DC Velocity - April 2020

looking for,” Turner says, “is a solutionor a set of capabilities that resolve twoor three key recurring challenges.” In hisexperience, those are a robust visibility platform, with high carrier compliance providing automated visibility dataend to end; algorithm-driven predictivefreight-matching to automate matchingand booking of truck to load; and optimizing the process to ensure Choptankis running the customer’s freight to minimize cost while maximizing capacity utilization and velocity.

Which, he adds, is also high on the listof tech features and capabilities desiredby the thousands of small fleets and independent owner-operators that Choptankrelies on for truckload capacity. “It’s allabout the carrier experience, reducingfriction, being easy to work with. We haveto make sure we keep them in business,help them be efficient, and give themthe tools, quality loads, and reloads theyneed to consistently maximize the hoursthey have to generate revenue,” Turnerstresses.

Schneider’s Van Zeeland echoes hispoint about supporting small truckloadfleet operators and providing them witha positive experience through the entirecycle. “Our data shows that almost 90%of the carrier base [in truckload] is [fleetswith fewer] than five trucks,” she notes,adding that Schneider Logistics workswith thousands of carriers.

“Reaching out to, working with, andoptimizing [small carrier] capacity is critical. We’re meeting the carriers where theyare,” she says, explaining that this meansdeploying mobile-friendly technologythat helps carriers streamline interactions, book the best loads in their preferred lanes, and execute transactions ina more automated way that saves time forboth broker and carrier. It’s an approachdesigned to build trust and encouragecollaboration, and demonstrate respect,understanding, and a willingness to helpsmall carriers overcome the daily challenges they face to make a fair profit.

THE NEXT GENERATION: IS IT A 3PL
OR 4PL?

To be a next-generation 3PL—or 4PL,
a kind of über-logistics service provid-
er whose responsibilities may extend to
managing a client’s other 3PLs—means
responding faster to evolving shipper
needs for more complex and sophisti-
cated logistics planning and execution
capabilities. These demands will expand
the scope and scale of potential services
3PLs can weave deeper into the fabric of a
shipper’s supply chain.

And the opportunity to redefine and
expand their value through more auto-
mated, technology-driven—and profit-
able—services.

In a November 2019 report titled The
Rise and Future of the 4PL Model, Gartner
analysts Courtney Rogerson and David
Gonzalez note that “managing ever-in-
creasing logistics complexity while simul-
taneously improving visibility is a top
priority and growing challenge for most
shippers today—especially as the number
of external partners and customers in the
supply chain ecosystem grows.”
Furthermore, in an earlier research
report, the 2019 Logistics Outsourcing
Strategy Survey, Gartner polled 190
respondents, all senior logistics and sup-
ply chain operators, on their top three
logistics priorities over the next 12
months. Almost half of the logistics lead-
ers surveyed said updating their technolo-
gy systems, increasing speed to customer,
and improving visibility were their most
important goals for the coming year (see
Exhibit 1).

The study noted that “many surveyrespondents are focused on increasingtechnology capabilities that will concurrently improve visibility, data quality, andintegrity, and decrease data gaps.” All ofwhich provides an interesting strategicroad map for today’s 3PLs to design anddevelop next-generation capabilities—orenhance those that exist today.

WOE BE THE SMALL BROKER?

Is there still a place in the market forthe smaller, high-touch, service-orient-ed freight broker? Absolutely, says AndyDyer, president of Chicago-based NewAge Logistics, which is part of the Evansnetwork of companies and which provides truckload brokerage and value-added logistics services. “Shippers have muchbigger expectations of responsiveness,”