[Editorial note: image removed/no longer available]
As the coronavirus con-tinues its surge throughout the nation, it’s a reminder that managing in this environment — and keeping our employees safe — remains the No. 1 challenge and focus. COVID-19 brings into sharp focus the value of agility, speed, and flexibility.
Logistics is a blocking-and--tackling business that requires onsite physical work of people — driving forklifts, moving goods around warehouses, picking and packing orders, and preparing goods for shipping. Implementing effective safety protocols and keeping employee health at the forefront remain our primary responsibility.
Longer-term, the pandemic is creating all sorts of questions around what makes for a successful logistics solution today and who is best suited to run it. It is a phenomenon being driven by a remarkable surge in e-commerce volumes, which in just the past eight months have reached levels experts once predicted would take years to attain.
The other imperative is speed to market. Every customer wants their logistics solution implemented as fast as possible. The old process of doing a six-month RFP followed by another six-month implementation phase is no longer tenable.
As an example, for one manufacturing client, we recently completed a new warehouse launch providing critical just-in-time line-side support — from RFP receipt to configuration, staffing, technology rollout, and full operation — in 30 days. Being a small regional 3PL, we were nimble and decisive in ways that larger 3PLs cannot. And that’s what more and more clients want in this new environment: nimble, agile, flexible 3PLs who can react fast and deploy high-value solutions in a fraction of time typical of traditional approaches.
The old saying that “all important politics are local” applies very well to logistics. As local businesses — and even local operations of national businesses — cope with the ongoing realities of the pandemic, their logistics providers must demonstrate agility, flexibility, and speed to market. It’s not a convenience; it’s the key to enduring value and survival.