Managing carbon emissions in your supply chain is a constant challenge. You may have control over your own facilities and operations, but it's hard to influence the sustainability practices of third-party carriers and 3PLs. Your request for proposal (RFP) process provides a powerful (and frequently untapped) lever. By including language about registering with EPA's SmartWay Transport Partnership, you can use your RFPs to encourage truck, rail, logis-tics, and multimodal carriers to participate in SmartWay and help you quantify your supply chain’s carbon footprint at the same time.

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: Over the last three years the retail industry has seen a great many changes, helping to streamline retail supply chains and create more cost savings for retailers. This efficiency-driven approach was in large part a response to the "great recession," and it has sustained the industry through these challenging times, putting them in a greater position for success as we look ahead to the future. So where do we go from here? - Casey Chroust, executive vice president, Retail Industry Leaders Association