As we’ve seen over the last few years, planning and forecasting alone haven’t been enough to deal with the delays and shortages rippling through global supply chains.

In a difficult economy, the most obvious action item on executive agendas is cutting cost. Yet businesses often fail to make good on that relatively straightforward objective.

Once regarded as a back-office process, procurement is finally getting the respect it deserves, recognized for its contribution to the organization's long-term, strategic agenda.

Tying all planning and execution systems together tears down silos and enhances operations, says Mahesh Rajasekharan, CEO of Cleo.

Doubts about China as the ideal place to manufacture cheap consumer goods for the West have been voiced for years.

Are "end-to-end" supply chains really a thing? And if not, what will it take to make them a reality? Erez Agmoni, global head of innovation with Maersk, explains.

Supply chain network design, a branch of operations research, helps in strategic decision-making about nodes, sourcing, transportation modes and inventory levels.

Projects funded by the grants include bridge, track, and grade crossing improvements, expanded passenger rail corridors, and workforce improvements. 

The deal will mark around $1 billion of investments in acquisitions by Blue Yonder since Q4 2023 in its quest to provide a unified end-to-end supply chain management platform.

With proper human oversight, NLP can reduce supply chain challenges even before they occur, thus potentially saving companies substantial time and money.