Transportation Management Report 2011 - Capgemini

Preface
Roy Lenders
Vice President Global Supply Chain
Management
1
The last time Capgemini published a
report on transportation management
was in 2007. The years since then
have been challenging ones. The
financial and economic crisis hit all
industries hard but nowhere more
so than the transportation industry.
Logistic service providers, carriers
and technology vendors all have
had to deal with the harsh reality of
difficult market conditions. Besides
these macroeconomic factors these
companies are also dealing with an
increased demand from stakeholders
for sustainable business models and
innovative solutions at the same
time that technological capabilities
are increasing and evolving at what
might be considered by some to be a
bewildering pace.
All of these factors led us to believe
that the time for an update to
our transportation management
study was at hand. The approach
we chose for this report is very
similar to the previous edition. In
the first part, Capgemini supply
chain and technology professionals
from different countries share their
experiences and insights with you in
articles that focus on both business
and technology. The articles cover
topics like distribution network
optimization, sustainability in
transportation, planning, (out)
sourcing and IT governance
challenges.
The second part of the report
analyzes the Transportation
Management Systems (TMS) market.
As part of the vendor analysis, a
questionnaire was sent to those
vendors who handle standard, offthe-shelf
transportation management
software. Survey topics included
questions about competition, product
development, and market trends.
The editors of the study compiled all
the responses in easy-to-read tables
and then added their observations
in the text. To facilitate comparisons
among the often diverse and
sometimes even confusing solutions
in the marketplace, we developed an
improved transportation reference
model. Participating vendors were
asked to use this model to indicate
the areas covered by their solutions.
The result is an interesting and
helpful overview for anyone in the
industry and especially for those who
might be looking for a TMS solution.
Hopefully, the business insights in the
report will lead you to think about
or perhaps rethink how to organize
transportation. And after reading
about the latest developments in
software solutions, maybe you’ll want
to consider updating your existing
IT solutions. Whatever your next
move might be, the consultants at
Capgemini will be more than happy
to discuss the study with you in
detail and to explore how we can be
of further assistance in helping you
develop world-class transportation
management.