Analyst Insight: There has been an explosive and exciting level of growth and innovation in the development of new automation solutions for distribution operations, particularly in the areas of full-case and less-than-case automation. It is inevitable that companies in North America and other developing nations will increasingly adopt these solutions as labor markets contract due to the aging population in the decades ahead. - Marc Wulfraat, president, MWPVL International Inc.

Analyst Insight: In 2013, four trends will become hot topics for transportation operations in companies large and small: transportation continuity planning, fuel efficiency and the move to alternative fuels, driver shortages, and transportation category management. - Mario Hegewald and Jim Osborne, Senior Managers in Ernst & Young LLP's Supply Chain Advisory Practice

Analyst Insight: The top reason field service agents are not able to resolve a customer issue the first time when on site is due to not having the right part to solve the problem. Thus in order to ensure that customers are happy, and beyond, top-performing service organizations in Aberdeen's recent Convergence of People and Parts research have focused on strategies to integrate field service with parts management to meet the needs of the customer and ensure profitability. - Aly Pinder, Senior Research Associate, Aberdeen Group