Relying in part on point-of-sale data, this software improves merchandise assortment, boosts total sales and helps increase average selling prices.

Point of sale is "where the facts are" that help retailers readjust orders to accommodate sales peaks and valleys that may be predictable but aren't always intuitive.

For "complexity masters," the world can be a dependable supplier and profitable market. But lackluster business performance is an unpleasant side effect for companies ill prepared for globalization and mounting value-chain complexity.

The first generation of SCEM vendors did not offer enough value to earn a permanent place in the marketplace, but a new wave of vendors with expanded capabilities promises to do a lot better.

Supply-chain plans tend to collapse when demand spikes, supplier failures and other problems at the execution level radically change the underlying assumptions. But better planning techniques, event management tools and a new generation of web-based collaborative solutions can keep these plans on track.

The breadth and depth of web-based applications for managing procurement and sourcing is expanding to the point that it touches on just about every important business process a company performs.

Today's supply-chain marketplace has little room for generalists. It's specialists that are in demand, with buyers of both software and services looking for industry-specific solutions and deep domain expertise.

Consultants and 3PLs differ on whether the trademarked term is a distinction without a difference, but they agree that there is a real need for a "supermanager" to run a company's logistics, knowledge base and IT systems.

Electronic trading exchanges, providing real-time access to critical data via the internet, may be the key to achieving true supply-chain integration.