Christina Loh: Pioneering Supply Chain Excellence at Zwift
Christina Loh is a dynamic leader whose career in supply chain management has been marked by innovative solutions, strategic vision, and remarkable achievements. Her professional journey, from consulting roles to high-impact positions in both established corporations and startups, showcases her ability to tackle complex challenges and drive significant results. At Zwift, Christina continues to shape the future of supply chain management, demonstrating how her past experiences have prepared her for this pivotal role.
Professional Journey and Achievements
Christina Loh’s career reflects her exceptional talent in navigating and excelling within the intricate world of supply chain management. Her professional journey began as a Management Consultant, where she dedicated a decade to refining her expertise in customer experience segmentation, definition, and implementation. This formative experience provided a strong foundation for her future work in building high-performing teams and creating significant value for organizations.
A defining moment in Christina’s career came when she was hired by the VP of Customer Service at Palm to establish a Customer Service profit center. In this role, Christina identified enterprise customer needs, developed innovative services, and built all necessary sales, marketing, and operational capabilities from the ground up. Her success led to her promotion to Senior Director of Supply Chain Architecture, where she played a key role in driving execution and meeting revenue targets. Following Palm’s acquisition by HP, Christina advanced to VP of Planning & Fulfillment, where she managed a $1B supply chain and expanded HP’s Custom Integration Services (CIS) business.
Christina’s career trajectory continued to rise as she was recruited to transform Microsoft’s supply chain strategies. At Microsoft, she managed a $2B supply chain for Windows hardware products, including Surface mobile devices and PC accessories. Her leadership was instrumental in meeting global demand under intense pressure, while achieving margin and inventory targets.
Christina’s entry into the startup ecosystem came through a recommendation from a friend, leading her to serve as COO at a startup where she significantly increased revenue from $7M to $80M over four years. Her role involved transforming operational resources and product platforms, setting the stage for her subsequent leadership roles in four additional startups and one turnaround. Throughout these ventures, Christina collaborated with notable tech leaders such as Andy Rubin, Niccolo De Masi, and Diane Bryant.
Every role has been a chance to exceed expectations and drive success through strategic vision and operational excellence.
Impactful Achievements in Supply Chain
One of Christina’s most notable achievements occurred during her time at Ecosense Lighting. Partnering with the CTO, she developed an industry-changing LED lighting platform that allowed customers to order over 1 million build-to-order SKUs with a shipping timeframe of just 10 days—an improvement from the industry standard of 6-12 weeks. This groundbreaking approach captured 30% market share in its first year. By designing a customer-centric order process, integrating systems, and negotiating favorable terms, Christina’s team reduced inventory from 240 days to a mere 14 days.
Her accomplishments continued at Zwift, where Christina was tasked with building the supply chain function from the ground up during the COVID-19 pandemic. In just four months, she assembled a global team of supply chain professionals who worked virtually around the clock to secure constrained electronic components and bike parts for new product introductions and launches. Her team’s dedication included undergoing extensive quarantines to ensure product design and build quality.
Innovation in supply chain management is about creating solutions that redefine industry standards.
Strategic Vision and Leadership at Zwift
Christina’s strategic vision is perfectly aligned with Zwift’s mission to make fitness more fun and accessible through gaming technology. Zwift aims to transform fitness experiences, and Christina’s supply chain strategies focus on overcoming cost and complexity challenges for new subscribers, particularly cycling enthusiasts.
One of Christina’s key strategies at Zwift is the “Hit Rate” metric for suppliers. This metric measures a supplier’s ability to meet commitments and handle additional supply requests. Christina employs this metric to identify operational inefficiencies and ensure her team has clear visibility into the Bill of Materials (BOM) for effective supply decisions based on cost, lead time, and minimum order quantities (MOQs).
In her role, Christina collaborates closely with Product Management and Industrial Design to create innovative solutions. Notable achievements include the development of the “Hub,” a universal connector for any bike, and “Click,” a controller for virtual shifting. By introducing consumer electronics supply chain concepts into the exercise equipment sector, Christina’s team was able to shorten product development lead times, increase flexibility, and maintain high-quality standards.
At Zwift, our mission is to make fitness fun and accessible through innovative supply chain strategies.
Innovation and Product Launch Success
Christina’s expertise in managing product launches has been a major asset for Zwift, particularly during the Zwift Ride launch. Her team worked diligently with Product Management and Engineering to devise a supplier strategy that met tight deadlines and complex requirements. They sought partners skilled in welding for large products and experts in game controllers.
To ensure the Zwift Ride simulated the natural sway of outdoor riding, Christina’s team meticulously evaluated manufacturing processes from traditional bike frame manufacturers and exercise equipment manufacturers. Their approach was comprehensive, addressing factors such as capability, quality, cost, and strategic fit with Zwift’s supply chain goals.
Key elements of their success included:
- Establishing a Sourcing Process: Creating a structured process and qualification criteria to evaluate and select suppliers.
- Budget Scoping: Identifying and accounting for the costs associated with larger builds, including parts quantities, logistics, testing, and resource travel.
- Cross-Functional Collaboration: Working closely with engineering and product quality teams to align on testing and quality measures.
- Decision-Making Framework: Ensuring cross-functional agreements on ownership, criteria, and processes for decision-making.
Overcoming Challenges
Throughout her career, Christina has faced numerous challenges, both external and internal. External challenges included the 2010 Eyjafjallajokull volcanic eruption disrupting airfreight, the 2011 Fukushima nuclear accident affecting electronic component supplies, and the 2020 COVID-19 lockdown causing widespread material shortages.
Internally, Christina has navigated complex issues such as a last-minute decision to change product finishes six weeks before launch, leading to the production of 1 million units, and managing a business turnaround with $90M in open supplier liabilities. Her problem-solving approach is systematic and effective, characterized by:
- Problem Definition: Breaking down issues to their core principles and defining what success looks like.
- Information Gathering: Creating a RACI matrix to clarify roles and responsibilities.
- Regular Meetings: Holding daily war rooms for critical issues to ensure efficient communication and decision-making.
- Team Support: Providing the necessary support to resolve issues and access required resources.
Christina believes that thriving in operations involves tackling problems head-on and maintaining a focus on practical, effective solutions.
Problem-solving means facing difficulties head-on with clear strategies and a dedicated team.
Future Trends and Advice for Supply Chain Leaders
Looking to the future, Christina anticipates that political tensions between the US and China will continue to influence sourcing and assembly decisions. She also sees significant potential in AI for enhancing forecasting, planning, and manufacturing test systems. Zwift plans to explore AI initiatives to address inventory and testing challenges as they evolve.
For aspiring supply chain leaders, Christina emphasizes the importance of emotional intelligence, problem-solving skills, and effective communication. She advocates for responsible product creation, stressing the need for safety, sustainability, and decisions that minimize energy consumption and waste.
Future leaders must blend technical skills with emotional intelligence for success.