Last mile is a term used in supply chain management and transportation planning to describe the last leg of a journey and getting it right is critical for business success.
What is it like to run a last mile logistics firm? Such a role is challenging and it requires an investment in new technology and with potential seeking out new particles. To gain an insight into the types of issues faced along the final phase of the supply chain, Digital Journal spoke with Bane Hunter, CEO of GetSwift.
Digital Journal: GetSwift is a leading provider of last mile SaaS logistics technology. What is last mile logistics, and why is it important for companies to effectively manage it?
Bane Hunter: Last mile really means the last step of the journey before any product arrives into the hands of the customer. The reason why it’s so important for any company to get right is because it has the potential to have the most impact on the customer experience other than the product itself. Also, it is the most complex and expensive part of the delivery process.
DJ: What kind of solutions do you offer?
Hunter: We offer a whole host of solutions including tracking, dispatching, routing, workforce management, marketplace creation, payment solutions, crypto enabling and connectivity services among others. So whether you are a small business owner just starting your delivery process or a large multinational, we have something to help you solve your problems and help you grow!
DJ: You recently announced a partnership with Uber. What does this collaboration entail and how will it help your customers?
Hunter: We are very excited to be partnering with, what is without question, a leader in the mobility sector. Simply put, by implementing Uber’s workforce and vehicle availability and providing fixed price based on distance on top of the GetSwift platform that will protect the data, brand equity and payment workflows, we hope to resolve the millions in lost delivery opportunities that are out there.
DJ: How has the pandemic impacted logistics, and particularly last mile logistics?
Hunter: It has changed things for the better, but also for the worse. Consumer behavior has shifted as far as last mile is concerned – and that behavior and expectation is here to stay, period. What is more significant is that the new expectation has very low tolerance for any solution that is not both technologically appropriate, nor commercially sustainable. The bottom line is: if you do not get the last mile implemented properly now, you run the very real risk of your competitor winning over the market. We see this from both the large enterprise side and the small business side.
DJ: Where do you see the industry going in the next five years?
Hunter: Innovate, adapt, execute , sustain or die. Rinse and repeat. There are some revolutionary things coming down the pipeline and most of the current traditional ecosystems will not survive.
DJ: We are currently facing significant supply chain issues. What can we do to alleviate the problems?
Hunter: I would like to answer this in two parts. The first one is how do we stabilize the current crisis, the second one is how do we stop responding to crisis and have a long-term structural solution in place.
The first step is, no pun intended, to parcel out the problems. This means current bottlenecks need to be triaged as soon as possible – and the key here is analyzing the RIGHT data and making decisions quickly based on that. My assessment is that part of the problem currently is lack of forward analytical modeling and then inertia when deploying solutions.
The second part of this is a very robust and integrated technology solution. We have evolved beyond the ability to manage what is an essential and critical need with excel spreadsheets and emails. I see the similarity with what was experienced with air traffic control in the early days. I think we may have to seriously consider both national and global supply chain traffic unified monitoring and control systems at a strategic level and also realize that we need solutions that work for all business sizes, not just mega corporations. Everyone should have an equal opportunity to be competitive.
