ISM-Western Washington, Inc.

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

Western Washington's Leading Supply Chain Management Professionals

Education. Leadership. Networking.

ISM—Western Washington has been proudly affiliated with Institute for Supply Management® (ISM®) for 100 years. We are one of many global chapters representing ISM and our membership consists of a wide variety of supply management professionals in different industries and at all levels in their careers.

ISM—Western Washington remains dedicated to promoting educational and networking events for supply management professionals in the Pacific Northwest region. We support the professional certifications through ISM, including Certified Professional in Supply Management® (CPSM®), Certified Professional in Supplier Diversity® (CPSD®), and Associate Professional in Supply Management® (APSM®).

 

 

 

 

 

ISM 2023 Conference, Dallas, Texas:  Jason Phelps, Rick McGuire, Thomas Le, Tom Derry (ISM CEO), Melinda Stewart, Lorie Day and Karen Owens.
 

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

Highlights from the President

Hello Northwest Supply Chain Professionals,

Welcome to the 2024-2025 ISM—Western Washington professional development season.  September will kick off our yearly professional educational series again that will run monthly through May. We will have another great lineup this year.

We will be focused on three key areas:

  1. Provide in-person networking events to help you meet and connect with other supply chain professionals in a relaxed environment.  These face-to-face social events are intended for our members to build their network that will help provide future opportunities in collaboration, employment and hopefully friendships across industries.
  2. Build connections between supply chain professionals and students who are the future of our profession. We will accomplish this by building connections with local colleges and universities, providing additional opportunities for ISM members to mentor, guest speak and provide guidance for the next generation of supply chain professionals.
  3. Build a formalized VoM (Voice of Member) feedback system and VoM committee so we can continue to build programs and events that will shape the future of ISM—Western Washington. Your feedback and ideas are critical to continuing to improve and progress as a professional organization.

This year ISM—Western Washington will look to bring supply chain professionals in the Northwest together to share those challenging times and lessons learned while helping guide and build up those who will be the future of our profession.

I look forward to seeing you at events and engaging with you as we continue to shape the future of ISM—Western Washington. 

Thomas Le, CPSM

President, ISM—Western Washington

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

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.

Become A Member

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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