What Operating Under Constraints In Haiti Has Taught One Emerging Supply Chain Leader

By Rachel Grabenhofer, Chief Editor, Clinical Supply Leader

Just three days of inventory remained, with production at risk of interruption. Enter Marie Grandin, a procurement coordinator at Brasserie de La Couronne (BRACOUR), who helped arrange an emergency supply to keep operations moving. Though the setting was manufacturing rather than clinical supply, the scene likely feels familiar to many supply professionals.

This emergency-sourcing effort is one of several experiences that have shaped Grandin's approach to supply chain operations. Recently named the recipient of the 2026 Global Clinical Supplies Group (GCSG) Scholarship, she has held roles spanning procurement, logistics, supplier coordination, and operational planning across manufacturing, public health, and government organizations in Haiti.

Now pursuing an MSc in Procurement and Supply Chain Management at Cranfield University, Grandin has expressed particular interest in resilient pharmaceutical supply networks, regulatory compliance, and improving access to medicines.

Clinical Supply Leader spoke with her about supply continuity, supplier relationships, stakeholder coordination, documentation readiness, operational constraints, and the lessons these realities may hold for clinical supply professionals.

Looking Beyond The Purchase Order

"When you work in an environment where conditions can change quickly, you learn to follow an order beyond the purchase order itself," Grandin says. "You want to know where it is, what might delay it, and who will be affected if it does not arrive."

Indeed, Grandin’s work with World Vision, CDC Haiti and USAID helped her understand the human purpose behind logistics. In those roles, she worked at the intersection of purchasing, reporting, travel coordination, and other operational activities. "I was supporting people whose work depended on reliable purchasing, travel and coordination,” she explains. “That gave meaning to tasks that might otherwise seem administrative."

Later, at BRACOUR, she applied similar principles while aligning suppliers, monitoring inventory, and ensuring production continuity.  "We once had approximately three days of Dischlor [water treatment] stock remaining, and I helped coordinate an emergency supply from another company to prevent a production stoppage," she recalls. "Knowing how little time we had made the responsibility very real."

Describing the incident, Grandin explained that under typical operating circumstances, the planning officer circulated a report every two weeks showing forecasts and identifying items in red, yellow, or green categories. “Alongside that reporting process, I routinely checked with each department to understand whether operations were running smoothly,” Grandin writes.

During one of those checks, the planning officer alerted her that there were only three days of Dischlor stock remaining. “Without replenishment, production would stop,” she emphasizes. At that point, Grandin contacted another FMCG company that used the same product to borrow some of its stock. “They were able to help. At the same time, I contacted our regular supplier to expedite the shipment of an order already in progress, so we could replenish our inventory and return what we had borrowed,” she adds.

Both actions were pursued in parallel: borrowing stock addressed the immediate shortage, while expediting the existing order addressed replenishment. “The experience demonstrated the value of direct conversations alongside routine reports, and of acting quickly when a shortage threatens production,” Grandin explains.

It also highlighted the importance of looking beyond the immediate problem to consider who might be affected if supply is disrupted. "When I raise an issue, it is because I am thinking about what could happen further down the chain," she says. "I care about getting things right because I know other people are depending on the outcome."

Balancing Urgency and Uncertainty

Another lesson Grandin has learned is that pressure is not the same thing as urgency. "I have learned to stay calm enough to understand what is truly urgent," she says. "When several people need something immediately, I ask: what happens if this is delayed? Who will be affected? What options do we realistically have?"

She reflects on a fabric shortage she faced while working at Acra Tires & Enterprises. Three schools depended on deliveries ahead of the school season. This required the team to arrange an expedited air shipment to meet a looming deadline. "It was a practical response to a deadline that could not simply be moved," she says.

Yet Grandin did not view the expedited shipment as a complete solution. "I did not want the solution to end with an expensive emergency shipment,” Grandin notes. “We later sourced internationally and tested three containers of fabric offering better quality at a lower cost.” For Grandin, this underscored the importance of addressing immediate operational needs without losing sight of longer-term improvement.

It also reinforced the value of honest communication during periods of uncertainty. "I have learned to be honest about what I do not know," she explains. "Under pressure, it can be tempting to reassure people before you have confirmation,” she continues. “I would rather explain what is confirmed, what remains uncertain and what I am doing to move things forward. People can make better decisions when they can trust the information you give them."

Where Coordination Breaks Down

Across procurement, logistics, and operational support roles, Grandin has often found herself serving as the point where people, information, and timelines converge. “I often describe myself as someone who brings people and details together to keep things moving," she says. "That has been a consistent part of my work.”

One example came during her work with USAID, where she helped coordinate logistics for a visit involving more than 35 people, five sites, two days, and multiple vehicles. "Every arrangement depended on another: the itinerary, the transport, the people and the sites," she explains.

That experience earned her a USAID Mission Award and illustrated a lesson she believes applies broadly across supply chains.

A separate experience while serving as a CDC administrative clerk revealed a related lesson about handovers and accountability. While preparing logistics for an official CDC OSSAM delegation visit to Haiti, Grandin was required to travel to the United States for training and left notes for a colleague covering her responsibilities. Although the visit ultimately went well, several errors occurred while she was away.

Looking back, she says the experience revealed how much of the coordination effort had depended on her personal involvement. "Written notes alone had not been enough," she explains. "A more effective handover would have included reviewing the outstanding arrangements with my backup, confirming who owned each next step, and checking that they had the information and contacts needed to follow through."

That lesson continues to shape how she views operational execution. "Breakdowns often happen at handovers," she says. "An email has been sent, but nobody has confirmed who is taking the next step." This observation echoes a challenge familiar to many clinical supply professionals: execution depends on information moving effectively between sponsors, CROs, CDMOs, depots, logistics providers, and clinical sites.

At BRACOUR, Grandin created a shipment tracker spreadsheet so colleagues across supply chain, production, and warehouse functions could see arrival dates, deadlines, and shipment status in one place. "I try to communicate clearly and respectfully, especially when something is urgent," she says. "We all have pressures. Understanding those pressures helps me bring people toward a solution."

Building Trust Before Crises Emerge

Just as handovers depend on clarity and shared understanding, supplier relationships depend on trust built before problems arise. "For me, trust is built through the small things: answering a difficult question honestly, sending the correct documents, and warning me early when a commitment is at risk,” she emphasizes.

Rather than expecting suppliers to avoid problems altogether, Grandin believes the way they communicate when issues emerge often matters most. "I do not expect a supplier to never encounter problems. I want to know whether we can have an open conversation when they do,” she explains. “An honest update gives me time to act. Silence takes that time away."

The Dischlor shortage underscored the importance of maintaining relationships before they are needed. Grandin notes that the company providing temporary stock was not a new contact. "We had been in contact before about other products. That existing contact gave me someone to approach when the Dischlor shortage arose," she explains.

“Being able to reach out, explain our situation and work toward a practical arrangement helped us protect operations,” she continues.

The Responsibility Inside A Document

Relationships and communication may help resolve emerging problems, but Grandin has also learned that supply chains can be disrupted by something far less visible: documentation. "I have learned how much responsibility can sit inside one document," she says. "A shipment may have travelled a long distance, but a missing certificate or an unresolved release can still keep it from reaching the operation."

Though the products and regulations may differ, clinical supply professionals face similar realities. Investigational product availability often depends not only on manufacturing and transportation, but also on approvals, documentation, and release processes moving in parallel.

At BRACOUR, Grandin coordinates invoices, packing lists, certificates of analysis, bills of lading, and other documentation while working with suppliers, quality assurance, finance teams, and customs brokers. One recent sugar shipment illustrated why physical supply and documentation readiness must be managed together. Although the shipment had arrived in Haiti, the team still needed critical documentation to complete customs clearance before substantial port charges would apply.

Complicating matters, the shipment was split across multiple bills of lading after approval had already been granted for ten containers, creating uncertainty about whether the original approval would still support clearance. Following repeated requests and follow-up, the bill of lading was released with only five days remaining in a 22-day free period. The team still needed to complete additional clearance steps before the deadline.

"Goods can arrive while the paperwork needed to clear them remains incomplete," Grandin explains. "For me, this means checking document readiness early and following up on each outstanding step before the available time becomes too short."

The experience cemented a principle she continues to carry forward: documentation must be managed as closely as the shipment itself. "What stays with me is how a change in one part of the shipment can affect several other steps," she says.

"There is real satisfaction in resolving those issues," Grandin highlights. "You know that your attention to a document helped something essential move forward."

When Resilience Masks Risk

When asked what other supply chain professionals sometimes overlook, Grandin points to the everyday effort required to keep operations moving. "Coming from Haiti, I have learned that resilience requires a great deal of everyday effort. It depends on people checking, adapting, following up and finding another option when the first one is no longer available."

At the same time, Grandin believes organizations must distinguish between resilience and over-reliance on individual effort. "One thing I think we can overlook is the pressure behind that resourcefulness.

In other words, successful execution can sometimes conceal underlying process weaknesses, a challenge clinical supply teams frequently encounter when workarounds become embedded in routine operations. Grandin cautions, "If everything depends on one person remembering every outstanding issue, the operation remains vulnerable." Instead, she advocates for shared information, clear records, and effective handovers.

"My global health experience has been in operational and logistical support rather than direct clinical trial supply,” Grandin emphasizes. “Still, it has taught me to respect the connection between dependable support, and the work people can accomplish."

The insight she would carry into clinical supply is straightforward. "Someone further along the chain is depending on work they may never see,” she explains. “That gives the details a purpose, especially when conditions are difficult."

From Practice to Systems Thinking

As she pursues her MSc at Cranfield University, Grandin is increasingly interested in understanding the systems that shape supply chain performance. "I arrived with years of practical experience and a strong desire to understand the bigger picture behind the problems I had been solving," she explains, adding that her studies are encouraging her to examine the decisions and relationships that created challenges in the first place.

Although her recent experience has broadened beyond humanitarian organizations, Grandin remains interested in humanitarian supply chains and hopes to apply what she learns at Cranfield to future work supporting vulnerable populations.

Receiving the GCSG scholarship has encouraged her move to the next phase of her career. "It gives me confidence that my experience has value and that I have something to contribute as I enter a new professional community,” she notes.

"'Rooted in Haiti, driven by purpose' expresses what I want to carry into this next chapter,” she emphasizes. “Wherever I work, I want to remember the circumstances that shaped me and help to build supply chains that people can depend on, especially when they are vulnerable,” she concludes.

About Grandin

Marie Noelle Fatima Grandin is a procurement and supply chain professional from Haiti and the recipient of the 2026 Global Clinical Supplies Group (GCSG) Scholarship. She is currently pursuing an MSc in Procurement and Supply Chain Management at Cranfield University.

When researching graduate programs and scholarship opportunities, Grandin discovered both Cranfield University and the GCSG Scholarship. Encouraged by an advisor to apply, she pursued the opportunity and ultimately became the 2026 recipient.

Grandin’s background spans manufacturing and public health, with experience in international purchasing, logistics, customs compliance, and supplier coordination. Through her work at BRACOUR and operational support roles with USAID, CDC Haiti, and World Vision International, she has helped coordinate the supplies, information, and arrangements that teams depend on to carry out their work.

Drawing on her experience in Haiti, Marie aims to contribute to more reliable access to medicines and healthcare products. Her interests include pharmaceutical supply chain resilience, regulatory compliance, and how procurement can support better health outcomes in developing countries.