Sustainability & Speed: How to Grow Last Mile Quickly and Consciously

News Technology

By Emily Henderson

Meet Emily at our sustainability conference on 11th May at 10am BST where she will speak about ‘How Sustainability & Visibility Go Hand in Hand’. Register Now!

Did your company’s sustainability goals take a backseat to final mile growth in 2020? You’re not alone. Many companies were forced to put plans on hold while addressing their final mile needs. 

Rapid expansion of the final mile was not temporary, though. It’s time to maintain quick final mile growth while simultaneously pursuing sustainability goals.

Improve Technology

Your last mile can only grow at the speed of technology. Simultaneously, technology can assist in reaching company sustainability goals. 

Selecting the right technology to augment and add value to your current operations will provide faster final mile growth and push you toward more sustainable deliveries. 

When looking at new technology, choose solutions that simplify operations, provide valuable insights, and allow flexibility while growing your footprint. The right technology will enable better communication with your regional and local carriers and allow you to locate inefficiencies and bottlenecks in the supply chain. 

Without a view of these inefficiencies, you can not address the un-sustainable pieces associated with it. 

Rethink Visibility

Once the right technology is implemented, complete visibility can be employed. Visibility is the key to a successful supply chain, but it is so much more than just numbers on a screen. 

Implementing complete supply chain visibility can develop the pathways needed to reach your business goals, including sustainability. 

Complete visibility can provide:

  • Numbers on where your carbon emissions stand right now
  • Insights on where waste is coming from
  • Show where growth is needed — additional capacity, a new market, and improved service.

Think of visibility as more than order information. Visibility can help show you the inefficiencies in your final mile — where resources are being wasted and the impact on your “green” targets. Use these metrics to find the flaws in your supply chain and work towards improved numbers.  To move consciously, with speed, visibility is needed to be successful. 

Partner with Your Network

Your company and your network should be working together to reach sustainability goals. 

The final mile is traditionally the most expensive part of the supply chain — costing significant dollars and carbon emissions. Your network of regional and local carriers have the inside knowledge to look at these numbers and work with you on them.

Many regional and local carriers already have plans for carbon neutrality or electric vehicle options. They have the technology to provide true visibility and they want to work with your company. Treat your carrier network as partners — discussing goals with them and decide on solutions together. 

They are the front lines of your final mile; everything from customer experience to sustainability goals rests on their shoulders. Maintaining communication will ensure a successful final mile. 

Speed, Sustainability, and Success

The final mile can be nuanced and complex, but communicating with your carrier network, employing the right technology to provide the visibility your company needs will allow you to reach the final mile faster and meet sustainability goals. ✷

Want to learn more about last mile visibility and sustainability? Join us and Emily Henderson on the 11th May at 10am BST for our sustainability conference. Register Now!

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