Linda McCahill, VP, human resources, The Integration Group, was named a recipient of the 2025 Women in Supply Chain award, presented by Food Logistics and Supply & Demand Chain Executive, and sponsored by Let’s Talk Supply Chain, in the Trailblazers category.
With more than 20 years of hands-on experience, McCahill is a strategic human resources leader with deep expertise in the manufacturing, supply chain and distribution industries. She partners closely with managers and executive teams to build and refine HR frameworks that support business growth. Her areas of focus span performance management, talent acquisition, total rewards, employee development, payroll, and strategies for both retention and organizational restructuring.
McCahill currently serves as VP, human resources for The Integration Group (TIG), where she leads the people side of the integration of TIG Distributing and Exodus Direct, creating a single set of policies while transforming the culture into one of fairness and opportunity. She joined TIG from OIA Global, where she led human resources for the Americas, and was instrumental in establishing a world-class HR organization from scratch, building out talent management, establishing measurement of HR performance, filling critical gaps in hiring, negotiating union contracts and in general increasing employee satisfaction. Prior to OIA, McCahill held various positions with Koch Industries and Sherwin Industries.
While McCahill has worked within well-established HR departments in Fortune 500 and privately held companies, gaining exposure to best-in-class practices, she’s also built HR functions from the ground up, particularly in family-owned and private equity-backed businesses, where she was responsible for establishing the foundational “house in order” essentials such as compliance, payroll, benefits, and employee relations. Her ability to shift from tactical execution to strategic leadership is what sets her apart.
McCahill sat down with Marina Mayer, editor-in-chief of Food Logistics and Supply & Demand Chain Executive and co-founder of the Women in Supply Chain Forum™, to talk about the challenges -- and opportunities -- that come with earning and sustaining a strong, credible voice at the leadership table.
Food Logistics: Let’s first talk about you. Tell us about yourself and your journey in how you got to this current stage in your career.
Linda McCahill: I began my HR career in 1997 as an HR generalist, which gave me a strong foundation across all areas of human resources. As my career progressed, I naturally gravitated toward manufacturing and warehousing environments, settings where I truly thrive. I enjoy being hands-on, walking the floor, engaging directly with employees, and understanding the day-to-day realities of the work.
Over time, my role expanded beyond transactional HR into long-term staffing strategy, workforce planning, and partnering with leadership to understand how HR decisions directly impact the business. That shift helped me grow into a true HR business partner, someone leaders rely on not just for compliance, but for insight, problem-solving, and strategy.
Putting myself in the shoes of both the employee and the manager has been central to my approach. It allows me to make thoughtful, balanced decisions that support our people while also driving business results. That mindset ultimately led me into director and VP roles, where I continue to focus on building strong teams, driving engagement, and aligning HR strategy with organizational goals.
Food Logistics: With more than 20 years of experience in the industry, walk me through some of the challenges you personally have faced in the industry, and what you did to turn those challenges into opportunities.
McCahill: Over the course of my 20-plus years in HR, primarily within manufacturing and warehousing, some of the most consistent challenges I’ve faced have been recruiting and retention in highly competitive labor markets. These environments often experience high turnover, tight candidate pools, and operational pressures that make it difficult to pause and rethink talent strategies. Early on, I learned that simply “posting and hoping” wasn’t effective. I partnered closely with operations to understand the work, the schedules, and the pain points, then adjusted recruiting strategies, onboarding, and engagement efforts to better align with what employees actually valued. That collaboration turned recruiting from a reactive function into a strategic advantage.
COVID was one of the most defining challenges of my career. I worked for a company deemed essential, which meant shutting down wasn’t an option. We had to protect our employees, keep operations running, and continue hiring, all at the same time. We became very creative in both recruitment and retention: adjusting attendance and leave practices, implementing safety protocols quickly, communicating transparently and often, and reinforcing trust by being visible and present on the floor. Retention during that time wasn’t about perks, it was about empathy, flexibility, and credibility. Employees needed to know they were heard and valued, and that leadership understood the risks they were taking by showing up every day.
Another challenge, and opportunity, has been earning and sustaining a strong, credible voice at the leadership table. I learned early on that accountability, dependability, and data are what build trust with leaders. Following through on commitments, being consistent in decision-making, and owning outcomes, especially during difficult situations, positioned HR as a function leaders could rely on, not just consult.
I also learned that data speaks louder than opinion. By building and leveraging HR metrics, such as turnover, tenure, new-hire attrition, overtime, and engagement trends, I was able to clearly demonstrate how people decisions directly impacted productivity, cost control, and operational performance. Metrics allowed me to move conversations from emotion or anecdote to facts and insights, enabling leaders to make informed decisions and reinforcing HR’s role as a true business partner.
Each of these challenges reinforced the same lesson that when HR stays close to the business, listens to employees, adapts quickly, holds itself accountable, and uses data to tell a clear and credible story, challenges become opportunities to build stronger teams, better leaders, and more resilient organizations.
Food Logistics: As outlined in your submission form, you partner closely with managers and executive teams to build and refine HR frameworks that support business growth. Why is this important?
McCahill: Partnering with managers and executive teams to build and refine HR frameworks is important because these frameworks provide the structure that allows the business to grow consistently, compliantly, and with accountability.
Some specific examples include:
• Workforce planning and staffing frameworks: Partnering with leaders to forecast headcount needs based on volume, seasonality, and growth plans. This includes defining hiring priorities, shift structures, overtime thresholds, and succession plans to ensure operations are properly staffed without unnecessary labor cost.
• Recruiting and onboarding frameworks: Creating standardized recruiting processes, structured interviews, and onboarding programs that reduce time-to-fill, improve new-hire retention, and set clear expectations from day one, especially critical in manufacturing and warehousing environments.
• Performance management frameworks: Developing clear role expectations and job descriptions, measurable performance standards, consistent feedback and corrective action processes. This helps managers address issues early, recognize strong performance, and create accountability while reducing employee relations risks.
• Compensation and pay structure frameworks: Aligning wage ranges, incentive programs, and market benchmarking with business strategy to attract and retain talent while maintaining internal equity and cost discipline.
• Attendance and time management frameworks: Implementing fair, legally compliant attendance and timekeeping policies that support operational needs while providing clarity and consistency for employees and managers.
• Employee engagement and communication frameworks: Establishing regular feedback, surveys, floor[1]level engagement, and transparent communication channels so leadership can respond proactively to concerns and improve retention.
• HR metrics and reporting frameworks: Building dashboards that track turnover, tenure, new-hire attrition, overtime, safety, and engagement trends. These metrics allow leadership to see how HR initiatives impact productivity, cost, and performance, and support data-driven decision-making.
These frameworks are most effective when they are built collaboratively with leaders, reinforced through training and communication, and measured consistently. This approach ensures HR supports growth not just in theory, but in day-to-day execution across the organization.
Food Logistics: You have experience building out talent management, establishing measurement of HR performance, filling critical gaps in hiring, negotiating union contracts and in general increasing employee satisfaction. What advice do you have for supply chain organizations in how to master the HR side of the business?
McCahill: My advice to supply chain organizations is to treat HR as an operational and strategic function, not a support function that sits on the sidelines. In fast-paced, labor-intensive environments, people decisions directly impact throughput, safety, service levels, and cost, so mastering the HR side of the business is essential.
My motto has been to stay close to the operation and the workforce. HR leaders must understand the work, the schedules, and the pressures employees and managers face every day. Walking the floor, listening, and being visible builds trust and allows HR to design solutions that actually work in a supply chain environment.
Second, build strong, practical talent management frameworks. This includes clear job expectations, career pathways, and leadership development at the frontline level. When employees see growth opportunities and managers are equipped to lead effectively, retention and engagement improve significantly.
Third, measure what matters and use data consistently. Establish HR metrics that leaders care about such as turnover, tenure, new-hire attrition, overtime, absenteeism, safety, and engagement. Data creates accountability, removes emotion from decisions, and helps leadership understand how HR initiatives impact productivity and cost. HR earns credibility by bringing solutions backed by facts.
Fourth, address hiring gaps proactively and creatively. Labor markets are tight, and waiting until operations are strained is too late. Partner with operations to forecast needs, adjust hiring strategies, refine onboarding, and improve retention of new hires. Recruiting should be treated as a continuous, strategic process, not a reaction to vacancies.
Fifth, approach union relationships with transparency, preparation, and respect. Successful negotiations come from understanding the business, knowing the data, listening to employee concerns, and maintaining open communication. When employees feel heard and leadership is consistent, labor relations become more collaborative and less adversarial.
Finally, prioritize employee experience without losing sight of business needs. Fair policies, consistent application, clear communication, and dependable leadership drive satisfaction. When employees trust leadership and feel valued, performance follows.
Food Logistics: What are your Top 3 predictions/trends for supply chain and logistics come 2026?
McCahill: My Top 3 trends for supply chain in 2026 include workforce planning, frontline leadership, and employee engagement.
Finding and retaining good talent will continue to be one of the biggest challenges for supply chain success. Organizations will need to invest more in building sustainable talent pipelines through partnerships with technical schools, community colleges, and internal upskilling programs. In addition, seeing a trend where employees desire to have cross-training opportunities and flexible scheduling to retain front-line workers. There will be a strong focus on HR metrics to predict turnover, optimize staffing levels by shift, and improve new hire retention, turning workforce analytics into an operational tool, not just an HR dashboard.
By 2026, organizations will clearly see that frontline supervisors make or break retention, safety, and productivity. Companies will invest more heavily in leadership development for first-line supervisors, focusing on communication, accountability, performance management, and employee relations. HR will play a larger role in coaching leaders in real time, helping them navigate attendance, performance, conflict, and engagement issues before they escalate. Employees don’t leave companies, they leave managers. Strengthening frontline leadership is one of the fastest ways to improve retention and culture in supply chain environments.
Lastly, the employee experience will no longer be viewed as a “soft” HR concept, it will be measured and managed like safety, quality, and throughput. Expect more focus on 30-, 60-, and 90-day retention, onboarding effectiveness, and early engagement indicators. Pulse surveys, floor-level feedback, and engagement data will be tied to action plans and leadership accountability, not just collected and filed away. Organizations will refine attendance, scheduling, and benefits frameworks to balance operational needs with workforce expectations, especially in tight labor markets. Organizations that intentionally design the employee experience will reduce turnover, stabilize operations, and improve service outcomes.
CLICK HERE to learn more about this year's Women in Supply Chain award winners, presented by Food Logistics and Supply & Demand Chain Executive.
This series would not be possible without the collaboration and partnership between Food Logistics, Supply & Demand Chain Executive and the Women in Supply Chain Forum with Let's Talk Supply Chain and Blended Pledge. This partnership celebrates the transformative impact women leaders have on the supply chain industry, driving innovation, resilience, and inclusivity. These awards shine a spotlight on trailblazers who are breaking barriers and shaping the future of supply chain management. And the Forum fosters meaningful conversations, networking, and collaboration to empower the next generation of leaders. By recognizing and amplifying these achievements, this initiative inspires progress across the industry. Join us in celebrating these extraordinary women and championing diversity—nominate a leader, attend the forum, and be part of this powerful movement shaping the future of supply chains.
