April - 2019 19logisticstechoutlook.comCXO INSIGHTSBy Joe Puleo, Chief Customer Officer, DHL Supply Chain, North Americaust as technology continues to drive the global economy, technology is changing the way 3PLs serve customers in a wide variety of industries. While there is no off-the-shelf and one-size-fits-all technology solution when applied to specific needs beyond basic warehouse management, established and emerging technology is enhancing the value of partnering with 3PLs.The challenge many organizations face today regarding technology is the wide variety of techniques that are available and the speed with which those technologies are advancing. From robotics to augmented reality to IoT and data analytics, supply chain managers are faced with a plethora of emerging technologies, all of which are hyped as being transformational. Few organizations have the time, resources and expertise to evaluate all the options available to them. But neither can they afford to ignore what's happening.A leading 3PL, on the other hand, has the scale and expertise to stay on the forefront of emerging technologies. At DHL Supply Chain, for example, we've made the investments in people and platforms to help our customers integrate warehouse management systems Technology Drives the Value of 3PL Partnershipsmore efficiently and capture and use data across the supply chain more effectively. At the same time, we're working with a diverse group of technology companies to pilot emerging technologies and identify those that best fit our customers' needs. Moreover, customers get the benefits of supply chain solutions that enable visibility and productivity without distracting from their core business or making significant capital investments.Digital technologyIn a recent DHL Supply Chain survey, more than 80 percent of participating companies said that digitalization is having a moderate to high impact on their business today and 73 percent considered big data analytics to be the most significant information technology for their supply chain.However, while these organizations know they are generating valuable data across the supply chain, many are unable to collect and use that data to improve operations. A 3PL can be a valuable partner in enabling this through supply chain management and business intelligence platforms that provide full supply chain visibility, accessible anytime and anywhere via computers or mobile devices. The focused expertise and breadth of experience of a 3PL can also enable more effective use of data through analytics services.The next phase in this development will be the use of artificial intelligence that uses this data to optimize services such as transportation management. Again, 3PLs are well positioned to lead the integration of artificial intelligence into the digital platforms available today.3PLs are also using digital technologies to address the labor challenges that are crippling some supply Joe Puleo
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