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How to make last-mile delivery more effective
▉ Insight 1
Fundamental buyer behavior has been altered as a result of the pandemic, creating shockwaves across the business landscape.
This is heightening the need to improve last-mile delivery (LMD).
▉ Insight 2
Companies must invest in their LMD capabilities to meet continuously evolving customer expectations.
Digital technologies can help companies seize opportunities to improve LMD.
▉ Insight 3
The stakes are high, as are expectations.
Consumers increasingly expect a frictionless delivery process, empowered by real-time traceability, visibility and constant communication. Here are the key emerging trends and investments that businesses should consider.
▉ Insight 4
The benefits are tangible.
We have seen that retailers can effectively triple the inventory they ship while reducing costs by 10% to 30% by properly optimizing their resource planning and warehouse management systems.
From a strategic standpoint, this may require:
- Growth strategy and competitive analysis
- Service-level targets
- SKU segmentation
- Customer segmentation
- Cost-to-serve optimization
- Omnichannel supply chain and partnerships
In planning, this translates to:
- Advanced forecasting capabilities and a demand-driven network with integrated business planning and systems
- An omnichannel network design and multi-echelon inventory management
- Agility to scale supply up or down based on market volatility
In warehousing, advanced capabilities include:
- Automated decision making
- Advanced picking automation and robotics to boost speed and performance
- Micro-fulfillment centers near demand points to expedite delivery enabled by spoke-and-hub replenishment
- Optimized warehouse management systems
In transportation, an optimized supply chain makes use of advanced technology to provide the best experience for customers. These capabilities include:
- Frictionless order management
- A network of owned or partner carriers with immediate availability
- Optimized delivery routes
- Supplier drop-ships
- Crowdsourcing and specialized couriers
- IoT-enabled tracking
