Last week we had the chance to attend the annual CSCMP Edge conference in Anaheim, CA. While there was a ton of great information, three themes in particular stood out: Velocity, Visibility, and Victory.
We heard a lot about Velocity and speed. And we’re not just talking about things like inventory turns. Several carriers stated that they have the data they need and they know how their assets are being used. And make no mistake about it, they want their trucks and trailers turned as quickly as possible. How important is this? When you hear carrier executives say they could increase the capacity of their fleets by 10% to 15% without buying another truck just by eliminating wasted time, you get a sense that velocity is extremely important when it comes to getting trucks into and out of your facilities.
Visibility remains key as technology continues to rapidly change in the logistics industry. Shippers are looking for a higher degree of precision and asking: “What’s going on?” and “Where’s my stuff?” They reason that if Uber and Lyft can tell you when the car will show up, or arrive at its destination, carriers should be able to do the same thing (a.k.a. tell them where the truck’s at and when it will arrive).
As for Victory (a.k.a winning), one panelist got everyone’s attention with the question: Are you in it to win it? That led to an interesting discussion about how companies can beat (a.k.a. "outperform”) their competition. The word Amazon was mentioned more times than I could count and several people wanted to know: “What are they doing?” But it wasn’t just Amazon being discussed. It’s obvious that more and more companies are asking: “How do our operations/transportation capabilities/supply chains stack up against other companies?” They are also asking: “What changes need to be made to make us more competitive?”
One final note. Several of the attendees had listened to our recent webinar on what is happening in the truckload market and they loved it. But some of them, after coming out of a session on LTL trends where Rob Estes spoke, told us they’d love more information about where the LTL market is headed.
So as soon as we got back, we reached out to our friend Rob Estes, the CEO of Estes Express, one of the largest LTL freight carriers, and asked him to expand on what he had shared at the conference and provide some important insights about the LTL industry.
Rob has a unique perspective and decades of experience, and the conversation covers LTL shipping trends, the challenges facing shippers, and more. We encourage you to find the time to listen to the interview and to share this with your team.
If you have any questions about this interview or anything else, give us a call at 630-833-0890 or send us an email. We’re on your team, here to help, and passionate about seeing you be victorious.
