When forwarding industry veterans launched their own venture in 2008, among other things, they wanted to start out with brand-new solutions and systems.

Each disruption in global supply chains seems to bring a new surprise. On March 31 of this year, it was an explosion and fire at a chemical plant in Marl, Germany. The incident at the factory of Evonik Industries resulted in the deaths of two workers and caused damage that will take all summer to repair.

Once a new technology tool becomes embedded in the business world, one tends to forget the doubt and confusion that marked its debut. As anyone over the age of 30 will recall, companies once debated the value of having websites. Early users of the internet were actively hostile to the notion of a network that was created for the defense and academic communities being co-opted by the commercial sector. Now, of course, any business that isn't on the internet is either utterly clueless or not serious about being a success. Yet we seem to be having the same debate all over again, this time centering on the proper role of social media.