Managing the Dynamics of New Technologies in the Global Supply Chain

Technology has been rapidly changing the business environment over the past several decades, and these changes are occurring at an accelerating rate. How to effectively integrate, deploy, and manage technologies in a cost-efficient manner across an organization's supply chain is a key concern of business practitioners. Due to the significant resources of personnel and money required to implement these technologies, as well as the potential for disruptions to ongoing business operations, it is imperative for technology implementers to reduce their risks. In this article, we discuss the supply chain impact of the following technologies: radio frequency identification, the Internet of Things, Industry 4.0, artificial intelligence and machine learning, and blockchains. We identify the implementation challenges and expected benefits of these technologies and the managerial implications of merging the technologies to create a long-term strategic competitive advantage within a multiorganizational supply chain setting. © 1973-2011 IEEE.