A simple answer is when the information flow and collaboration between people and processes are seamless without any interruption which facilitates a smooth and intuitive user experience.
In freight forwarding and logistics, a whole lot goes in the background, including strategic logistics planning and execution for the international movement of goods, freight rate negotiations, container tracking, customs documentation, freight consolidation, and so on.
Moreover, the user experience does not just depend on only external stakeholders such as the ecosystem of customers, partners, and suppliers, but on internal stakeholders, including various departments, such as finance, operations, support, and sales.
Now that the word frictionless has become the buzzword in the business world, let us try to understand what it means in freight forwarding.
Manual data entry, dependency on emails and phone calls for quotation and purchase order (PO) preparation, can become a friction point as staff time must deal with lots of suppliers and partner inquiries.
Inaccurate compliance, incorrect documentation to customs authorities and or lack of awareness of new regulations, often causes delays in the export/import process.
Data silos, lack of shipment visibility, and tracking of supporting documentation lead to friction in terms of integration across functions and poor customer experience.
Through successful integration of various operations on a centralized digital platform freight forwarders can drive value and provide real-time visibility, intelligence, and analytics while enabling cost control and scalability.
Logistics and freight forwarding involve a lot of coordination and collaboration among various stakeholders. The legacy system, use of different systems in silos, and use of a system that does not support a high-level collaboration result in time-consuming and costly system integrations.
The goal of frictionless freight forwarding is to create a collaboration that connects people and systems to move things effectively and efficiently. Logi-Sys, a digital freight platform product of Softlink Global enables shippers, carriers, 3PL, and any other stakeholders to collaborate and provide a seamless experience that includes visibility, collaboration, and execution in one platform.
The digital platform provides a flexible, connected platform that provides a frictionless experience by digitalizing the entire freight forwarding operations, enabling saving time, increasing productivity, and accelerating growth.
Technologies such as 5G, AI, machine learning, and blockchain applications are playing a critical role in making freight forwarding frictionless through data integration and collaboration among partners.
Backed by blockchain technology Logi-Sys’ TRADE CHAIN establishes peer-to-peer connectivity for seamless and secure data exchange and gives you a complete view of all involved to coordinate schedules, connections, financial and other services across different systems.
The platform enables you to gain complete control, transparency, real-time visibility and ease of interaction with customers by eliminating countless email and phone calls. By leveraging the freight platform, you can provide greater visibility, streamlined processes, and real-time updates thus better customer experience.
The digital platform helps you to create frictionless customs compliance with updated regulations. With the Logi-Sys freight mobile app, your field staff can update shipment milestones in real-time, raise payment requests from the spot, upload supporting documents for the record from the field and expedite the process, thus helping you remove friction in communications and save time and increase productivity.
The single database across all departments and locations also helps all your teams to remain on the same page with accurate and updated information enabling better decision-making and customer service.
Amit Maheshwari’s many of domain knowledge, vision and deep understanding of logistics marks him as a major thought leader in the industry. Under his leadership, Softlink Global has become a leading global logistics software provider. One of his major creations Logi-Sys is a comprehensive ERP for the freight and logistics industry that has become a global success.
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