There is a need to continuously improve the customer experience around online tools. To do so, investment is required on both the carrier and shipper side around a more structured protocol that can only be done through coordinated forums with the right specialists involved.
The shipping industry has clearly reached the point where adoption of standardized, web-based digital processing is critical to the efficiency and productivity of carriers and shippers, and the benefits of improved data accuracy and time and cost savings can no longer be ignored. Tackling the full freight management experience, from contracting to invoice processing, would be a great way to start and would benefit the entire community.
Other than the online experience, we, as carriers, will have to improve the overall interaction with our customers. It is important to deliver an exceptional customer experience, to engage and understand our customers business and their supply chain needs for their greatest success. Also, develop services that keep taking days out of the end-to-end supply chain cycle. By developing ocean products that are closer to distribution and production points, we’re able to remove inland variables.
And, finally, it’s difficult to speak to 2017 from an ocean carrier perspective without mentioning the consolidation of providers. The shipping industry is consolidating, and trade operations are shifting with the goal of achieving cost reductions and sustainable freight rates. In addition, today’s carrier alliances enable ocean carriers to optimize and expand service networks, and benefit from economies of scale. Over the next year, I would anticipate container shipping consolidation to play out, and we’ll see a more stable environment evolve that will benefit global supply chains.