Social media and digital, customer data and brand awareness are the top three challenges in retail marketing, and digital advertising is among the most important tools in that arena, says a survey by SAP AG.

Carbon footprint: What a misleading metaphor that is.

Voice-based warehouse solutions continue to gain converts and to evolve, with the latest iterations bringing in smart phones, tablets and sensors. Jennifer Lachenman, vice president of product strategy at Lucas Systems, says these adaptations better serve a changing workforce.

Corporate criminals are using professional and systematic methods to target the weakest link for global organizations, the supply chain. High profile exploits such as Target's supply chain disaster are raising concerns across numerous verticals on business stability. With the threat of tainted and counterfeit technology products building every day, organizations must come together now and take what steps they can to mitigate risks to the supply chain.

Insufficient communication and too much emphasis on controlling factory capital expenditures means that manufacturers pay massive energy-inefficiency costs over the lifetime of their plants, according to research firm IHS.

Many past decisions to offshore manufacturing were based on price alone. Today, manufacturers are looking at more than just price when considering sourcing decisions and production locations.