Member Article

Global Logistics Provider: 5 Steps to Optimize and Balance Your Transportation Business

The road freight market is changing rapidly. Carriers need to learn how to holistically embrace change and make it work to their benefit. That is easier said than done in the fragmented road freight market.

To help inform strategy, Coyote, a leading global third-party logistics provider, have pulled insights from their research study, The Evolution of Technology + Humanity: Building a Supply Chain For Long-Term Success. As part of the study, Coyote interviewed over 140 European carriers, in order to hear first-hand about their ideal balance of Technology + Humanity. This has enabled the logistics provider to create concrete next steps for carriers who are just starting to modernize their fleets. These steps can help guide businesses strategies as they prepare to set up for long-term success in the road freight market.

• Step 1: Identify your challenges. A carrier must consider its biggest challenges (and how well-equipped they are to deal with them). European carriers identified costs, capacity, competitive pricing, and visibility amongst their biggest challenges.

• Step 2: Invest in technology to improve efficiency. Haulage companies of all sizes agreed the optimal balance between technology and human expertise across supply chain tasks is roughly 60% (technology) and 40% (human expertise). Investing in a tech platform and paying a person to integrate and manage it is critical in helping a carrier to grow their business. Though it may seem to come at the expense of adding capacity, it is essential for long-term success since todays shippers require better service and greater visibility than ever before.

• Step 3: Dedicate people to critical thinking and strategy. Any technology investment you make should result in improved efficiency, which can free up your people to do more strategic, critical thinking. As their roles evolve, think about areas where people can add greater value to your business, both within your organization and in terms of 3PL support.

• Step 4: Focus on driver recruitment and retention. Attracting and retaining the best drivers is very important for business growth. As technology automates more manual processes, dispatchers and fleet managers can spend more time developing driver relationships to improve retention and recruiting.

• Step 5: Stay up-to-date on industry news. Savvy carriers use a variety of sources – including a trusted third-party logistics provider – to get different perspectives. The top sources that carriers utilize to stay current include technology solutions provider websites, consultants, and industry experts.

Transformation is happening throughout the transportation industry. Commitment to a common-sense business philosophy, combined with a few best practices, can add more consistency to a volatile market. Coyote have used their original research to put together five insights that you can use to guide your strategy as you start balancing your business.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Coyote .