GROWING THE GOODNESS
Blue Diamond Vice President of Global Supply Chain, Steve Schult, Receives 2024 Rock Stars of the Supply Chain Award Steve Schult, Vice President of Global Supply Chain at Blue Diamond Growers, was recently awarded the 2024 Rock Stars of the Supply Chain Award by Food Logistics, a publication dedicated to the cold food and beverage industry. The Rock Stars of the Supply Chain Award is a prestigious recognition in the supply chain world and a testament to Schult’s work to ensure the continued success of Blue Diamond Growers.
Food Logistics recently named Steve Schult as
Early in his career, Schult served in the U.S. Coast Guard, cultivating a strong sense of duty and a desire to help others while in the service. The ideals of honor, respect, devotion and treating others with care are central to the U.S. Coast Guard, aligning closely with Schult’s personal philosophy. After his time in the service, Schult married his wife then entered the world of supply chain logistics, working for CPG companies such as Otis Spunkmeyer, Dryer’s Ice Cream and Nestlé. Schult took his mother’s advice to heart, always listening to the needs and insights of his team (and investing in quality footwear for lots of time on his feet). Schult has come to value what he calls, “oscillating.” As he puts it, “You have to be able to do the work on all parts of the supply chain to know how to do all parts of the job.” Blue Diamond Growers recognized the need for someone with this outlook on supply chain leadership. Schult can often be found pulling on his boots to go speak with employees on the warehouse floor, or out to the orchard to walk with growers. He understands that leaders need to learn to shift between making high-level strategic decisions and executing those decisions in the orchard or on the warehouse floor. Schult’s leadership within the industry doesn’t stop with the cooperative. He represents Blue Diamond Growers and
the recipient of the 2024 Rock Stars of
the Supply Chain Award: Lifetime Achievement category, which honors industry leaders and executives who have made outstanding contributions to the supply chain industry. The Lifetime Achievement category holds two requirements: recipients must have at least 10 years of documented experience working in supply chain for the food and beverage industry and must also work for a consumer- packaged goods (CPG) company that has at least 5% of its cargo shipped in freight for both dry and refrigerated shipping. Schult’s experience with supply chain leadership started in the home, before he ever entered the workforce. His mother was a candymaker with See’s Candies. “I remember being able to tell what kind of candy she was making by how she smelled when she came home,” Schult said. He remembers his mother explaining the difference between a good frontline supervisor and a bad one: good supervisors didn’t necessarily tell their employees what to do, they asked, “what can go better ? ” As Schult’s mother put it, “No matter what position you hold, always ask your team how they are doing and what can go better. And always have good shoes.”
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