John Fontanella, vice president research at AMR Research, passed away in November.

Fontanella was well-known and respected in the supply chain and logistics sector as a leading analyst and thought leader, covering various components of supply chain, manufacturing, and marketing in the high-tech, consumer products, and third-party logistics industries.

At the time of his death, Fontanella's main research focus was on RFID technology and applications, the wholesale distribution industry, global trade, supply chain visibility, supply chain security, and supply chain event management.

Fontanella was with AMR Research for 10 years beginning in 1998, where he worked in the company's supply chain and consumer packaged goods services. And prior to rejoining AMR in 2006, he served as senior vice president of research services at Aberdeen Group and vice president of supply chain services at Yankee Group.

He also served as director of worldwide logistics for Microsoft Corporation and spent 15 years at Digital Equipment Corporation in various operations and marketing positions, including U.S. distribution manager and head of the supply chain practice.

Greg Aimi, AMR research director, told Modern that Fontanella has consistently been one of the firm's top supply chain analysts. “John brought deep expertise as a supply chain practitioner through his experience at both Digital Equipment Corp and later at Microsoft,” said Aimi. “Using this experience, he became a trusted advisor to many in the supply chain software and logistics services businesses.”