ChainLink Research and SupplyChainBrain just released "Business Priorities 2012 — Research and Results" which takes a look at where companies will invest in the coming year. The report provides a cautionary, optimistic view of the coming months saying, "Many unsettled issues are still outstanding […]. And yet, our respondents do expect business expansion and intend to invest to make it happen in 2012."

While the economic climate may be uncertain, many companies realize they have to invest in areas such as supply chain management software to be competitive and profitably grow. It is no longer just about slashing costs, you have to reduce costs and improve service levels at the same time. As the report highlights, retail growth for example, came at the expense of price concessions. Shrinking margins place higher stress on the bottom line, especially when customers expect more service at less cost.

According to the report supply chain applications are one of the top three areas of interest for 2012. While the chart included in the report does not provide exact percentages, we can estimate 53% of respondents plan to evaluate and/or purchase supply chain applications in 2012. This is just below the top two areas Data Management Strategy (approx. 55%) and Business Process Management (approx. 54%).
 
The supply chain market has seen increased interest over the past 12 months. At Logility we see three primary drivers — Sales and Operations Planning (S&OP), Multi-Echelon Inventory Optimization (MEIO) and Optimized Supply Planning.