For the guest editor Remko I. van Hoek, in the field of logistics the debate between the ‘lean’ thinkers and those who advocate ‘agility’ is still very much alive. This special issue follows the International Conference on Agility in Helsinki, Finland, and is a collection of some of the best of the fifty papers presented there. The papers touch on agility in regards to forecasting, manufacturing, simulation, ERP and Chinese sourcing. The result is that the concept of agility can be considered as a practical path forward, rather than just a topic of academic debate