The way most companies evaluate forecasting performance tells them the magnitude of their error, but does little to identify causes of the error or potential for improvement, says Michael Gilliland of SAS. Gilliland explains how the addition of a few simple analytic tools can provide fuller and more useful evaluations.

A world where consumers want the freedom to shop and buy through a variety of channels while receiving the same brand experience and rapid, no-cost delivery, challenges retailers and logistics providers to come up with new and cost-effective solutions.

Surveys conducted by McKinsey and Company indicate that supply chain management is becoming a higher priority in boardrooms at the same time the job is becoming more challenging and complex. McKinsey Principal Yogesh Malik identifies issues for supply chain managers to address now and trends to watch.

Geographical information systems and advanced mapping tools will increasingly be used in the supply chain to map potential risks and mitigation strategies as well as to track people and assets inside the four walls, says Wolfgang Hall, global industry manager at Esri.

Chris Caplice, executive director of the MIT Center for Transportation and Logistics, discusses his research on identifying dominant designs in logistics and how these designs, in which companies are heavily invested, may be disrupted by emerging trends.

Rick Blasgen, president and CEO of CSCMP, reflects on the organization's accomplishments over its 50-year history and shares his vision going forward for the industry and its practitioners.

MIT's High-Viz Supply Chain Project is developing a way for companies to automatically map and analyze supply chain risk. Bruce Arntzen, executive director of the Supply Chain Management Program at MIT, explains the methodology underlying this project, progress to date and barriers that still exist.

Companies typically spread supply chain costs evenly across customers and products, but that results in some products and services subsidizing others, says Stan Aronow, director of supply chain research at Gartner. Aronow explains how cost-to-serve modeling can provide insights that lead to smarter and more profitable operating decisions.