Financial results keep coming in from software vendors and 3PLs, confirming what we already knew: 2009 was a challenging year.

Here is some of the news that caught our attention this week:

• Con-way Inc. Reports Fourth-Quarter and Full-Year Results for 2009
• Ryder Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2009 Results and Provides 2010 Forecast
• C.H. Robinson Reports Fourth Quarter Results
• Manhattan Associates Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2009 Results
• U.S. Commerce Secretary Locke Unveils Details of the National Export Initiative
• Walmart Announces Organizational Changes

Revenues were down for the full-year 2009 at Con-way (-15.2 percent), Ryder (-19.0 percent), and C.H. Robinson (-11.7 percent). Different factors affected each company’s results, so you should read the press releases for all the details. Some high-level observations: excess capacity across all modes of transportation had a big impact on prices and profit margins for all these companies. Fourth quarter results, while not great across all lines of business, point to some recovery heading into 2010. Here are excerpts of what the CEOs of these companies had to say:

• Con-way President and CEO Douglas W. Stotlar: “Excess capacity remains a problem for the LTL and truckload markets which continues to suppress profit recovery. It will be incumbent upon us to maintain strong liquidity and vigilant cost control while we invest prudently for the strategic needs of our business and customers going forward. 2009 was an excellent year for Menlo. [Its] service portfolio and solution approach clearly were on target with customer demand as the company grew both new and existing customer business in 2009. That success coupled with operational improvements and efficiency gains provided a strong finish for the year and positions Menlo with good momentum heading into 2010.””
• Ryder Chairman and CEO Greg Swienton: “We continued to manage the business effectively through the challenges of the prolonged multi-year freight recession which extended through the fourth quarter. Fleet Management Solutions customers continued to cope with reduced freight activity by downsizing their fleets, primarily at the end of their contractual term. There were a number of areas that showed some positive improvement. Lease miles per vehicle continued to stabilize and we continued to maintain pricing levels on new lease sales in line with return targets. As expected, Supply Chain Solutions automotive volumes were lower compared with the prior year. Additionally, we incurred shutdown costs from the termination of certain automotive operations. In line with our previously announced strategic actions, we also successfully completed all of our plans to disengage from underperforming Supply Chain Solutions operations in South America and Europe. For the full year, we leveraged our improved processes and business model to deliver record free cash flow of $630 million. Our solid balance sheet also enabled us to repurchase 2.7 million shares and make a substantial voluntary pension contribution of more than $100 million, while maintaining a very strong liquidity position.“
• C.H. Robinson Chairman and CEO John P. Wiehoff: “We’re proud of our results in 2009. Our focus on gaining market share through sales and account management, our variable-cost business model, and our expanded menu of services enabled us to be flexible and continue to find opportunities in the marketplace. The trends of margin compression and accelerating volume growth in our North American truckload service during the fourth quarter of 2009 have continued into January. On a per business day basis, in January 2010 our total net revenues are roughly flat. Although we’re pleased with our continued volume growth, our margin comparisons will continue to be challenging.“

Total revenue (-26.8 percent), license revenue (-46.8 percent), and operating income (-18.8 percent) were all down for Manhattan Associates in 2009 compared to the previous year. Manhattan Associates President and CEO Pete Sinisgalli commented, “Our fourth quarter results include modest year-over-year license revenue growth, reflecting a further rebound in supply chain investments by both existing and new customers. Our competitive win rate was strong in the quarter, and we significantly strengthened our market position through new releases of core solutions on our Supply Chain Process Platform — including Warehouse Management.”

Not all 3PLs and software vendors had disappointing results in 2009. What made the difference? A topic for a future posting, but in general, smaller vendors and service providers tended to outperform their much larger competitors. As the saying goes, it’s much harder to turn a big ship than a small one, and the little guys were just better, I believe, at being more creative and adjusting their go-to-market strategy more quickly in response to market conditions.

Walmart’s reorganization is interesting because it validates a trend that my colleague Steve Banker has been writing about the past year: the merging of Logistics/Supply Chain with Store Operations (see “The State of the Retail Supply Chain”). Here is what Bill Simon, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer – Walmart US, said in his memo: “Our new structure will align three very successful operating divisions – Logistics, Real Estate and Store Operations under a unified leadership team. We will organize into three distinctive geographic business units (GBUs) – Walmart West, Walmart South and Walmart North. The power we will unleash by bringing our Logistics team, with its worldwide, best-in-class reputation, and industry-leading Real Estate team together with our Walmart US Stores division, will help us further transform the business and unlock opportunities for our customers, associates and shareholders.”

On the lighter side: Michael Jackson won the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Grammy’s last Sunday. He was as famous for his dancing as he was for his music. If you enjoy dancing and have mastered the moonwalk by now, here is your next challenge: try keeping up with the lead singer of Orquesta Aragon, one of Cuba’s most famous bands from back in the day.

Warning: do not try these moves at home if you suffer from rhythm deficiency. If your business and supply chain strategy fail you in 2010, maybe you can dance your way to success.

Have a great weekend!

(Note: Ryder, Menlo Worldwide Logistics, and Manhattan Associates are ARC clients).