Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Survey: Strained freight sector cuts costs through operations, staffing

DDC FPO says impact of coronavirus causes 76% of companies to adjust their 2020 budgets.

DDC FPO cover shot

Companies throughout the freight market have sharpened their focus on operational efficiency and human resources in response to the coronavirus pandemic's impact on the supply chain, according to a report from business process outsourcing (BPO) service provider DDC FPO.

According to a recent survey, over three-fourths (76.4%) of respondents have significantly shifted their planned spending activity for 2020 from their initial budgets, the Evergreen, Colorado-based company said.


"As a result of the pandemic, many companies are now pursuing operational efficiency with vigor,” Donna Kintop, DDC FPO’s senior vice president of Client Experience, said in a release. “This includes moving away from manual processes and looking for ways to increase connectivity and communication with external resources.”

Some of the most impacted areas are operations and staffing/recruitment, as businesses seek to manage the non-variable fixed costs of assets, the study found. Common strategies being used to improve financial performance during lean times include improving efficiency and reducing payroll/human resources costs.

In addition, the pandemic has forced many organizations to fast-track initiatives focused on transforming their operations to become leaner, more agile, and more efficient, the company found.

“We will continue to see uncertainty regarding containment of the virus so labor elasticity and scalability will remain a pivotal part of workforce planning. Partnering with someone that specializes in streamlining operations and market fluctuations will help shift resources to stay resilient,” Chad Crotty, DDC FPO’s vice president of sales, North America, said in the release.

DDC FPO says it processes 30% of all less than truckload (LTL) bills in North America and provides back office solutions such as freight billing, rate auditing, POD processing, and customs brokerage data capture. The company’s report, “Adapting to a Pandemic: Freight Market Budget & Priority Shifts In 2020,” was compiled from an industry survey of executives and decision makers who preside over and represent manufacturers, warehousing and distribution centers, motor carriers, 3PLs or brokers, and freight technology providers.

Recent

More Stories

cover of report on electrical efficiency

ABI: Push to drop fossil fuels also needs better electric efficiency

Companies in every sector are converting assets from fossil fuel to electric power in their push to reach net-zero energy targets and to reduce costs along the way, but to truly accelerate those efforts, they also need to improve electric energy efficiency, according to a study from technology consulting firm ABI Research.

In fact, boosting that efficiency could contribute fully 25% of the emissions reductions needed to reach net zero. And the pursuit of that goal will drive aggregated global investments in energy efficiency technologies to grow from $106 Billion in 2024 to $153 Billion in 2030, ABI said today in a report titled “The Role of Energy Efficiency in Reaching Net Zero Targets for Enterprises and Industries.”

Keep ReadingShow less

Featured

Logistics economy continues on solid footing
Logistics Managers' Index

Logistics economy continues on solid footing

Economic activity in the logistics industry expanded in November, continuing a steady growth pattern that began earlier this year and signaling a return to seasonality after several years of fluctuating conditions, according to the latest Logistics Managers’ Index report (LMI), released today.

The November LMI registered 58.4, down slightly from October’s reading of 58.9, which was the highest level in two years. The LMI is a monthly gauge of business conditions across warehousing and logistics markets; a reading above 50 indicates growth and a reading below 50 indicates contraction.

Keep ReadingShow less
iceberg drawing to represent threats

GEP: six factors could change calm to storm in 2025

The current year is ending on a calm note for the logistics sector, but 2025 is on pace to be an era of rapid transformation, due to six driving forces that will shape procurement and supply chains in coming months, according to a forecast from New Jersey-based supply chain software provider GEP.

"After several years of mitigating inflation, disruption, supply shocks, conflicts, and uncertainty, we are currently in a relative period of calm," John Paitek, vice president, GEP, said in a release. "But it is very much the calm before the coming storm. This report provides procurement and supply chain leaders with a prescriptive guide to weathering the gale force headwinds of protectionism, tariffs, trade wars, regulatory pressures, uncertainty, and the AI revolution that we will face in 2025."

Keep ReadingShow less
chart of top business concerns from descartes

Descartes: businesses say top concern is tariff hikes

Business leaders at companies of every size say that rising tariffs and trade barriers are the most significant global trade challenge facing logistics and supply chain leaders today, according to a survey from supply chain software provider Descartes.

Specifically, 48% of respondents identified rising tariffs and trade barriers as their top concern, followed by supply chain disruptions at 45% and geopolitical instability at 41%. Moreover, tariffs and trade barriers ranked as the priority issue regardless of company size, as respondents at companies with less than 250 employees, 251-500, 501-1,000, 1,001-50,000 and 50,000+ employees all cited it as the most significant issue they are currently facing.

Keep ReadingShow less
photo of worker at port tracking containers

Trump tariff threat strains logistics businesses

Freight transportation providers and maritime port operators are bracing for rough business impacts if the incoming Trump Administration follows through on its pledge to impose a 25% tariff on Mexico and Canada and an additional 10% tariff on China, analysts say.

Industry contacts say they fear that such heavy fees could prompt importers to “pull forward” a massive surge of goods before the new administration is seated on January 20, and then quickly cut back again once the hefty new fees are instituted, according to a report from TD Cowen.

Keep ReadingShow less