Leadership in supply chain is ultimately about creating agility, sustaining improvement, and making courageous decisions that protect long-term performance – and personal priorities. Ishan is joined by Cedric Lemetta, former Chief Operating Officer of L’Oréal Australia & New Zealand, to explore what operational excellence looks like at scale. 

Cedric shares the realities of managing a highly complex, import-led supply chain across Australia and New Zealand, including multi-site distribution, channel diversity, and long lead times. Drawing on senior roles with Unilever and Johnson & Johnson, he discusses technology adoption, change management, and the people dynamics that determine whether transformation succeeds. The conversation also covers work-life boundaries, Australia’s unique logistics challenges, and practical leadership lessons for emerging and experienced supply chain professionals. 

For a copy of Ishan’s book, Unlock, please visit: 
https://ishangalapathy.com/books/ 

More About Ishan Galapathy and to access his ‘Chaos to Excellence’ White Paper: 
https://ishangalapathy.com/ 

Leadership in supply chain is ultimately about creating agility, sustaining improvement, and making courageous decisions that protect long-term performance &ndash; and personal priorities. Ishan is joined by Cedric Lemetta, former Chief Operating Officer of L&rsquo;Or&eacute;al Australia &amp; New Zealand, to explore what operational excellence looks like at scale.&nbsp;
Cedric shares the realities of managing a highly complex, import-led supply chain across Australia and New Zealand, including multi-site distribution, channel diversity, and long lead times. Drawing on senior roles with Unilever and Johnson &amp; Johnson, he discusses technology adoption, change management, and the people dynamics that determine whether transformation succeeds. The conversation also covers work-life boundaries, Australia&rsquo;s unique logistics challenges, and practical leadership lessons for emerging and experienced supply chain professionals.&nbsp;
For a copy of Ishan&rsquo;s book, Unlock, please visit:&nbsp; <a href="https://ishangalapathy.com/books/">https://ishangalapathy.com/books/</a>&nbsp;
More About Ishan Galapathy and to access his &lsquo;Chaos to Excellence&rsquo; White Paper:&nbsp; <a href="https://ishangalapathy.com/">https://ishangalapathy.com/</a>&nbsp;

If you're immersed in the world of manufacturing or supply chain management, you've likely encountered the elusive concept of excellence. But what does it truly mean? Is it a destination or a journey? And how do we navigate the path to unlock excellence within ourselves and our organisations?

With more than 25 years’ experience in manufacturing across the Asia Pacific region, Ishan Galapathy delves into the heart of excellence, shifting the focus from tools and technology to the true drivers of success: our people.

Ishan shares insights and techniques honed from years of working with teams and leaders, helping them unleash their hidden potential and achieve remarkable results. Whether it's uncovering hidden capacity or fostering a culture of continuous improvement, he explores practical strategies for unlocking excellence in your workplace.

https://ishangalapathy.com/

If you're immersed in the world of manufacturing or supply chain management, you've likely encountered the elusive concept of excellence. But what does it truly mean? Is it a destination or a journey? And how do we navigate the path to unlock excellence within ourselves and our organisations?
With more than 25 years’ experience in manufacturing across the Asia Pacific region, Ishan Galapathy delves into the heart of excellence, shifting the focus from tools and technology to the true drivers of success: our people.
Ishan shares insights and techniques honed from years of working with teams and leaders, helping them unleash their hidden potential and achieve remarkable results. Whether it's uncovering hidden capacity or fostering a culture of continuous improvement, he explores practical strategies for unlocking excellence in your workplace.
<a href="https://ishangalapathy.com/">https://ishangalapathy.com/</a>

Excellence Unlocked delves into the heart of excellence, shifting the focus from tools and technology to the true drivers of success: our people

Excellence Unlocked

Ep91 From Complexity to Clarity: Leading High-Performance Supply Chains – Cedric Lemetter

Lasting operational excellence is built through trust, clarity and the disciplined use of human potential. Sustainable transformation does not come from tighter control, but from creating environments where people feel respected, heard and empowered to contribute. 

Ishan speaks with Parakrama “Para” Ekanayake, Distribution Centre Manager at Coca-Cola Europacific Partners in Sydney. Para reflects on a career spanning Sri Lanka, Jordan, Bangladesh and Australia, leading large-scale manufacturing, transformation and distribution operations across complex, multicultural environments. He shares the pivotal experiences that shaped his leadership philosophy, why strong teams outperform hierarchy, and how leaders can unlock performance by building trust, encouraging accountability, setting boundaries and creating cultures where continuous improvement becomes part of everyday work. 

Connect with Para on LinkedIn: 
https://www.linkedin.com/in/para-ekanayake/ 

For a copy of Ishan’s book, Unlock, please visit: 
https://ishangalapathy.com/books/

More About Ishan Galapathy and to access his ‘Chaos to Excellence’ White Paper: 
https://ishangalapathy.com/ 

Lasting operational excellence is built through trust, clarity and the disciplined use of human potential. Sustainable transformation does not come from tighter control, but from creating environments where people feel respected, heard and empowered to contribute.&nbsp;
Ishan speaks with Parakrama &ldquo;Para&rdquo; Ekanayake, Distribution Centre Manager at Coca-Cola Europacific Partners in Sydney. Para reflects on a career spanning Sri Lanka, Jordan, Bangladesh and Australia, leading large-scale manufacturing, transformation and distribution operations across complex, multicultural environments. He shares the pivotal experiences that shaped his leadership philosophy, why strong teams outperform hierarchy, and how leaders can unlock performance by building trust, encouraging accountability, setting boundaries and creating cultures where continuous improvement becomes part of everyday work.&nbsp;
Connect with Para on LinkedIn:&nbsp; <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/para-ekanayake/">https://www.linkedin.com/in/para-ekanayake/</a>&nbsp;
For a copy of Ishan&rsquo;s book, Unlock, please visit:&nbsp; <a href="https://ishangalapathy.com/books/">https://ishangalapathy.com/books/</a>
More About Ishan Galapathy and to access his &lsquo;Chaos to Excellence&rsquo; White Paper: <a href="https://ishangalapathy.com/">https://ishangalapathy.com/</a>&nbsp;

Ep94 Building Better Teams Across Cultures, Countries and Complexity

workplaces start the day with a quick huddle. A few questions, a few updates, then everyone moves on. It feels productive, but often it’s little more than a casual chat. What’s missing is structure. Without clear metrics, visual dashboards and disciplined meeting routines, those daily gatherings rarely move the needle on performance. 

The truth is many businesses, including large multinational companies, still operate this way, so if your meetings feel loose and unstructured, you’re not alone. But turning a huddle into a powerful operational tool requires three things. First, standardised KPIs that everyone agrees to measure the same way. Second, simple visual dashboards that show instantly whether the team is winning or losing. And third, a disciplined meeting structure that keeps the conversation focused, accountable and useful. 

Harvard Business Review article on the Hawthorne Effect: https://www.library.hbs.edu/hc/hawthorne/09.html 

For a copy of Ishan’s book, Unlock, please visit: 
https://ishangalapathy.com/books/

More About Ishan Galapathy and to access his ‘Chaos to Excellence’ White Paper: 
https://ishangalapathy.com/

workplaces start the day with a quick huddle. A few questions, a few updates, then everyone moves on. It feels productive, but often it&rsquo;s little more than a casual chat. What&rsquo;s missing is structure. Without clear metrics, visual dashboards and disciplined meeting routines, those daily gatherings rarely move the needle on performance.&nbsp;
The truth is many businesses, including large multinational companies, still operate this way, so if your meetings feel loose and unstructured, you&rsquo;re not alone. But turning a huddle into a powerful operational tool requires three things. First, standardised KPIs that everyone agrees to measure the same way. Second, simple visual dashboards that show instantly whether the team is winning or losing. And third, a disciplined meeting structure that keeps the conversation focused, accountable and useful.&nbsp;
Harvard Business Review article on the Hawthorne Effect: <a href="https://www.library.hbs.edu/hc/hawthorne/09.html">https://www.library.hbs.edu/hc/hawthorne/09.html</a>&nbsp;
For a copy of Ishan&rsquo;s book, Unlock, please visit: <a href="https://ishangalapathy.com/books/">https://ishangalapathy.com/books/</a>
More About Ishan Galapathy and to access his &lsquo;Chaos to Excellence&rsquo; White Paper: <a href="https://ishangalapathy.com/">https://ishangalapathy.com/</a>

Ep93 The Hidden Power of a Well-Run Daily Huddle

Transformation sounds exciting in the boardroom – new strategy, sharper governance, higher standards, tighter cadence – but step out of the PowerPoint deck and into the engine room, and you’ll find a different story. 

Middle managers sit at the intersection of strategy and execution, reporting upward, translating vision, and stabilising teams amid rising scrutiny. However, it’s not about whether your transformation plan is strong. It’s whether you have equipped the people in the middle to stand steady when the heat rises. Ishan unpacks what they’re really experiencing… and how to help them lead through it. 

For a copy of Ishan’s book, Unlock, please visit: 
https://ishangalapathy.com/books/ 

More About Ishan Galapathy and to access his ‘Chaos to Excellence’ White Paper: 
https://ishangalapathy.com/ 

Transformation sounds exciting in the boardroom &ndash; new strategy, sharper governance, higher standards, tighter cadence &ndash; but step out of the PowerPoint deck and into the engine room, and you&rsquo;ll find a different story.&nbsp;
Middle managers sit at the intersection of strategy and execution, reporting upward, translating vision, and stabilising teams amid rising scrutiny. However, it&rsquo;s not about whether your transformation plan is strong. It&rsquo;s whether you have equipped the people in the middle to stand steady when the heat rises. Ishan unpacks what they&rsquo;re really experiencing&hellip; and how to help them lead through it.&nbsp;
For a copy of Ishan&rsquo;s book, Unlock, please visit:&nbsp; <a href="https://ishangalapathy.com/books/">https://ishangalapathy.com/books/</a>&nbsp;
More About Ishan Galapathy and to access his &lsquo;Chaos to Excellence&rsquo; White Paper:&nbsp; <a href="https://ishangalapathy.com/">https://ishangalapathy.com/</a>&nbsp;

Ep91 From Complexity to Clarity: Leading High-Performance Supply Chains – Cedric Lemetter

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