In the past few years, it has become clear that the supply chains delivering everything from microchips to corn chips all over the world are stressed. Technology upgrades are needed to serve increasingly complex, global markets more efficiently and effectively and to keep up with unpredictable supply and demand, labor shortages, and other disruptions.

In some cases, companies are still moving products around the world with one foot in the past, operating supply chains using incomplete, mismatched data based on closed-loop systems to meet the needs of modern commerce. The vulnerabilities in outdated systems came to light as the pandemic upended normal operations, contributing to widespread product and material shortages, delivery delays, backorders, and rampant uncertainty.