Companies are still dealing with supply chain challenges brought on by the pandemic and earlier issues that pre-date the pandemic, but a growing talent pipeline of supply chain professionals points to a promising future, according to Grant Demers, vice president of sales, mass and club channels at McLane Co. "What we saw through the pandemic was this ushering in of new innovation and collaboration as we were forced to look for ways to overcome," Demers said.

Roughly 35% of employees working at publicly held companies operating within the supply chain sector are people of color and 13% hold vice president positions, compared with private firm counterparts with 30% and 7%, respectively, according to a Gartner survey conducted with The Associated of Supply Chain Management among firms primarily in the US, Canada and Europe. The study also found the pay gap is narrower between different racial and ethnic groups for organizations that are publicly held, and 93% of large, global organizations have established diversity, equity and inclusion goals, compared with 37% of smaller businesses.

The Case Freight Index, which measures shipping demand, rose 5.4% between April and May, while expenditures were up 27.5% annually. These numbers indicate surging freight volumes are beginning to falter, says ACT Research Vice President Tim Denoyer, who predicted a more stable environment going forward.

Prominent manufacturers have turned to data analytics, artificial intelligence and machine learning to protect their supply chains amid labor shortages and inflation, per LeanDNA founder and CEO Richard Lebovitz. Manufacturers that have yet to embrace a digital transformation are facing hurdles such as lack of resources, funds and expertise.

Solid marketing technology plans help businesses develop effective, efficient marketing strategies with the help of data, says Michael Donnelly of the Association of National Advertisers. Donnelly shares four steps to review or get started with martech strategies, from mapping solutions for each stage of the customer journey to prioritizing techniques that generate the best return on investment.

Brian Dean, founder of Backlinko and co-founder of Exploding Topics, talks in this podcast about how business-to-business marketers can best attract and convert leads. Dean explains why it's essential to know what your audience is looking for before creating content on the platforms that already exist and why he still believes a blog is the best way to reach and convert leads.

Companies can encourage employees to be "troublemakers," those individuals whose job it is to speak up and challenge leaders' thinking, asserts Luvvie Ajayi Jones, founder and CEO of content strategy company Awe Luv Media. Ajayi Jones suggests corporate missteps can be traced to one thing: fear in the ranks.

The decentralized workplace of the future will require technology-supported transparency and better preparation for potential cybersecurity attacks, writes Awareness Technologies CEO Elizabeth Harz. "Transparent management creates a platform for the entire organization, from the talent department to executives to junior employees, ensuring that productivity, engagement, security and fair treatment are top of mind," Harz writes.