Analyst Insight: In 2016, Amazon subsidized the cost of shipping to their customers by about $7bn, setting a very high bar for customer expectations of cheap or free shipping with rapid delivery. Most competitors don't have the same options as Amazon to buy market share this way, putting enormous pressure on them to squeeze every penny out of fulfillment and transportation costs (as well as to differentiate in other dimensions). Omni-mode integration is one tool that can help companies lower shipping costs to effectively compete. – Bill McBeath, chief research officer, ChainLink Research
Analyst Insight: Developing supply-chain strategy as a process versus a project has become critical to make necessary strategic decisions in today's dynamically changing e-commerce environment. As digital disruptions continue to evolve in the marketplace, leadership faces numerous challenging decisions to maintain and/or improve market share. Agility and creative thinking is required for you and your supply-chain evolution. – Dale Pickett, director, Tompkins International
Analyst Insight: With companies reshoring their manufacturing facilities back to North America in today's market and in the future, leading industrial manufacturing companies are striving to enhance factory performance and improve plant productivity to maintain a competitive edge. Industrial manufacturing is in the midst of a technological renaissance that is transforming the systems and processes of the modern plant. Companies can't afford to ignore these advances or they will be left behind. – Brian Neuwirth, VP of Marketing and Sales, UNEX Manufacturing
Analyst Insight: In a time of rapid political and economic change, uncertainty and tight budgets, R&D and education can often get short shrift. Perversely those are the times when the latest ideas are needed the most - especially for professionals wanting to learn and implement new techniques. – Kate Vitasek, faculty member, University of Tennessee's Haslam College of Business Administration
Analyst Insight: Customer-focused initiatives are increasing the requirements placed on global supply chains, and companies are struggling to develop supply-chain organizations and capabilities with the speed, flexibility and cost control to meet these needs. There is opportunity for companies to drive greater efficiency, both internally and externally, through the use of emerging digital capabilities, advanced data analytics, and new collaboration models in their supply chains. – Andrew Prinz, associate partner, supply chain management, Infosys Consulting
Analyst Insight: Today's supply-chain industry is currently dealing with a shortage of talent to fill critical positions. Unfortunately, many companies are also finding the skills in their current workforce lacking in order to manage today's complex business environment. In light of this, many universities are offering more educational opportunities to assist developing the talent base in the supply chain through online master's programs. – Karl Manrodt, professor of logistics and supply chain management, Georgia College, and Donnie Williams, assistant professor of logistics and supply chain management, Georgia College
Analyst Insight: Logistics decisions are executed to deliver a service at the lowest possible cost. There are various inefficiencies in logistics operations, and the overall supply chain, that make this seemingly simple objective a constant struggle. Some of those inefficiencies are self-imposed by shippers, as they attempt to drive stability in logistics to lower costs. Mode decisions and core carrier programs are examples of historical ways to drive logistics efficiencies. But they may be driving inefficiencies in tomorrow’s logistics operations. – Shanton Wilcox, Partner-Supply Chain Management, Infosys Consulting
Analyst Insight: Today, every business is a digital business. That means that every supply chain needs to be a digital supply network that unites not just physical flows but also talent, information and finance. This new breed of supply chains is more connected, intelligent, scalable and rapid than ever before and has the potential to help companies reap billions of dollars in new revenue and savings. – Gary Hanifan, managing director, Accenture Strategy, Operations Strategy
Analyst Insight: Soaring consumer expectations and new legislation for GMO labeling and food safety modernization are driving a major transformation in the food and beverage industry, and rapidly creating a new industry normal. Supply-chain standards and new packaging innovations can help industry keep up with and even anticipate the demands of increasingly engaged consumers. – Angela Fernandez, VP of Retail Grocery and Foodservice, GS1 US
Analyst Insight: The decades-old practice of a delivery truck dropping off a package at a home or business occurs millions of times daily across the globe. But new ways to cover last-mile delivery - such as drones, self-navigating parcel robots and underground vehicles/tunnels - are providing a glimpse into what tomorrow's last-mile delivery options might look like. Here are three technologies that carry the potential to transform the local delivery of direct-to-consumer orders. – John Johnson, senior content specialist, Gartner
