allow for the investment in infrastructure. They looked at existing models as illustrative case studies and discussed key lessons and strategies for replicating successes in other regions.
Also in April, Drake participated in a panel presentation on “The Future of North American Logistics” at the NAFTANEXT Summit, “Energizing Sustainable Trade Corridors Across North America: The Intersection of Energy, Environment, Jobs, & Growth,” in Chicago. She also spoke at the Women in Transportation Summit, “Women in Transportation: Recruitment, Retention, and Advancement,” in Denver on lessons learned along her path to achieving her goals in the transportation and supply chain industry and the AWESOME initiative.