Trends in logistics - In addition to covid (and thanks to it), digitalization and the move to the online environment also dominated the past year. More than ever before, we are now used to doing most things online, whether it's work or shopping. However, in order for transport companies to be able to cover the increase in the volume of services they provide without sacrificing quality and reliability, they have had to adapt to the new situation and make many changes to their internal processes. What are these changes and what will be the next trends in logistics? Read on to find out.
Last year, the whole world found itself in a situation no one expected. A consumer society accustomed to shopping every day was suddenly not allowed to go to the shops, and the only way to buy many goods was to order them online.
This gave the transport companies only a very short time to adjust and adapt to the new situation. However, with the rapid increase in the volume of services provided and the associated turnover, costs were also rising. And often inversely.
"Despite very good business management, the reporting of financial results does not reach the finance department sufficiently on time, and so change decisions come late."
It has become apparent in many shipping companies that despite very good business management, reporting of financial results is not being provided to the finance department in a timely enough manner, and therefore change decisions in process and pricing are coming too late. Reporting at weekly or monthly intervals has proven to be simply no longer sufficient.
Without cost and revenue forecasting based on detailed analyses of how costs and revenues evolve over hours and days, and without online and virtually real-time tracking of financial flows, managing costs as they are expected is almost impossible.
Reflection on internal processes is also essential. For example, tracking receivables in real time can often be a very complex task for the finance department due to cash transactions in the outlets or the lack of speed of transfers via terminals. Even in today's cashless era, it is still a necessity for freight forwarding companies to offer customers the option to pay with cash. However, this is an option that brings more complications than advantages.
"The involvement of artificial intelligence is a challenge that most freight forwarding companies and logistics centres are taking up in terms of saving space and time."
As the number of employees grows, companies will be forced to automate the handover, and in the future it is likely that transport will also be involved. Not only boxes, but also warehouses with automated handling are no longer the music of the future. The involvement of artificial intelligence in the transportation of anything is a challenge that most freight forwarding companies and logistics centers are taking up, especially in the context of saving space and time.
At the other end of the demanding process is the customer and the courier or the point of delivery. Freight forwarding companies cannot do without favourable contractual conditions for their employees and continuous evaluation of customer satisfaction.
The customer wants something to orient and decide by. It is no longer just the price that plays an important role, but also the quality and availability of the services provided, and for transport companies, a good customer experience is a major determinant. In the competitive battle, companies therefore place emphasis on customer relations, fairness, simplicity of the ordering process and affordability.
All of the above is logically linked to the maturity of the IT background of transport companies and logistics centres and sufficient experience of their IT partners who can see the issue of processes and successful business in context. Those companies that were able to immerse themselves in the digitisation process during the challenging period of the coronavirus crisis have a head start.
Blue Dynamic is a certified Silver Partner of Microsoft. Provides Enterprise solutions ERP and CRM Microsoft Dynamics 365, as well as its own artificial intelligence solution eMotion Counter, and helps businesses with development and digitalization.
