EP 3 — Inari’s Lara Smith Weber on Seeding Change, Supply Chains, and Procurement Sustainability

In this episode of the Smarter Sourcing podcast, recorded at the ICR Conference, John speaks with Lara Smith Weber, CFO at Inari, a company creating more sustainable seeds. They discuss how Inari is working on its mission to "seed change for a renewed Earth" by genetically changing plants to be more sustainable, how it supplies the market, and the challenges of being supply-constrained. They also talk about how to build a procurement strategy by defining what's "good" for your company, what to look for in new hires, and how new technologies like AI and data lakes can set companies apart.

Topics discussed:

• How Inari seeks to balance financial, risk management, and sustainability in their procurement processes.
• Where Inari sits in the supply chain and how it gets its seed to farmers.
• The challenges of being supply-constrained with the time it takes to grow more product.
• Why the best procurement strategy is based on what "good" looks like for your company — not your competition's.
• How new technologies like AI and data lakes can help improve procurement and operations, and set a company apart.
• Why you should look for new talent who can "connect the dots" and see cross-functional impacts.