OPERATIONS / SUPPLY CHAIN

San Jose, Calif. -- Facebook brand engagement has risen 896% on a year-over-year basis, according to a new study from Adobe Systems Inc., with mobile users accounting for nearly one-quarter of all engagement.

Engagement on Facebook is expected to surge in the fourth quarter, Adobe's Digital Index for third quarter 2012 points out, as brands continue to invest in social marketing and take advantage of the latest Facebook platform changes (e.g., Timeline) to target consumers.

New York -- Koala Kare Products, a division of Bobrick, and manufacturers of baby-changing stations and child-seating products, was featured in a segment on CNN entitled: “The battle over diapers in men’s rooms.”

“It is both amusing and important at the same time as the roles of moms and dads keep evolving,” stated Bonnie Yatkeman, marketing category manager at Koala Kare Products.

New York -- Wal-Mart Stores said on Wednesday that various staff groups involved in compliance and legal issues will soon all report to its general counsel, Reuters reported. The move comes as the retailer works on coordinating efforts after an alleged foreign bribery scandal.

In a memo sent by CEO Mike Duke, the retailer said that starting on Dec. 1, its compliance, ethics, investigations and legal units will become one organization under executive VP, general counsel and corporate secretary Jeff Gearhart.

Deerfield, Ill. -- Nearly one year after launching an initiative to help create more job opportunities for people with disabilities in Connecticut, 62 participants have completed training under the Walgreens Retail Employees with Disabilities Initiative (REDI) program.

Washington -- Free shipping offers will abound this holiday season, according to Shop.org’s eHoliday survey conducted by BIGinsight. Nine in 10 (89.7%) retailers plan to offer some form of free shipping for online shoppers. When asked which promotions they will emphasize most heavily during the holiday season, 37.5% plan to offer free standard shipping with conditions (e.g. minimum purchase), and three in 10 (30.0%) will offer free standard shipping without conditions.

Long Beach, Calif. -- Epson America, a supplier of value-added point-of-sale (POS) solutions, announced that Groupon has selected Epson receipt printers for its recently launched Breadcrumb POS system, an easy-to-use, powerful and affordable solution that runs on iPads for restaurants, bars and cafes. Epson’s most popular food service receipt printers, both the TM-U220 and the TM-T88V, will be available to businesses that order Breadcrumb.
 

Minneapolis -- Best Buy on Wednesday announced major changes to its leadership organization. The company is removing the senior-most layer of the U.S. operation is being removed; resulting in what it called “a leaner structure intended to improve the company’s agility.”

PORTLAND, Maine -- The Body Shop launched a new earth-friendly eGift Card service powered by CashStar, a digital gifting and incentives company. Customers can now  purchase and send personalized eGift Cards to family and friends for redemption online or at any of the thousands of The Body Shop stores across the United States and Canada.