The 2:00 Minute Warning

BY MIKE REGAN, CO-FOUNDER OF TRANZACT
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I had some interesting conversations with folks after last week’s Two Minute Warning. Our message was that CEOs shouldn’t be blaming their logistics department for the significant increase in freight costs that they are experiencing.

For example, one CEO asked me “Mike, I don’t want to blame my logistics department, but how do I encourage them to give us some ideas or recommendations that will help us do a better job of managing our freight costs?” In essence, he wants to be assured that their heightened freight costs were still as low as possible.

I also had a similar conversation with an operations manager. He shared his concern that while his CEO understands that increased freight costs may be unavoidable, he still wants to know what they are doing to improve the situation.

Even though these people – and all of you reading this – are in different roles and different companies, the challenge on the table is how to make the best of a tumultuous transportation market. With that thought in mind, here are some tips to consider:

Stay informed – There haven't been many slow days when it comes to the transportation industry. This week we released our Freight Market Update to rave reviews. And for those of you in the trenches, WE ENCOURAGE YOU TO SHARE THIS WITH YOUR C-LEVEL EXECUTIVES ASAP! It will help them and you understand that the challenges your company is experiencing are not unique. These marketplace conditions are affecting every shipper in North America!

Stay in the game – With these Code Red conditions it may be tempting to “stay on the sidelines” and hope that things get better. We all know that hope is not a strategy which is why you need to “stay in the game!” Trust me, I get it. Things are tough in the transportation marketplace, but there are things you can do to improve your transportation costs, so don't give up! One of the reasons we started sharing our weekly "Word of Encouragement" was to remind you that you have friends and a network, and these resources can help you “stay in the game”.

Ask for help – Having resources that can help you is great but if you want to activate those resources, you need to reach out and ask for help when you need it. As I have shared in many of my presentations, if you are too shy or proud to ask for help, remember this: Even the Lone Ranger had Tonto! Here at TranzAct, we have some great resources, insights, and advice that can help you – and it’s all free! So there are no excuses to not take advantage of these resources. Even better, if you have questions, concerns or want to have your C-Level executives get a first hand briefing on conditions in the transportation marketplace, we’d love to have you get in touch with us.