Are cryptocurrencies like bitcoin gaining legitimacy in the retail and services sector? And what impact might they have on the supply chain?

You think you've had bad customer service buying products online - how about the guy in India who ordered his wife a Samsung smartphone, and the package arrived with only a brick and a bar of soap in it!

As manufacturers continue to competitively differentiate themselves within various industry settings, after-sales service will increasingly become more important in their overall business and profitability strategy, according to Business Strategy: Spare Parts Planning for Service Excellence, a report from IDC Manufacturing Insights. In fact, many discrete manufacturers can expect to capture upward of 30 percent of revenue from service and service-based product strategies.

New product forecasting is one of the toughest demand management challenges, especially for the 15 to 20 percent of product launches that are "revolutionary." Charlie Chase, advisory industry consultant at SAS, explains how advances in technology are improving this process.

The overall shortage of supply chain talent is particularly critical in demand management, says Jason Breault of LifeWork Search. He explains reasons and remedies.

Speed, Efficiency, Optimization. For many companies, actualizing this powerful trio can seem more like a dream than a concrete, achievable supply-chain goal. There are ways to realize all three, and the evolving excellence of supply chain technology is providing more and more opportunity to do so. Enter Big Calculations: the act of optimizing your business in real time, to create fast and efficient results.