Archive for Performance-based outsourcing
Buying Supply Chain Outcomes, Not Software
· CommentsOver the past year, we’ve been discussing how performance-based outsourcing (aka Vested Outsourcing) has the potential to transform 3PL-customer relationships. But can the principles that underpin PBO also transform the way companies procure supply chain and logistics software and the way they work with software vendors?
I believe the answer is yes, but only if software vendors are willing to augment their product offerings with managed services—and if… Continue reading
This Week in Logistics News (Feb 8-12)
· CommentsAfter months of planning, we finally held our seminar on performance-based outsourcing (PBO) in Orlando this week. Great presentations from Kate Vitasek (whose book “Vested Outsourcing: Five Rules that Will Transform Outsourcing” was just published) and representatives from Whirlpool, Del Monte, Penske Logistics, Transplace, and Unipart Logistics. Equally informative were the discussions the attendees had during the think tank sessions. In the days and weeks ahead, Steve Banker… Continue reading
Transform Your 3PL Relationships in 2010
· CommentsLooking for a work-related New Year’s resolution? How about transforming the way you establish and manage your outsourced logistics relationships with 3PLs? As I have written many times before, many 3PL-customer relationships, particularly those that are in their fourth or fifth year, seem to be stuck in a rut. Yes, in most cases these relationships are going okay, cost targets are being met and service levels are acceptable, but… Continue reading
Of all the supply chain and logistics topics we have written about over the past nine months, our postings on performance-based outsourcing (PBO) have been among the most popular (see “Performance-based Outsourcing in Logistics” and “Performance-based Outsourcing: What’s in It for ‘We’?). The reason is simple: many third-party logistics providers (3PL) and their manufacturing and retail customers want to break free from the rut they find… Continue reading
I was speaking with a sales executive at a leading logistics service provider (3PL) earlier this week and I asked him a simple question: “Do you have an example of a good RFP from a customer or prospect that you believe asks all the right questions a prospective customer should ask?”
Boy, did I hit a hot button with that question!
The executive answered me (and expressed his… Continue reading
Cost Reduction vs. Waste Reduction
· CommentsI’m on my way back from this year’s The Logistics & Supply Chain Forum, and although attendance seemed a bit down this year (understandably so, considering the economy), this is still one of the best networking events out there. About 50 logistics executives attended my workshop on “Technologies That Tomorrow’s Industry Leaders Are Investing in Today,” and nobody walked out or bobbed their heads trying to stay awake… Continue reading
I am writing this piece from Knoxville, Tennessee where I’ve been attending a 2 ½ day course on Performance Based Outsourcing at the University of Tennessee. The class wraps up tomorrow, so I have a bit more learning to do, but here are some of my key takeaways so far:
- Performance Based Outsourcing (PBO) is grounded in game theory, a branch of applied mathematics that (according to
Performance-based Outsourcing in Logistics
· CommentsI’ve been tracking the logistics service provider (3PL) market for almost 10 years, and I’ve also talked to a lot of companies that have outsourced their logistics operations to learn why they chose to outsource and what their experience has been (e.g., see “A Deciding Factor in Anna’s Linens’ LSP Selection“). I’ve also written about how very little has changed over the years in the way 3PLs and their… Continue reading
