In a recent interview with Jean Murphy of Supply Chain Brain at NASSTRAC, Mike Regan shares his views on the changes that have occurred in the transportation industry and the key issues that will be at the forefront during the rest of 2013
What changes have occurred in the transportation industry?
On this plus side, we’re able to rely on technology to do things that were unimaginable 10 years ago. A concern is a lot of people are under enormous time constraints, which makes it difficult to make relationship building a priority. Mike discusses the importance of this and poses the question, “If you haven’t invested the time to build great relationships, where do you go?” This is something that people should be mindful of as we move forward.
Another insight Mike shares concerns the importance of researching and preparing for what’s happening in the industry. As you may have heard it said from the business perspective, if you can’t measure it you can’t manage it. Mike likes to take this a step backward and help others to realize that if you don’t know about it, you have no ability to even measure or manage it. Assessing the trends that are taking place is critical to adequately preparing for changes that may happen.
What are other key issues that we’ll be grappling with for the rest of this year?
One issue is increased effort around the independent contractor issue. There are estimates that currently 585,000 independent contractors exist in the transportation industry. Another key issue is the question of who will pay for infrastructure improvements that people want to make. Yet another important issue is supply chain risk. This issue has been increasing in importance and will likely gain increased emphasis as a C-level issue.
Mike also discusses how entrepreneurs will be facing an increased regulatory environment that’s enormously challenging and how there’s still anxiety and apprehension in the economy, but room for cautious optimism.
Interested in learning more?
Contact us by phone at (630) 833-0890 or by email at solutions@tranzact.com.
By Jean Murphy, Editor Emeritus, Supply Chain Brain
