@Risk

How would you rate your company’s business continuity plans? Do you feel confident that your organization could adequately respond to threats to its operations, people and supply chains?

According to the 2010 Business Continuity Benchmark Report recently published by Marsh, many European firms would answer those questions with a healthy dose of overconfidence, leaving them highly vulnerable to physical disruption and economic conditions. (more…)

Today’s business environment demands effective management of working capital, and that means more and more companies are turning the spotlight on their AP Departments.

It’s about time.

After all, even seemingly small AP errors can add up, becoming a constant drain on productivity, supplier relationships and the bottom-line –and complexities in today’s global supply chain only make the problems worse. In fact, new research from Sterling Commerce reveals that companies can gain significant cost benefits from updating certain routine AP practices, such as cross-border invoicing. Sterling Commerce found that by automating country-specific mandates for cross-border invoicing around processing, archiving and auditing, organizations can eliminate error associated with manual processing and reduce related penalties and fines.

According to the survey: (more…)

Ten nations are at “extreme risk” of losing access to clean, fresh water, according to the latest Water Security Risk Index, released by Malplecroft last week.

Those ten nations are: Somalia (1), Mauritania (2), Sudan (3), Niger (4), Iraq (5), Uzbekistan (6), Pakistan (7), Egypt (8), Turkmenistan (9) and Syria (10).

To calculate the water risk index, Maplecroft measured these four key areas surrounding the issue: (more…)

A larger-than-expected rebound in container traffic has created a shortage of boxes and forced container prices to a 19-year high.

According to The Journal of Commerce, the current price for a 20-foot dry container has risen to $2,750, its highest level since 1991, from less than $2,000 at the end of 2009.

Container manufacturers slowed production when carriers cut capacity during the recession. Now, they’re having trouble ramping up to meet new demand. (more…)

Corporate boards and senior executives are becoming increasingly disconnected from their organizations’ security and privacy decisions, according to new research from Carnegie Mellon University’s CyLab.

That’s more than a little disheartening to hear, considering that cyber attacks are increasingly common and increasingly effective. In fact, Symantec now estimates that attacks like these cost businesses an average of $2 million per year. They cause loss to productivity, efficiency, revenue, and customer trust.

CyLab’s new research, which follows up on a 2008 study, included a survey of 66 business execs at the board or senior executive level from Fortune 1000 companies. Based on the data collected, CyLab was able to uncover several disturbing trends. For example: (more…)