New tech at the heart of UNFI's supply chain transformation | Nov. cybersecurity event eats into Empire's profit | Cold storage sector sees strong growth
United Natural Foods is using new technologies, stepping up associate training and reforming operating procedures as part of its wider supply chain transformation initiative. The grocery wholesaler is using Systems Applications Enterprises' scanning technology at 18 distribution centers, with plans to make the technology available at more facilities, and is also working to install Symbiotic's artificial intelligence-driven automation system at a Washington state distribution center.
Sobey's parent company Empire reported that a cybersecurity event in November cost the company more than $39 million in profit for the quarter that ended Feb. 4. Empire reported that overall sales for the quarter totaled $5.5 billion and profit came in at $91.6 million.
The number of cold storage assets expanded much more quickly between 2021 and the first half of 2022 compared with the average growth rate detected between 2013 and 2020, a Newmark report found. Lineage Logistics and Americold had 71% of the storage capacity in leading markets last year, up from 61% in 2019.
Microsoft has added the Dynamics 365 Copilot feature to its Supply Chain Center platform. The feature tracks external risks to a supply chain and expedites communication to supply chain partners by using generative artificial intelligence to draft and send alerts.
Both decision-makers and decision-shapers at enterprise tech firms say visuals are the element within business-to-business content that most draws their attention, according to an Ah Um study. Decision-shapers are most likely to find B2B content on Facebook, followed by company websites and Twitter, while decision-makers favor LinkedIn and company websites.
Automation is an essential tool to help marketers glean the most actionable insights from their marketing data, writes Rashan Dixon, a senior business systems analyst at Microsoft. Use marketing data automation software such as Triple Whale, Google Analytics or Zapier, to more easily monitor key performance indicators such as conversion rates or return on ad spend.
When your team is not performing well, it's time to get curious about whether you've offered both clear and reasonable expectations and if your feedback has been direct, kind and actionable, write consultant Amii Barnard-Bahn and Institute for Global Flourishing CEO Noemie Le Pertel. "Making the conscious decision to drive performance from empathy is the difference between the true competitive advantage -- discretionary effort -- and punching the clock," they write.
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