“Why fix if it’s not broken?” is what many logisticians and forwarders swear by after years in the business. Just because an exigency hasn’t struck yet doesn’t mean we should not prepare for one.
Being in the business for a long time can make you and your employees comfortable with the familiar ways of working. The confidence of years of experience can deter a modern outlook towards logistics and freight forwarding.
Below are the most common follies by freight forwarders:
- Using just a spreadsheet to consolidate all data
- Working in silos
- Relying only on paper-based documentation
- No visibility into the current status of accounts
These will not be seen as follies until you understand the benefits of using a renewed approach towards your business and customers. Let’s delve into greater detail to expand your views on this important subject.
Smart Processes that Increase Efficiency
Working from home cannot be fruitful unless all your teams and team members are in sync. To keep everyone on the same page, standard processes must be defined. Traditionally these processes are found in a document sent via email. When processes are documented but not validated ina system, it can be a cause of confusion and lack of clarity, especially in remote working.
To straighten it out, the concept of workflows in freight management software was introduced. A process that is unique to your organization can be designed into the system. All sub-processes have triggers that send out communications when a milestone is achieved or a deadline is missed.
One for All, All for One
Silos happen when functions either can’t or won’t easily share information with other departments, causing a dent in your company’s long-term goals. The information must flow freely across functions in a modern enterprise. Silos cut off the circulation of information.
With the addition of multiple softwares for each function, you add overhead to maintenance without being able to have anytime access to data. Effective logistics management with ERP systems does the job of each of the individual software combined.
By implementing a logistics ERP software, you integrate your freight forwarding operation into sales, CRM, and billing for air, land, and sea freight. A central database that is accessible to all functions has its data integrity intact.
Control Your Operations Centrally
You are a business owner and want to have a firm regulation of your operations and administration. It can take some work to collate the performance and financial reports of your various branches and regions if done manually. In making critical business decisions, you need to base them on the evaluation of all aspects of your company. The evaluation can happen more rationally if data is available in one central system. This is where a freight management system can help.
With freight management software you have complete control over your budget, revenue leakages, and accounts receivable and payable. The data is presented in meaningful reports and graphs so you can make decisions with ease.
