Getting to really know your customer requires managing a lot of data

Socrates considered "know thyself" the objective of wisdom, but in business, the key to success is knowing your customer.

A customer's relationship with a brand is much more complex than some people assume. As shoppers, we don't just come on to a site and buy what it sells out of the blue. We may get there by clicking on an ad, clicking on a promotion in an email, or by remembering a positive experience we had with the business when we called and chatted about an order. There are many different channels involved, and each one only shows one aspect of the total customer experience. So how do you really get to know what your customer is responding to?

This past June, Israel-based, NICE Systems introduced the NICE Customer Journey Optimization solution to just that problem.  Read more here: 

Planning a supply chain for space

photo from https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c7/Carina_Nebula_composite_of_visible_and_infrared_light_(captured_by_the_Hubble_Space_Telescope).jpg

The replicator that can produce food, clothes, and other necessities on demand is familiar to all devotees of Star Trek. That device was actually essential for the Enterprise's extended mission, to keep the ship properly equipped without having to pack along whatever the crew might need at some point light years away from a home planet. Though such replicators are still in the realm of science fiction, we are getting closer to the point of extended space trips.

Going back to the moon and maybe even Mars
NASA just finalized a $2.8 billion contract with Boeing Co. to produce the Space Launch System (SLS). SLS is a rocket powerful enough to carry astronauts where no human has gone before. That includes exploration of asteroids, the moon, and, ultimately, Mars. The first test flight is planned for 2017, and the first manned flight for 2021.

While Boeing is working on NASA's rockets, MIT is working on supply chain management that solves the logistical challenges inherent in extended space travel. 

Read more in 

Space & the Supply Chain

Happiness is a blue blanket

For many of us, the words happiness and blanket together inevitably bring to mind images of the "Peanuts" character Linus clutching his favorite comfort object. Perhaps because the comic strip is an American creation, British Airways didn’t make the connection when it created its “Happiness Blanket.”
Read more here

The role 3D printing can play in Canada

According to Nigel Southway, the real transformative power of 3D printing  lies in its potential for engineering more efficient tools of production. Read more in 

3D Printing Might Bring Manufacturing Back to Canada

Biometrics for voice to prevent fraud and save time on calls

The eyes may be the windows to the soul, but people's voices are what belie their emotional states and even identities. For businesses, that type of insight can help authenticate callers and prevent fraud. Making it work in real-time allows businesses to save time on calls without compromising security. Read more in 

Detecting Fraud With Voice Analytics

Going green from the roof down

Brooklyn Botanic Garden Visitor Center with living roof (photo by Ariella Brown)

What could be a more fitting setting for green design than a botanical garden? Or, in the case of New York City, two gardens that went for the gold -- and platinum -- standards by going green from the roof down. Read more in 

New York's Green Botanical Centers

Analytics that improve your game

Got game? Analytics can help you get it, whether your sport is tennis, golf, or baseball. The trick is tracking your swing. Read more here.