Despite the distractions of an uncertain economy, successful supply chain management is a key to future profitability.

That was the message delivered by Bruce Richardson, senior vice president of research, AMR Research, at RedPrairie's user conference.

"Supply chain management was not a fad," Richardson said. "In fact, supply chain professionals will never be less visible inside their companies than they are now." Richardson identified four strategic waves that he believes will impact supply chain management going forward.

Ready or not, RFID is coming: Consultants have been talking about the coming of radio frequency identification (RFID) for years. Now that there are at least 45 pilot programs involving companies as prominent as Gillette, Nokia and Benetton, the time is close when this will become a supply chain reality.

How many time zones did you cross today: In the constant search for lower production costs, companies will continue to look at Eastern Europe, Asia, and especially China for outsourcing and growth.

Homeland security and customs: While the details are still to be worked out, there is little question that proposed new rules for freight entering the United States and new customs initiatives are going to impact the supply chain in the future.

Enterprise performance management: Sup-ply chain has caught the attention of managers at the corporate level. The result: expect to see a new emphasis on benchmarking, continuous improvement, and the optimization of business processes. Logistics and facilities managers will be expected to adopt analytics for real-time measurement of key performance indicators.