MHI Solutions Improving Supply Chain Performance
BY CHRISTY DULA, CHIEF EXPERIENCE OFFICER & DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY OFFICER, MHI
WHEN MHI AND Ware‑housing Education and Research Council (WERC) member company Takt’s founders first walked into a warehouse in 2021, they came from a technology background, not a supply chain one. Glynn LoPresti, co‑founder and CEO, said the leap from Google and Amazon into logistics software was less about industry pedigree and more about learning to work within an industry built on trust.
“Supply chain is the greatest industry in the world, because of the way that business gets done here—through personal relationships,” said LoPresti.
That realization shaped how Takt, a warehouse labor and intelligence platform that helps operations move goods more efficiently while engaging frontline workers, approached its first industry association memberships. Without venture funding to buy its way onto a keynote stage, the company instead looked for organizations that could introduce it to the supply chain on its own terms.
STARTING WITH WERC
Takt joined WERC in 2022, after having initially attended the Annual Conference before formally signing on. LoPresti said the return on that early investment came less from selling and more from listening.
“You sit in on Thought Leader sessions with a company on stage talking about their evolution, their challenges, and how they’re addressing them. Then you realize that the vast majority of the audience is their direct competitors. That, and the presentations are not sales pitches,” said LoPresti. “In business, that is uncommon, and it was a huge wake‑up call that this industry is different.”
That openness among competitors through WERC, he added, was “surprising and eye‑opening” from the start. Takt eventually moved from simply attending to presenting alongside its own customers.
FINDING A GLIDE PATH INTO MHI
By 2024, as WERC and MHI began deepening their relationship, Takt was introduced to MHI’s StartUp community, an on‑ramp LoPresti said was essential for a small company intimidated by the scale of MODEX and ProMat.
“The breadth of MHI’s offerings and shows can be overwhelming for small companies,” noted LoPresti, who added that MHI’s StartUp Community made navigating those resources and offerings more manageable. “Becoming a part of the StartUp Community enabled Takt to exhibit and present at MODEX at a discount.”
LoPresti emphasized that startups benefit the most from MHI when they lean in fully.
“StartUp Community members have to participate, volunteer and show up,” said LoPresti, noting that those who put in the most effort and energy gain the most benefit. “Active involvement reflects well not only on the individual company, but also on the StartUp Community as a whole and on MHI’s investment in that pipeline.”
GRADUATING INTO FULL MEMBERSHIP
Takt became a full MHI member in 2025. LoPresti said MHI Membership team’s onboarding experience helped MHI’s scope of offerings. That guidance pointed Takt toward MHI’s Solutions and Software communities, volunteer‑driven groups that give member companies a voice in shaping industry thinking.
“Being part of these groups allows us to participate in providing thought leadership to other MHI members, while also offering insight into what’s coming next across the industry,” added LoPresti.
Takt has also built MHI’s onboarding education into its own hiring process, sending new employees—many with no prior warehouse experience—through WERC’s online Distribution Logistics Education Program (DLEP).
“Those courses are really important for a company like ours. We hire people with coding and software expertise, but rarely do they have warehousing or distribution experience,” LoPresti explained. “The courses help our team better understand the needs of the people they’re supporting.”
He pointed to MHI’s Young Professionals Network and Women @ WERC programming as equally valuable for retention. “At Takt, we place just as much value on individual growth as we do company growth,” said LoPresti. “So we encourage our people to be involved.”
Takt’s Abby Richter, Customer Success Manager, has directly benefitted from the membership opportunities MHI and WERC provide. Richter has attended two WERC Annual Conferences—and even presented at one. She said the Conferences have reshaped how she thinks about her work.
“Getting to present was a great professional growth opportunity. But even more important, the WERC Annual Conference gives me a chance to actively learn talking to people who are passionate about warehousing and labor management,” said Richter. “It’s a fabulous learning experience.”
She’s also found value in Women @ WERC programming. “Seeing women in leadership in supply chain is rare, but also getting face time with them and having them interested in talking to other women is unique,” explained Richter. She added that the relationships built at conferences fill a gap many young professionals struggle with.
“In college, my professors encouraged me to find professional mentors. But it’s daunting to reach out to people you’ve never met,” she continued. “Meeting people at the WERC Annual Conferences and seeing them again year after year has helped me build a professional network of resources I can call and continue to learn from.”
Click here to read the full article.