FreightWaves LIVE recap: Final-mile challenges and opportunities created by pandemic

This fireside chat recap is from Day 1 of FreightWaves LIVE @HOME.

FIRESIDE CHAT TOPIC: Practical challenges logistics providers face

DETAILS: What are the last-mile opportunities and challenges that arose from the pandemic?

SPEAKER: Larry Klein, vice president of logistics for Bringg, is interviewed by FreightWaves’ Kevin Hill.

BIO: Klein has more than 20 years of experience leading sales, customer service and operational teams in the transportation and logistics space, having worked in management for RR Donnelley Logistics, Echo Global Logistics, DeliveryCircle and 1st Choice Delivery. He manages Bringg’s logistics efforts with a focus on helping organizations better navigate their final-mile operational and technology options.

KEY QUOTES FROM KLEIN:

“We could see that a lot of the legacy technologies built in the last 10, 15 or 20 years were probably not built for what was coming.”

“The big thing that we saw across shippers and logistics providers is that they struggled to scale. I think what is amazing to me is even if you look at the biggest of the big, even those world-class companies had a tough time scaling for this unpredictable amount of volume.”

“You can handle anything by throwing people at it, but it is not overly sustainable or profitable.”

On survey results: “What was interesting is that retailers placed a higher level of value on visibility, but the logistics providers said they get asked about it but weren’t planning on investing in it.”

“What we see is that technology can be a reason for a driver to stay or go. One thing about the independent contractor model is that they are under no obligation to show up tomorrow. So we’re competing consistently to attract and retain drivers. It is an everyday thing.”