Logistics: You need to have your product delivered but you feel you are paying far too much for freight and the number of lost/damage consignments never seems to drop. More than likely, you have already tried to find a good carrier at the right cost but this just never works out and they all say the same thing anyway. This is often said about carriers, it is also common for them to set the rules, what you must do and what they are not responsible for. This is where I come in; business must be mutually beneficial and accountable, you are not there just for them to make a profit.
Warehousing: Are your resources being tied up fixing issues and answering complaints about the supply and delivery of orders? Are your warehouse staff saying they are working as hard as they can, yet you know it can be better (others can do it, why can’t you?). Your warehouse needs to change and morph with the rest of your business. Product locations will need to be regularly changed to meet the pick levels and packing volumes. Failure in the warehouse is a double-edged sword; inefficiencies hit your bottom line while ineffectiveness hits your reputation.
3PL: You took on the services of a 3PL as they can save you up to 20% on order processing and storage costs BUT they are actually costing you money! This is such a common problem and one reason why 3PLs are often seen as a last resort. They need to be managed and monitored to ensure they understand what you and your customers need and when.
Control/KPIs: You know your carriers or warehouse or 3PL or even product suppliers are not achieving the gains you expect from them but cannot prove they are under-performing and to pull the information is far to hard, costly, labour intensive. KPIs and exception reports should be simple to obtain and understand, and as self generating as possible.
