Since the COVID-19 pandemic erupted, we have constantly been hearing about supply chain shortages and backups causing delays in product deliveries in multiple sectors. Sanil Mahajan, Global Head – Supply Chain Practice, Wipro, and Adolph Colaco, Founder and CEO of e2log, joined Gabrielle Bejarano to discuss how technology can catalyze and improve logistics efficiency to tackle this issue.

“There’s—across industry—issues and challenges where there’s been a domino effect ever since the beginning of 2020. And everyone and every organization in the world today is looking for a solution for their logistics,” explained Mahajan. Logistics is so important, in fact, that Colaco called it the “lifeline of your supply chain.”

The challenge in maintaining this lifeline lies in the influx of information and the dynamic environment. “There’s a lot of opportunity to make mistakes, there’s a lot of opportunity of error,” Mahajan stated.

Colaco elaborated, “A logistician is basically dealing with information on a day-to-day basis.” “They are receiving information and they are getting information.” He added, “They constantly have to deal with evolving circumstances around the supply chain.”

So, how do logisticians deal with this crazy environment? They need the proper tools, information, and ability to intervene. Current management strategies involve email spreadsheets and phone calls, which are often unmeasurable. Instead, logistics companies need to bring in user-friendly technology to give logisticians the ability to intervene and intercept information.

“It’s very important to also think about technology from a standpoint of the end user, the person who is actually going to be executing the logistics, and what tools do they need to be efficiently managing this complex process?” Colaco said.

Another key point is looking at the life of stakeholders in the journey and where the challenges lie. It is essential to centralize and run logistics as a unit, Colaco emphasized. Logistics orchestration is a complete end-to-end journey from the lens of outsiders where there is interdependency between players.

“This whole ability to be able to do this efficiently, effectively, and in harmony is what logistics is all about,” Colaco concluded.

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Prior to the pandemic, the global supply chain was of little interest to the general public at large. However, the disruptions caused by the global health crisis illustrated how critical the supply chain is to every aspect of our lives. And now, more than ever, it is vital for companies to have innovative solutions to their global logistics needs.

Adolph Colaco, Founder and CEO at e2log, John Donnelly III, Co-Founder and CRO at e2log, and Mark Scott, Co-Founder and CTO at e2log, sat down to discuss their upcoming appearance at the industry’s premier event, the Gartner Supply Chain Symposium in Orlando, Florida.

Running from June 6th-8th, 2022, supply chain executives and Chief Supply Chain Officers (CSCOs) come together to collaborate, share knowledge, and discover innovative solutions for the most pressing supply chain challenges.

“This conference brings together a plethora of really seasoned executives in the supply chain space we’re excited to meet with. We’re doing the roundtable session…and obviously having an exhibit booth there as well,” emphasized Donnelly.

CEO Colaco is also proud to announce e2log will be hosting a roundtable on June 8th at 11:15 am during the conference.

“We are actually going to introduce a brand new technology which addresses the challenges of global logistics in a very different form and very unconventional compared to what these traditional technologies have done,” remarked Colaco.

e2log uses a different approach to help organizations solve logistical problems on a global scale, “Getting on the platform is quick and easy and certainly exciting,” said Donnelly on their B2C product for global supply chains.

e2log combines traditional transportation management systems (TMS) with new advanced machine learning and IoT technology to solve product transportation problems in new ways while adding additional capabilities aimed at sustainability and growth.

One of the most exciting use cases for the platform is “carbon emission tracking” which uniquely positions e2log amongst its competitors because, as Scott put it, “We really connect the full transportation chain, every leg of it.”

Breakbulk Europe, the industry’s premier event, returned for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic delayed the annual affair. The two-day event was held in Rotterdam last month, where many of the industry’s directors convened to get acquainted with what's new and what’s changed in their industry.

At a panel specifically discussing how Engineering, Procurement, and Construction, or EPC’s, can work to improve their logistics, directors from several companies weighed in on what the necessary needs are. Co-founder and CRO e2log, John Donnelly III, moderated the panel and posed a variety of questions to figureheads of logistics.

The pandemic resulted in a lot of change, which forced many logistics companies and EPC’s to reorganize in their operations. Of those changes are the rates.

“What we see as a major shift is in the past, people like us used to run projects for our clients where there were a lot of unit rates that freight forwarders were comfortable [with] in terms of fixing for a long term,” said Cryril Varghese, the global logistics director at Fluor.

He added that despite that typically being the norm, it was quickly realized that this form of operation was not as efficient and foolproof for business. In actuality, it’s creating another issue such as risks, simply to stay afloat with rising prices.

“We’ve come to realize it’s not an ideal solution because that's primarily leaving a lot of risks in terms of the commercials on the freight forwarders — pretty much depriving them of the opportunity to manage projects well because they now need to focus on keeping the rate low,” Varghese said.

One of the standout issues discussed at the panel brought attention to whether technology could assist in the overall improvement of how logistic operations work, and what type of technology. While the notion is technology should be incorporated into the logistics industry, it needs to be targeted.

“Technology should not be introduced for the sake of being trendy and digitizing of things like that,” said Adolph Colaco, founder and CEO of e2log.

He added that stakeholders play a major role in bringing perspectives for the betterment and overall improvement of a company’s will and desire to change. But there is another challenge that turns up.

“If you want to make an impact and solve a problem, it's key to recognize who the stakeholders are within an organization when it comes to the execution of complex projects. And what we found throughout this journey is that these stakeholders are well outside a supply chain,” said Colaco.

A beautiful symphony needs more than skilled musicians to handle instruments and play the right notes. An orchestra is only an orchestra when conducted by the right maestro. Logistics is a lot like an orchestra. It needs a good conductor to bring it all together. Shippers across industries grasping for solutions and methods to put the power of that logistics wand back in their hands need to look no further than to the power of e2log’s cloud-based logistics orchestration platform.

Simply Shipped, host Daniel J. Litwin returned with another introductory episode to talk about the issues shippers face, and the technology e2log brings to the table. John Donnelly III, e2log’s Co-founder & CRO, and Mark Scott, Co-Founder & CTO, joined Litwin, the Voice of B2B, to tackle the logistical challenges shippers contend with and how e2log plans to transform them into intelligent solutions.

The supply chain is a predominant headline issue over the past couple of years, in large part due to the pandemic. Scott said now is a tremendous opportunity to engage with customers and others looking for a better way to tackle the supply chain than previous methods. The technology behind e2log’s platform could be that welcoming a new path.

“It’s been exciting to spend the past three years building the product, trying to stay under the radar a little bit while we evaluated our strategy from a product development perspective,” Scott said. “But really, it’s been about engaging with select customers and beyond to building out the platform to where it was ready to solve big meaningful problems in the supply chain space. I think we’re at that turning point, and this is a little bit of a coming-out party for us where we want to engage with the broader market and bring our solution out to the public.”

Learn more about e2log at e2log.com.

To kick off Simply Shipped, host Daniel J. Litwin brought on the two men behind e2log, Adolph Colaco, Founder & CEO, and John Donnelly III, Co-founder & CRO. e2log is a cloud-based logistics orchestration platform that digitalizes the interface between the shippers of cargo and their logistics service providers. This unique operating platform enables end-to-end order lifecycle management for international and domestic shipments via all modes of transportation for all types of cargo.

Donnelly and Colaco were excited to bring their wealth of supply chain knowledge and share their approach to e2Log’s business decisions and strategies for the market to generate success for their logistics clients.

“Historically, the logistics industry has lacked good technology,” Colaco said. “And the only technology that’s been out there has been in the form of ERP-driven transportation management solutions which tend to be extremely rigid. Systems that are rigid in their construct and regimental in their usage when you don’t deliver a great user experience have not worked. On the other side of it, many companies just haven’t had any technology at all. And usage of emails, spreadsheets, and phone calls is not the right type of technology either.”

e2log takes an integrated approach to make it easy for people to use their existing systems. Colaco said that with people’s familiarity with everyday technology, they want those applications brought into the user experience of what they do in their work-life. “Those companies that can deliver that kind of a user experience in a B2B world using B2C technologies are the ones we are finding getting the most momentum and traction.”

Donnelly said all logistics companies face domestic, international problems, and the market was looking for an integrated technology solution to handle such market complexities. And one of the things he said customers love is the simplicity of using e2log’s platform and the immediate positive impact on their business.

The logistics industry is complex, with multiple players. As it’s so vast, there are innate gaps and challenges. In an attempt to narrow those and alleviate pain points, technology is playing a significant role. e2log leaders and industry experts John Donnelly III, Co-Founder and CRO, and Adolph Colaco, Founder and CEO, joined Simply Shipped host Daniel Litwin to discuss the big picture of logistics, supply chains, and technology in this debut episode.

Colaco shared, “Supply chains are complex in terms of their construct. I’ve been able to work on all these dimensions in many parts of the world in 75 countries. What many don’t realize is if you receive a product in North America, it’s gone through a complex journey.”

Donnelly also has a rich career in logistics and technology. He was immediately excited about coming aboard at e2log. “The technology is easy to use, and the customer impact is fast. We’re excited to delight customers on a global scale and educate them on the buyer’s journey.”

Their collective knowledge and the expertise of their entire team shaped their vision for the technology. Colaco recalled, “It was shocking to look at the technology, or lack thereof, in the logistics space. Most of the largest companies in the world use the Microsoft suite of products to run their logistics.”

While the procurement side of supply chains is more standardized with ERP (enterprise resource planning) platforms, there are many more facets. From a platform perspective, e2log strives to bring the B2C experience into the B2B world of logistics. “Strategically, we want to simplify technology usage for logistics,” Colaco said.

With that foundation, the company looks to transform the logistics technology landscape and empower all the stakeholders involved.