Главная News of logistics (English) 3PL Selection Starbucks Style

Фрагмент из кейса

Торговая компания подмосковного города Электросталь закупила партию куриных окорочков в США. По контракту американская фирма обязалась поставить товар на...
В июне Сандра Глассфорд, менеджер по закупкам Nova Stamping Company на заводе в Детройте, работала в своем офисе, когда менеджер завода Джим Армстронг...

3PL Selection Starbucks Style

Font Size Larger Font Smaller Font
Рейтинг пользователей: / 0
ХудшийЛучший 
Материал из категории  News of logistics (in English)
27.05.2012 18:17

Метки (тэги, tags):

Some supply chain professionals give about as much thought to choosing a third-party logistics (3PL) service provider as they do to picking a frappuccino. But even Chris Honsberger, director of distribution for Starbucks will tell you that choosing the wrong 3PL is a more effective way to stay awake at night than ingesting caffeine.

And selecting the right one doesn’t end once the contract is signed, he told colleagues attending a session on this topic at the annual conference of the Warehousing Education and Research Council (WERC) held in Atlanta a couple weeks ago.

He said that even if the work you’re entrusting to a 3PL is no longer your core competency, engagement in their work has to be. He suggested that new 3PL clients walk the workplace with their contacts from the service provider—especially if they’re not getting the results they expected.

“We engaged with a third party and weren’t seeing the turnaround we expected,” he said. “So we started walking the building together with a specific audit list of operational health indicators. This way you’re looking at the same things through the same lens. Things like inbound quality, stock location accuracy and order accuracy are a few examples. When you both look at it at the same time and you see inefficiencies it’s easier to identify areas for improvement.”

It’s fine to trust the 3PL you hire, but many service provider/client relationships have been busted up by misunderstandings. That’s why lawyers and sales people consistently rank pretty low on Gallup’s annual list of most trusted professionals. The financial crisis in recent years accentuated that distrust. So in the world of logistics it’s heartening to see third-party logistics professionals getting a little more respect from their customers.

That was evident at WERC and it was borne out in the results of an Outsourcing Strategy survey conducted recently by Eyefortransport, a provider of business intelligence for supply chain professionals. Turns out the shippers this organization surveyed had a higher regard for 3PLs than those surveyed the year before. More shippers rated their 3PL’s performance as outstanding and higher than expected in the current survey than the last one. The majority also indicated their use of 3PLs would very likely or likely increase in the coming year, whereas in the last survey many more indicated it was unlikely that they’d increase their use of 3PLs.

What was more interesting, though, was the divide that still remains. In the survey, shippers and 3PLs were asked to identify what shippers are looking for when choosing a 3PL. 3PLs believed shippers always looked for lowest price, while shippers said quality service was most important. The irony of that divide is, as long as both sides hold those beliefs neither side will be happy.

3PLs that believe their customers are price driven will probably skimp on service—depriving their customers of what they want most from them.

Jim Kruza, director of distribution projects for St. Onge Consulting addressed that divide on the same WERC panel with Starbucks’ Honsberger. In fact he offered a bit of a different spin on what was reported in the Eyefortransport survey. He tends to side with the 3PLs who believe the number one criterion shippers use when selecting a 3PL is cost. However, he added that the number one reason for getting rid of a 3PL is service. That’s why the most important part of such a relationship is the time spent up-front in working out service expectations. That should be done in-person, he told the WERC attendees.

He advises potential 3PL clients to start the qualification step by bidding up to six 3PLs. Once you get a qualified list comes the request for proposal phase. Even if you have a preferred supplier, you generally get the best pricing from that supplier in a competitive situation, he said.

“To make sure communication is consistent with all the providers, put them all in a room together, give them the opportunity to ask questions about the RFP and give a common answer to all of them,” Kruza advised. “Also see the sites of the providers who have similar applications to what they’re proposing for what your needs are.”

In other words, they may do a great job on pallet in and out applications, but maybe your applications require each-picking. Seeing their successful applications and meeting and understanding their leadership teams is vital to establishing common ground.

“You need to interview that person like you’re going to put them into your own organization,” he added. “If you’re not comfortable with them the relationship won’t work long-term.”

Once you’ve narrowed the candidates down to two finalists who best meet your criteria, keep them engaged all the way through the negotiation stage to get as many contract elements agreed to and in place before dismissing that final candidate.

“Things can happen during the contracting phase and if you dismiss everybody too quickly you lose a lot of your negotiation leverage,” Kruza concluded.

The Eyefortransport study identified building trust-based relationships as a “new opportunity” for clients and their 3PLs. Logistics professionals like Honsberger and Kruza are linking their careers to that opportunity. If logistics goes away there’s always the marriage counseling business.

 

Source: http://blog.mhlnews.com/


Метки (тэги, tags):



Последние похожие материалы:
  • Transportation Strategy Session - 10/06/2012 15:12
    Three transportation managers from three different industries share how they cope with one constant challenge: change. “Transportation Managers” are …
  • Refrigerated Transportation Heating Up - 10/06/2012 15:09
    With nearly 30% of all U.S. produce shipments originating in California, produce freshness can be a daunting task for grocers on the East Coast. New r…
  • Solve Your E-Commerce Distribution Puzzle - 27/05/2012 18:25
    Before the Internet, before smartphones, before satellite/cable TV—in fact before TV at all—a common pastime for families was to gather around a table…
Более поздние похожие материалы:

 

Последние новости на сайте

Элеваторы для обработки зерновых культур находят широкое применение в фермерских хозяйствах, аграрных предприятиях. С их помощью...
Давайте розглянемо різні типи ламп та основні параметри, які важливо враховувати при їх...

Авторский сайт в сфере логистики Logistics-GR

Пример материалов из категории "Задачи по логистике"

Определить объем транспортной работы судна, если перевезено =20000 т груза на расстояние =600 миль, и рассчитать коэффициент...
Джон Притчард (John Pritchard) постоянно совершает покупки для компании Penwynn Motors. Спрос на печатные формы постоянный...

Facebook-страница

Фрагмент из задачи

Определить сумму эксплуатационных расходов судна за рейс. Известно, что содержание судна в сутки на ходу = 38500 у.е., а на стоянке = 18000 у.е....
Судно перевозит генеральные грузы. В первом порту погрузили . Во втором порту выгрузили =4000 т, а в третьем порту выгрузили = 6000...

 

Группа на Linkedin

(более 4000 участников)

Группы на Facebook

 

Узнать о проекте Logistics-GR

 youtube-канал  

 

Результаты тестов

Последние результаты
<-->Стоит ли Вам выбирать профессию менеджера по логистике? 64.00 %
<->(Лог-М) Тема 10. Складська логістика (10 тест.завдань) 40.00 %
<->(Log) Test 01. Warehouse and Logistics (10 tests) 90.00 %
Перейти к тестам
Проект работает
15 years, 0 months, 24 days.
Компания Williams-Practar рассмотрела пять альтернативных вариантов размещения своего нового склада для дистрибьюции продуктов....
Компания Bannerman Industries планирует построить хранилище для обслуживания семи крупных заказчиков, расположенных в местах с...
В простой комбинации участников цепи поставок каждая организация имеет в запасах продукцию на одну неделю спроса. Другими словами,...
Определение длины погрузочно-разгрузочного фронта крытого склада со стороны подъезда автомобилей, если за сутки разгружается = 30...
Для оценки результативности деятельности транспортно-складских подразделений предприятия целесообразно использовать комплекс показателей, позволяющих...
Полученное выражение представляет собой уравнение равнобочной гиперболы, проходящей через начало системы координат (рис....
Возможные варианты структуры и направлений материальных потоков и соответствующих информационных и, возможно, финансовых можно охарактеризовать схемами,...
Каждому автомобилю в зависимости от его эксплуатационных свойств соответствуют определенные значения коэффициента использования грузоподъемности ?ст и...
ТОО «Книги» — книжный магазин универсального типа, ведущий свою торговую деятельность в г. Реутове Московской области. Он был открыт в 1994 г. и до сих...
RP Turner Corp. выпускает клапаны трубопроводов для нефтяной отрасли в Западной Канаде. Компания покупает детали и сырье в Японии, США и Восточной Канаде,...
Типография «Picket Fence» находится в Москве (Цветной бульвар, д. 24/2). Это небольшое предприятие, в нем работает 15 человек, обслуживающих две печатные...
Tesco pic — крупнейшая в Великобритании сеть супермаркетов, имеющая 700 магазинов; на нее приходится 16% всего рынка розничных продаж продуктов питания....

Logistics-GR - теория и практика логистики и транспорта

Copyright © 2009 - 2024. При использовании материалов сайта - гиперссылка обязательна. All Rights Reserved. По всем вопросам обращаться - email