Most companies today are heavily outsourced and have suppliers spread out across the globe. Yet firms' knowledge of their suppliers and the environments they operate in is often limited and out-of-date, crippling their ability to successfully manage the dynamics of their supply base. This has introduced substantially more risk in global businesses.

"Sales Carbon Operations Planning" (SCOP) offers a new take on supply-chain management, bringing together traditional sales and operations planning (S&OP) techniques and the need for companies to track and reduce their carbon emissions. "It's my way of making it easy to transfer into sustainability with your existing processes," says Silvia Leahu-Aluas, owner of Sustainable Manufacturing Consulting. The new term covers everything from basic carbon dioxide management to a full understanding of the economic and environmental impact of greenhouse gas emissions.

Hong Kong Air Cargo Terminals Ltd. (Hactl) has become the site for the first authorized training center (ATC) to be established by the International Air Transport Association in Hong Kong.

The past 15 years have created a very different business environment, which has empowered consumers, commoditized many products and services, and dramatically compressed margins. Not surprisingly, these changes have forced businesses to operate differently. But exactly what kinds of companies have successfully transitioned to the digital age?

According to Interpol, the return on investment for counterfeiting pharmaceuticals can be over 20 times more than the return on dealing illegal drugs. In addition to making more money, counterfeiters usually face relatively lower penalties if caught.

If you're a CEO who thinks lean and Six Sigma can be left to the plant manager or a continuous-improvement (CI) specialist simply to improve factory operations, think again.

A newly-launched performance study from The Hackett Group Inc. is designed to help procurement organizations improve how they enable their companies' growth, in revenue and other areas. The open performance study should assist procurement leaders move beyond cost savings, and better understand the progress and strategies used in all facets of growth.

Drewry Maritime Research and CargoSmart Limited will introduce a wider range of container key performance indicators to help importers and exporters benchmark their carriers' service levels.