Three years ago, we published an interview with Clayton M. Christensen, Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Business School and author of The Innovator’s Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail. His work is renowned for his landmark theory of “disruptive technology” and its ability to disrupt successful business strategies to create competitive advantage.

Christensen explains it this way: “A disruption is an innovation that comes into a market that enables a whole new population of people who historically might not have had the skill to use or the money to buy a product to have access to the product. Examples of disruptions in the past would be a Canon copier or a Dell computer.”

Greg Kefer, director of corporate marketing for GT Nexus, believes this exact dynamic is at work today in the supply chain software and technology sector (see page 22). Specifically, he thinks the market is moving towards the rental model and control will shift from the seller to the buyer. Of course, on-demand software is already starting to make news headlines and it’s likely to emerge as an accepted standard within the next few years. The best part is that we’re getting closer than ever to true end-to-end visibility in the supply chain.

This issue also delves into profound changes underway in the LTL trucking and intermodal rail sectors. Indeed, the recession has been another kind of market ‘disruption’ that has prompted transportation executives to rethink their business. LTLs are diversifying their business offerings to move deeper into their customers’ supply chains. One of the more unique examples have been LTL’s collaborations with ocean carriers, such as Con-way Freight’s alliance with APL Logistics to provide port-to-door service from nine origin points in Asia to any zip code in the U.S.

On the intermodal rail side, service improvements are where the action is and shippers stand to reap the benefits. All the major Class Is are pumping millions of dollars into double-stacking routes, improving their networks, streamlining switching yards, and essentially providing a more ‘truck-like’ experience, in the words of Bill Matheson, President of Intermodal Services for Schneider National.

You’ll also find coverage this month on a number of other developments—some more sci-fi than others—that could emerge as disruptive technologies in the supply chain. For starters, check out Amy Zuckerman’s report on Connected Vehicle technology (page 36). CV technology works by embedding highly advanced sensors in the wheels and engines of cars and trucks, which gather information on road conditions and traffic flow, then transmit the data to roadside traffic management centers and nearby vehicles. The result is more efficient traffic flow, less accidents, and less greenhouse gas emissions.

Meanwhile, the aviation industry is quickly adopting biofuels to replace conventional jet fuel (page 8). Here’s the cool part: the biofuel is derived from camelina—an indelible biofeedstock that grows in soil that cannot support other food crops.

These are disruptions to get excited about, and we’ll be bringing you plenty more in 2010.

Welcome to the New Year.



Lara L. Sowinski, Editor

laras@worldtradewt100.com