As global supply chains become more connected, software leaders are increasingly being asked to bridge product identification, compliance, data visibility and artificial intelligence. Loftware is highlighting that shift with the recognition of Chief Product Officer Michelle Northey, who has been named a recipient of the 2026 Women in Supply Chain Forum Award in the Trailblazers category.
The award recognizes women contributing to supply chain innovation, leadership and measurable business impact, but Northey’s recognition also reflects a broader change underway in supply chain technology: product software is increasingly becoming part of the digital infrastructure connecting manufacturers, suppliers, trading partners and regulators.
Northey oversees product strategy, product management, product marketing, user experience and learning experience at Loftware. Her role places her at the intersection of software development and increasingly complex supply chain requirements, including traceability, regulatory compliance and collaboration across organizational boundaries.
One of the company’s major initiatives under her leadership is Loftware Connect, a platform designed to help enterprises and trading partners exchange information more effectively. The technology is intended to support supplier onboarding, product identification, compliance and visibility across distributed operations.
That matters because supply chain problems increasingly originate outside a single company’s four walls.
A manufacturer may have accurate information internally but still lack timely or consistent data from suppliers, logistics providers or downstream partners. Product identification systems, labeling infrastructure and connected data platforms therefore have a role that extends well beyond printing labels or maintaining packaging information.
Product identification becomes supply chain infrastructure
Loftware operates in a category that has historically been associated with labeling, barcodes and product identification. The technology landscape is now broader.
Companies increasingly need to connect physical products with digital records that can be accessed across manufacturing, logistics, retail and regulatory workflows. Requirements such as serialization, traceability, product information management and regulatory labeling can create substantial data dependencies.
Loftware’s strategy under Northey has been to move toward a more connected platform model.
The company says its solutions have helped customers achieve an average of $1.3 million in operational cost savings and $750,000 in avoided regulatory fines per event. Those are company-reported customer outcomes rather than independently verified industry benchmarks, but they illustrate the economic stakes associated with supply chain data quality and compliance.
For enterprise teams, the larger issue is integration.
A labeling or product-identification platform that operates in isolation has limited value when supply chain information is fragmented across enterprise resource planning systems, warehouse management software, supplier portals and other applications.
Connecting those systems can reduce manual intervention while giving organizations a more consistent view of product information.
AI moves into the product roadmap
Northey is also leading Loftware’s AI product strategy, with the company embedding AI and intelligent capabilities into its product roadmap and internal product operations.
The emphasis is on areas such as AI-driven automation, intelligent insights and productivity improvements.
That positioning follows a wider enterprise software trend. AI is moving from standalone experimentation into established workflows, where its value depends less on generating text and more on interpreting operational data, automating decisions and identifying exceptions.
In supply chain environments, that distinction is important.
AI can potentially help identify anomalies, prioritize operational issues, support regulatory readiness or surface information buried across large volumes of product and supplier data. But these applications depend heavily on the quality, consistency and governance of the underlying data.
For supply chain leaders, therefore, AI adoption is increasingly connected to a less glamorous but fundamental challenge: building reliable digital infrastructure.
Connected packaging extends the data layer
Another part of Northey’s product work involves connected packaging and product traceability.
Packaging is increasingly becoming a digital touchpoint rather than simply a physical container. Product identifiers can link items to manufacturing records, supply chain information, regulatory data and consumer-facing experiences.
For manufacturers operating across multiple jurisdictions, that connectivity can also support changing compliance requirements.
The trend is particularly relevant as supply chains become more regulated and organizations seek better visibility into where products originate, how they move and which information must accompany them.
This creates a competitive environment that extends beyond traditional labeling software.
Enterprise platforms from companies such as SAP, Oracle, Microsoft and Salesforce increasingly connect supply chain, customer and operational data. Specialized providers such as Loftware compete by focusing more deeply on product identification, labeling, traceability and the operational requirements surrounding physical products.
The differentiation increasingly comes down to how well these specialized capabilities connect with the broader enterprise technology stack.
Supply chain leadership is also a workforce issue
Northey’s award also arrives at a time when supply chain technology leadership is becoming more multidisciplinary.
Product executives now have to understand not only software development but also regulatory requirements, customer workflows, data governance, partner ecosystems and operational economics.
That is particularly important for supply chain platforms because technology decisions can affect warehouse employees, manufacturing teams, suppliers, compliance specialists and customers simultaneously.
A successful product strategy therefore cannot be measured only by feature releases. Adoption, interoperability and measurable operational outcomes become equally important.
Northey has more than 25 years of enterprise SaaS product leadership experience, according to Loftware, and has spent her time at the company building what it describes as a customer-centric product organization.
The company says her work has included the launch of Loftware Connect, advances in connected packaging and the development of an operating model focused on customer outcomes.
Why the recognition matters
The Women in Supply Chain Forum Award is ultimately an individual leadership recognition, but its timing reflects a larger industry transition.
Supply chains are becoming increasingly software-defined. Physical goods still move through factories, warehouses, ports and stores, but the information surrounding those goods is becoming just as important to operational performance.
That puts product identification, traceability, compliance and supply chain collaboration closer to the center of enterprise technology strategy.
For Loftware, Northey’s recognition provides an opportunity to highlight that evolution while reinforcing its broader product strategy around connected supply chains and AI.
For enterprise buyers, the more important question is whether platforms in this category can integrate cleanly with existing systems and produce measurable improvements without adding another disconnected layer.
As supply chain networks become more complex, the ability to connect physical products, digital information and business partners may prove more valuable than any individual software feature.
Market Landscape
The supply chain technology market is moving toward greater connectivity, traceability and AI-assisted decision-making.
Traditional product identification and labeling systems are increasingly being integrated with ERP, manufacturing, warehouse, logistics and compliance environments. This creates opportunities for specialized providers while also increasing competition with broader enterprise platforms from SAP, Oracle and Microsoft.
AI adds another layer to the market. Supply chain organizations are exploring AI for forecasting, anomaly detection, document processing, supplier intelligence, workflow automation and operational decision support.
The challenge is that AI cannot compensate for fragmented or unreliable data.
For enterprise supply chain teams, investments in product identification, labeling, traceability and collaboration platforms increasingly serve as foundational infrastructure for broader digital transformation. Vendors that can combine specialized domain expertise with interoperability and intelligent automation are likely to have an advantage as companies modernize their supply chains.
Top Insights
- Loftware Chief Product Officer Michelle Northey received a 2026 Women in Supply Chain Forum Award for advancing supply chain technology and product innovation.
- Northey has led Loftware’s product strategy around connected supply chains, including Loftware Connect for supplier collaboration, onboarding, identification and compliance.
- Loftware is expanding AI across product development and software capabilities, targeting automation, intelligent insights, productivity and supply chain operational efficiency.
- Connected packaging and traceability are becoming strategic capabilities as manufacturers face rising compliance requirements and demand for more transparent product information.
- Enterprise buyers increasingly need specialized supply chain software to integrate with ERP, manufacturing, warehouse and partner systems rather than operate as isolated applications.
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