E-commerce sales are growing 20% annually and are expected to reach $750 billion globally this year. This global shift toward e-commerce is changing how the retail and logistics industries operate.

This is the topic of a recently released Prologis research paper titled, "Inside the Global Supply Chain: E-commerce and a New Demand Model for Logistics Real Estate."

As businesses seek ways to prosper in the global economy, more should look to build supply chains that are protean, those capable of rapid adaptation to changing market conditions. 

Supply chains represent the lifeblood of most companies; parts or ingredients are sourced from suppliers, they are then manufactured or assembled in to products, and finally these goods must be delivered to customers.

There are several on-going developments feeding into the growth of protean supply chains. Here are five of the most important.

U.S. wholesale inventories rose in May, reinforcing the view that economic growth should surge in the second quarter following a weak first three months of the year.

The Commerce Department said on Thursday wholesale inventories increased 0.5 percent from a month earlier. The rise was just below economists' expectations for a 0.6 percent gain.

A recent survey has found that more than half of e-commerce consumers (54%) are willing to pay at least 5% higher prices for products ordered online if they are delivered sustainably, and 76% would wait at least one extra day for climate-friendly transport.

These are among the findings of the "Need for Green or Need for Speed Survey" commissioned by consulting firm West Monroe Partners. The survey went on the reveal that although consumers seem positive about greener delivery, they are largely unaware such delivery options exist. Further, retailers supply virtually no green shipping choices in the course of e-commerce transactions.

Walmart is by far the leading retail brand in the US, with a brand value of $131.88 billion in 2014. It has been a leading retailer since Sam Walton opened his first store back in 1962. Walmart's success is in great part due to how the company manages and motivates its supply chain toward continuous betterment and sustainability.

What the electronics supply chain can learn from how Walmart moves toward a sustainable supply chain might be both inspiring and beneficial, and it may positively impact every other aspect of business management as well. "The first rule of thumb in creating a solid supply chain sustainability is to think broadly," wrote EBN's editor in chief, Hailey McKeefry, in her blog, The Benefits of Supply Chain Sustainability.

In today's business environment, every company is under pressure to do more with less. To compete efficiently and win more business, companies need to improve and optimize their supply chain to provide better quality, improve turnaround times and lower costs.

This process requires careful planning and analysis, a project which requires meticulous questioning, study and time. As you embark on a transformation of your supply chain it is important to ask yourself these 10 questions regarding your project and thoroughly analyze the results.

As a young professional chances are, you work in a multi-generational workplace. As a millennial, you were raised with computers and mobile technology; these things have helped shape your communication, decision-making, relationship-building, and the way you work.

Success in the workplace is dependent on being able to manage each of those things well even with others who have different backgrounds and experiences. These vary greatly between generations.

Outside risks can stretch supply chains' capabilities to the breaking point, but executives who run them often fail to develop risk contingency plans, according to a new study from the Global Supply Chain Institute at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

Ninety percent of the firms surveyed do not measure supply chain risk when outsourcing production, and none uses outside expertise to help assess supply chain risks, according to the study.

Slave labour should be consigned to the history books. Yet the globalisation of supply chains and the relentless downward pressure on prices means that exploitation of the vulnerable still exists.

The Guardian's revelations that the Thai fish industry – and in particular the supply of prawns to UK supermarkets – has been implicated in the use of slave labour is the latest scandal to have rocked public perception of our food system. The resulting inquests, investigations and questions in Parliament show there are still more surprises to be found in the supply chains that end on our plates.

One of our clients, a third parth logistics (3PL) company, will buy a transportation management system (TMS). They asked us what they should look for in the product demonstrations.

 

After talking to some folks I respect in the industry, this is what I came up with.

Optimism for the nation’s economic outlook among U.S. business leaders continued to rise from first quarter 2014, according to the latest data from the Grant Thornton International Business Report (IBR), a survey of more than 3,300 business leaders in 45 countries.

In second quarter 2014, optimism among U.S. business leaders rose eight percentage points to a net balance of 74%, marking the highest level since 2004.

More than half of the 300 U.S. and Canadian senior-level executives who participated in the 2014 Chubb Multinational Risk Survey said they expect to increase their overseas activities this year. Some of the most common plans included increased overseas travel, new product introductions and expanded overseas headcount.

 

Similarly, of the 61 U.S.-based industrial manufacturing executives who participated in the first-quarter PwC Manufacturing Barometer: Business Outlook, 18% said they expect to expand to new markets abroad over the next 12 months, up from 9% a year ago. Thirteen percent said they expect to open new facilities abroad, up from just 3% a year ago.

The National Freight Advisory Committee (NFAC), an experts panel created by former Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood in June 2013, has submitted a report containing 81 recommendations for improving the performance of the nation’s freight transportation system.

League member companies were well represented on this advisory committee with key individuals from, Arkema Inc,; Cargill Inc.; True Value Company; UPS; Con-way Inc.; and Ingram Barge Company.

In my last article, I identified nine levers you can pull for mastering profit margins and I promised you some metrics you can use to indicate success with those levers.

These metrics will paint you a picture of how you are performing in your quest to master margins and increase profitability. The key to any metric is that it must show progress towards the goal you are trying to achieve and the outcomes you are trying to accomplish.