Optimize Frontline Efficiency With A Transportation Software Suite

Amid the fast pace of today’s logistics and transportation market, shippers are under increasing pressure to enhance efficiency and control costs. The frontline workers responsible for critical tasks like route planning, overseeing compliance, or driving vehicles can no longer keep up with the pace of the industry using just spreadsheets and manual systems. Transportation software suites — particularly those providing an all-encompassing array of tools for transportation management, shipping, and seamless integrations — are rapidly becoming essential for companies striving to remain competitive in this marketplace. 

As a result, what really creates a competitive advantage isn’t just digital transformation, but how easily a transportation software solution can be integrated into an operation. In this environment, frontline workers need low learning curves, streamlined user experiences, and fast onboarding. Finding ways to identify and concretely address those needs is critical to success. 

Why Frontline Workers Struggle With Transportation Technology 

Software developers have created several transportation technology solutions to help shippers streamline their operations and control costs. However, the design and user experience these platforms offer leave a lot to be desired, often creating new layers of inefficiencies and challenges to deal with in addition to critical business processes. Some of the biggest struggles frontline workers face with their transportation technology include: 

• • Difficulty Onboarding 
    Despite their ability to streamline route planning and other critical processes, users often struggle with difficult onboarding processes for new carriers, customers, or services. Unnecessarily complex onboarding can slow down workflows and impede sales. 

• • Limited Functionality 
    Some platforms lack the necessary features to unify processes, requiring the use of multiple, disparate systems across less-than-truckload (LTL), truckload shipping (TL), parcel, and drayage services. 

• • Lack of Integrations 
    If a transportation suite doesn’t allow API or other types of integration with the systems frontline workers use regularly, then they will require more manual touchpoints to fill the gaps in automation, hindering efficiency gains. 

• • Poor Analytics Capabilities 
    Platforms that silo processes from each other or fail to integrate with other systems lack centralized data visibility, requiring much more labor-intensive processes to glean any kind of analytics insight. 

What Frontline Workers Actually Need From Transportation Technology 

These challenges highlight the features frontline workers need to compete effectively in the logistics market. The key is to look for a transportation software suite that meets these criteria: 

Intuitive and Simple User Experiences 

Platforms with a user-friendly interface are easier to navigate and reduce the need for extensive training, allowing users to quickly understand the system’s functions and begin using it effectively. Systems that enable customized views enhance productivity by allowing users to organize their workspace according to their specific needs or preferences, improving decision-making processes and overall efficiency. 

Comprehensive Functionality 

Transportation technology should be able to help users tackle every type of task and process related to logistics and shipping, eliminating gaps in automation. Frontline workers need platforms that can easily plug into their operation right out of the box, while still being easy to customize to their specific needs over time. 

Cloud-Based Infrastructure 

In today’s business landscape, cloud-based systems are critical for ensuring easy and convenient access to distributed workforces. The infrastructure also makes it easier to troubleshoot with customer service, minimizing the impact of software issues and resulting downtime. Developers can also automatically roll out product updates and new features without any delays in user adoption. 

Robust Integration Capabilities 

By utilizing APIs, EDI, and other connection technologies, a transportation suite should be able to easily integrate with various systems to exchange critical information efficiently. This ensures seamless connectivity between systems used for shipping, both within an operation and with external stakeholders such as customers and carriers. Integrations help expedite the onboarding process for carriers by automating the collection of essential information, streamlining operations, and improving overall efficiency. They’re also foundational for improving visibility and collaboration across the supply chain. 

A Suite of Transportation Solutions 

End-to-end process handling is crucial for businesses to streamline their operations. Choosing a provider that offers a full suite of solutions allows customers to manage all aspects of shipping, from order placement to delivery, with a single technology vendor. Comprehensive solutions also enable more robust data collection and analytics, displaying real-time information about carrier performance metrics, current pricing information, and other data crucial for informed decision-making. 

3G: The Transportation Software Suite Frontline Workers Need 

In the highly competitive logistics market, ease of use is just as important as the types of processes they automate. Shippers must choose platforms that meet the user experience and implementation needs of their frontline workers who will interface with the technology daily. Failure to do so can result in wasting money on a solution that workers struggle to adopt. 

What’s more, effective technology implementation plays a direct role in improving working conditions and increasing job satisfaction. After upgrading their transportation software, Okuma Fishing was not only able to grow the size of their workforce, but they were also able to improve retention among existing employees. For Tiger Tail USA, their shipping software of choice helped their workforce maintain a sense of continuity and familiarity during a period of rapid growth and significant change. 

3G’s Transportation Software Suite offers a streamlined, intuitive user experience with comprehensive functionality, robust integrations, and breadth of solutions frontline workers need to succeed in their roles and achieve full efficiency. Want to learn more? Read more about why 3G is the ultimate transportation management software.