ISM-Charlotte, Inc.

A Chapter of the Institute for Supply Management working together to advance the profession of supply management.

Charlotte's Leading Supply Chain Management Professionals

ISM—Charlotte has served Procurement and Materials management professionals and organizations in North and South Carolina for the past decade. ISM—Charlotte is a not-for-profit educational association that offers supply chain skills enhancement and career growth opportunities through seminars, workshops, networking, and tours specifically geared toward the ever-changing environment of procurement, materials management, logistics, and planning.

We are excited to launch our new website, designed to better support and increase engagement with our members, organizations, and community. We are confident our new website’s enhanced features will provide easy access to ISM benefits.

Please return often for upcoming events, news, research reports, and member resources.

Upcoming Events

Anytime

MEMBER WEBINAR
Member Only

AI-Native Cost Intelligence to Turn Procurement into a Profit Center

Procurement leaders are under pressure to do more than manage spend—they’re expected to drive measurable business value. This member-only webinar explores how AI-native cost intelligence is reshaping procurement into a strategic profit lever.

Join Gautam Pasari, Founder and CEO of True ValueHub, a 2025 ISM Supply Chain Trailblazer winner, for a focused discussion and case study on how organizations can move upstream in the cost lifecycle, increase transparency across global supply networks, and accelerate sourcing decisions without compromising rigor. You’ll gain practical insight into how AI is enabling faster, more informed collaboration across engineering, sourcing, and supplier ecosystems.

What you’ll learn:

  • Why early-stage cost intelligence matters
    Understand how influencing the first 70–80% of cost during design can unlock greater savings and reduce downstream trade-offs.
  • How to build transparency and tariff resilience
    See how breaking costs into clear drivers—materials, manufacturing, logistics, and carbon—creates a shared understanding with suppliers and strengthens your ability to model and respond to tariffs and trade shifts.
  • How AI is accelerating sourcing cycles
    Explore how AI-enabled workflows can compress RFQ timelines from months to days, enabling real-time collaboration and more strategic decision-making.

Learning Objectives

  • Identify how early-stage cost intelligence influences 70–80% of total product cost and apply this insight to improve design-phase decision-making.
  • Evaluate cost drivers across materials, manufacturing, logistics, and carbon to improve transparency, strengthen supplier alignment, and model the impact of tariffs and trade changes.
  • Apply AI-enabled approaches to accelerate RFQ and sourcing processes, reducing cycle times and enabling more effective real-time collaboration.
Registration Closed

July

14

2026

MEMBER WEBINAR
Member Only

Quarterly State of Risk Update

Global risk is no longer a background factor. It is shaping how supply chains are built, managed and transformed in real time.

In this member-exclusive quarterly briefing, you will gain a clear, grounded view of the geopolitical and economic forces influencing supply chain risk today and what they signal for the months ahead. Matthew Bey, Senior Global Analyst and Head of Methodology at RANE Network, will walk through RANE’s Q3 global risk outlook, highlighting the most significant developments and emerging scenarios supply chain leaders should be prepared for.

From shifts in global trade and the energy transition to the evolving dynamics of U.S.-China competition, this session connects RANE’s latest analysis directly to your decisions.

This session goes beyond headlines. You will hear how leading organizations are using scenario planning to prepare for uncertainty and where risk is most likely to impact sourcing, operations and long-term strategy. The focus is practical: what you should be watching, what it could mean for your organization and how to respond with greater confidence.

Whether you are managing category risk, advising leadership or shaping enterprise strategy, this briefing will help you connect global events to the decisions in front of you.

Online
Matthew Bey

July

16

2026

MEMBER WEBINAR
Member Only

Executive Briefing & Insights with Dr. Basu

Dr. Basu, Chairman & CEO of Sage Policy Group, Inc., will lead the discussion about current economic indicators and provide an insightful forecast that unveils critical supply chain risks.

 

Topics include:

    • Analyzing key factors shaping economic outcomes, including central bank policies, business confidence, and geopolitics.
    • Exploring the intricate relationship between business confidence and economic trajectories.
    • Gaining unique insights into worker attitudes and their impact on economic trends.
    • These data-driven insights are essential for supply chain leaders seeking to steer their organizations strategically. It's also an opportunity to connect with your fellow supply chain community. only.

This session is now open to all ISM members.
Online
Anirban Basu

Supply Management News & Reports

Supply Chain Cybersecurity Defenders

July 08, 2026
Articles

How digital breach mitigation is becoming a procurement discipline that keeps operations moving when threats strike.

Read More

Message from the President

On behalf of ISM—Charlotte, Inc., welcome and thank you for visiting! 

ISM—Charlotte is a non-profit organization run by cross-industry supply chain volunteer and focused on advanced education, professional development, and networking for everyone. Our chapter has a monthly board of directors and Chapter meetings where we discuss various current topics relevant to providing support to our members and networking opportunities to everyone.

Thank you for joining the ISM—Charlotte chapter. If you are not yet an ISM—Charlotte member, then please consider this a personal invitation to become a member and join us. ISM—Charlotte is a great place to make difference. ISM memberships offer numerous benefits at the local and global levels to help you advance in your career, excel in your current role, and attain desired leadership positions. There are also frequently Board volunteer opportunities available as well.  Please reach out to us to learn more. 

If you are interested in earning CPSM® Certified Professional in Supply Management®, and CPSD® Certified Professional in Supplier Diversity® , ISM offers courses to assist you in achieving your goal. CPSM® and CPSD® certifications are great tools to have for those just starting a career and for those looking to move up to the next level.

Please keep visiting our new website, we frequently offer educational, networking, and discussion topics with subject matter experts and industry leaders. These opportunities allow each of us to stay up to date on all aspects of the supply chain.

If you need more information, please reach out to me or any member of the Board and staff. We look forward to seeing you online or in person at upcoming events.

Arun Suryawanshi, MBA
President, ISM—Charlotte, Inc.
ismcharlotteaffiliate@gmail.com

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Join ISM

Your membership in ISM will provide a powerful path to stay connected, engaged, and up-to-date with everything happening in supply management. Serious procurement and supply chain professionals are dedicated to staying in the know about their profession and staying at the top of their game. An ISM membership will provide you with that and more.

More than 100 years of experience speaks for itself – ISM can help you succeed. It's our mission.

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Practical Learning. Real Business Impact.

ISM Group Training helps you build the capabilities your organization needs most through practitioner-led learning tailored around your organization's priorities, processes, and best practices.

Designed to help you:

  • Strengthen the skills that matter most to your business.
  • Build consistency across your team with shared knowledge and best practices.
  • Turn learning into measurable business impact.
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