Despite high hopes for Arctic business from mining to shipping as the ice melts rapidly and temperatures rise twice as fast as the global average, few firms say the sums still make sense.

Manufacturing and distribution executives love the idea of slashing inventories. But it's distribution-center managers who must deal with the consequences.

Robot orders and shipments in North America set new records in the first nine months of 2014, according to Robotic Industries Association, the industry's trade group.

SupplyChainBrain and JobsInLogistics have joined forces in 2014 for the specialized purpose of:

B2B marketers are attacking mobile with budgets that are jumping 11 percent over the next six months and an additional 17.5 percent over the next 12 months. But it’s clear they’re not terribly happy with the tools vendors are providing. "Compelling solutions are still lacking," one marketer said.

More than two-thirds (68 percent) of B2B buyers now purchase goods online, up from 57 percent last year, according to a recent report from the Acquity Group.

The stage is set for strategic buyers. Uncertainty over macroeconomic issues may have dimmed the corporate lights on M&A plans in previous years, but 2014 is providing a more promising script. Debt financing is readily available; many corporations boast significant cash on their balance sheets; shareholders are clamoring for more than just share buybacks; and companies are scouring for targets at home and abroad with more immediacy than before. CEOs are viewing the M&A scene with more confidence than they have in a long time.