From friendly Wall-E and helpful R2D2 to the dystopian worlds of the Matrix and Terminator, robots have captured our imagination and visions of the future for generations. But the time is fast approaching where interactions between humans and artificial intelligence become part and parcel of our daily routine.

Now more than ever, supply chain management is important to ensure organizations can compete in the global market. Organizations continue to focus on core competencies, resulting in greater dependence on high-quality materials and services from suppliers.

Identify downfalls in your processes and keep customers happy. The gaps model¹ of quality can help an organization take a big-picture look at its processes.

Who among us has not suffered the endless assault of satisfaction surveys? You simply can’t go to the store or visit a website without being asked to provide feedback. Society is surveyed out, but that doesn’t mean the pursuit of meaningful customer feedback is a waste of time. It’s just that the challenge is getting more difficult.