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Global supply chains have been pushed to their limits over the past three years, revealing the weaknesses of a complex system that affects everything from toilet paper to computer chips. These disruptions impact more than just daily life — they affect local and national economies and businesses of every shape and size.

eCommerce has revolutionized the way we shop and get products into the hands of customers. The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the growth of online shopping as many consumers turn to eCommerce for daily needs like groceries and other items such as clothing. In fact, U.S. eCommerce sales are projected to reach $1 trillion for the first time in 2022 and account for over 20% of retail sales by 2024.

eCommerce has evolved to become the preferred form of retail for many types of goods and services. According to a recent report by Adobe, the COVID-19 pandemic boosted online shopping in the U.S. by $183 billion, a 42% increase in 2020 over the prior year.

For several months each year, warehouses face a surge of activity due to skyrocketing product demand. This peak season begins as early as October as people begin preparing for the upcoming holiday season and ends sometime in January as warehouses are still dealing with high return volumes.

Every year many of us in the industry share our stories of “Peak Season” that are almost always what now seems to be a relatively innocuous set of challenges revolving around ramping up staff, adding more temporary workstations or bringing in some rental equipment and devices while being extra vigilant to monitor shipping volumes and timing.

Humans have been benefitting from vaccines for over two centuries. But the process for developing and distributing vaccines effectively has been neither neat nor direct. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to rage across the country, the sense of urgency for a solution has never been greater. 

How has your business responded to the rapid changes in the distribution and logistics industry this year? Chances are that the rapid evolution of your processes and how you supported them are not just a band-aid for making it through to 2021, but the blueprint for your current and future facilities well beyond this crisis and into the future.

We’ve written quite a bit in the past about best practices for supply chain labor management and with the extreme stress being put on the every part of some supply chains right now, though it would be a good time to share some additional insights on how to maintain a healthy and productive work force.

By now we are all aware we are dealing with an unprecedented global crisis that is going to impact every business and customer we know. But the impact will vary by the industry and type of customer being served. While we are not in the business of playing the role of economic pundits peering into reams of data and making predictions, it is safe to say that a boost in E-commerce operations among across many industries is already happening as retailers shut stores.