What are the most important Megatrends that are driving companies' supply chains right now? This week, we take a look at the first five of these megatrends, from the focus on improved alignment to the disruptive supply chain force that is China.

In our continuing series on Supply Chain Best Practices, we review a recent book on the topic that provides some excellent examples of great things leading companies are doing with their supply chains - but is it best practice? In some cases maybe yes, but for other examples the strategies seem more company-specific.

As sales of supply chain software continue to be strong, we look at eight key factors that are driving companies to invest in supply chain and logistics technologies. The good times will not last forever, but right now, rapid supply chain change is leading companies to make investments.

Across almost all areas of supply chain software, times are good right now. Perhaps the best since the late 1990s. If vendors are selling, it means users are buying. What's driving this surge? We take a look a the factors behind the strong level of supply chain technology investment we're seeing right now.

How are companies doing at managing inventory levels? Not well. according to the annual working capital report from CFO magazine. Average inventory levels are up for most companies, driven by more offshoring and rising commodity prices. We take a look at the numbers, and call out some of the companies that have made great inventory progress over the past three years.

So just where do you stand in terms of your performance in supply chain effectiveness, distribution, and transportation? Many over rate their actual position; by definition, half have to be in the bottom 50 percent of the class.

Labor Management Systems for Distribution are being adopted by an increasing number of companies across many industry sectors. As SCDigest Editor Dan Gilmore took another deep look at LMS for our recent Supply Chain Digest Letter, he wonders: What is there not to like about Labor Management?

What were the key trends, issues and events in supply chain and logistics for the first half of 2007? SCDigest editor Dan Gilmore shares his perspective. Going green got huge, Dell needed a new Supply Chain Chief, Wal Mart RFID controversy, surging agricultural product costs and more.

While it has been around for a decade, the concept of Bucket Brigades and self-organizing logistics systems is not well known. It can deliver savings or 25-50% in order picking though, says Dr. John Bartholdi of Georgia Tech, and just may have applicability elsewhere in the supply chain.

In Part 3 of his Supply Chain Best Practices series, Editor Dan Gilmore shares more feedback from readers on the question of what Supply Chain Best Practices really are, and how or where they add value to a company's supply chain strategies.