This past fall CAPS Research released the major focus study, Succeeding in a Dynamic World: Supply Management in the Decade Ahead. Developed in partnership with A.T. Kearney and ISM the report was based on invaluable input from more than 250 major global corporations based in North America, Europe, Asia/Pacific, and Latin America. The basic message of the study is one you are well aware of—that the only constant is change. What perhaps is different is the likely pace of change—closer to exponential than linear.

The focus study details both challenges and opportunities ahead in the next ten years. Competitive pressures on the next decade's supply management organizations will be intense: executive leadership will demand that more value be created for the organization, while competitors will strive to link together supply chains that outperform those of their rivals. The best organizations will rethink and revamp their strategies.

CAPS Research will be using this report as a blueprint for several new research initiatives the results of which we think will be of value to help companies plot their path through the decade ahead. Underway already is a major project on how to better collaborate with suppliers to accelerate innovation—a prerequisite for survival over the next 10 years. As we ourselves come to better understand the challenges of the next decade, CAPS Research is reviewing our research activities in an effort to extend our global reach and to create research results with ever-increasing value.

CAPS Research is in the final stages of releasing a new knowledge base, called Knowledge Central, for our sponsoring companies. Knowledge Central will make access to all of our research reports incredibly easy and will provide early access to reports for our sponsoring companies. Furthermore, Knowledge Central will serve as a platform to deliver even more services to our sponsoring companies over the months and years ahead.

As I look back over our progress the last several years, it is striking how many of our innovations emerge from discussions with our Board of Trustees. For providing their vision of what CAPS Research can and should be, sharing their reality-forged experiences, and providing their reliable support, I thank all the members of our Board. Under the leadership of Jim Scotti, senior vice president and CPO of Fluor Corporation, the Board is a competitive advantage for CAPS Research.

I also thank our sponsoring organizations, ISM and ASU, and all of our sponsoring companies for their support and generosity this past year. With their continuing support, the decade ahead will be even better.

Finally, it never ceases to amaze me how much the CAPS Research team accomplishes each year and with such good spirit. Because I can never say it enough, I thank them once again for all of their good work.

Best wishes for every success in the decade ahead.

Phillip L. Carter

Source: CAPS Research Annual Report 2007