Admittedly, the world of supply chain and logistics management is one fraught with risk, uncertainty, fear, and doubt.
One thing is for certain, though, and that is interconnectivity is only likely to increase between suppliers, manufacturers, retailers, and end users of various every-day goods as the global middle class grows and grows all whilst demanding easy (and quick!) assess to such items as toothpaste, makeup, and more.
But before your supply chain or logistics guru reaches for a pair of ruby red slippers in which to click his or her heels together in an attempt to make ‘it’ all go away, it’s important to address just what ‘it’ is.
Right, so what is ‘it’?
Is ‘it’ a lack of data or not knowing where a shipment is, or, and worse still, facing litigation as the firm in question had a hand (or foot, as it were) in transporting goods that used child labour or resulted in mass deforestation and the extinction of an entire species?
This scenario may seem more in the realm of ‘Oz’, but is increasingly taking centre stage with large media outlets reporting on firms that are looking to their logistics providers for explanations on why goods were inappropriately sourced (and shipped!) and which resulted in their loss of goodwill or standing with entire swaths of consumers.
But what is a transportation or logistics firm to do? The supply chain is too long to deploy personnel to farms in Sri Lanka or man transit points between countries in Europe, right?
Enter ParceLive.
Not only does the parent company of this software- and hardware-based product, Hanhaa, take serious the importance of transparency, but they go so far as to solve the problem at cost by leveraging tried-and-true geospatial technology that will keep tigers (and titans of industry!) safe for generations to come.
Here’s how:
Transparency defined:
In defining exactly what plagues logisticians and supply chain personnel on any given day is tricky in and of itself.
This is made still worse with a news cycle that drives headlines about environmental best practices whilst simultaneously highlighting those Wicked Witches of the West (no pun intended!) for not doing their part in maintaining their end of the bargain.
Such concerns range anywhere from unsustainable production practices surrounding beef and soybeans to tainted shipments of dairy, wheat, and sugar.
But without a holistic, end-to-end line of sight into the production processes of a farm or firm, a shipping company is at the mercy of that upstream provider’s goodwill.
Instead of taking a chance, however, and assuming positive intent, ParceLive can act as a process-oriented solution for all entities within, and across, a supply chain.
Not only does Hanhaa, the owner of ParceLive as well as other hybrid monitoring solutions, offer insights into package movements regardless of country or carrier, but they also afford companies the ability to partner on their platform to improve transparency between partner firms and, in so doing, avoid becoming the next Forbes or CNN headline.
Tigers (and, yes, lions, too):
But transparency is not always so easily defined.
What could appear to be sufficient insight and end-to-end visibility into upstream and downstream processes by one supply chain member, could just as easily be deemed a useless internal data storage site by another.
This is precisely where ParceLive adds immediate value by not only restoring trust between manufacturers and retailers through an authenticated third-party logistician, but also improving credibility for all businesses within a like industry through comprehensive, global certification schemes.
As a sort of case in point, consider the oft-villainized palm oil industry, which demands is members routinely attend and participate in global roundtables, undergo regular inspections and re-certifications, and provide clear chains of custody to any body of inquiry, to include routine customers.
What’s more, these same manufacturers, shippers, and sellers all need to take care in protecting their triple bottom line and reputation as palm oil deforestation directly contributes to the loss of such endangered species as orangutans and Sumatran tigers.
Instead of trying to appease consumers, investors, and NGOs solo, however, supply chain partners would be wise to invest in ParceLive since the technology is secure and provides real-time data on not only potential breaches within the palm oil shipping process, but also helps improve the efficiency of movements around the globe by monitoring for chokepoints and border delays.
Traction through action:
All that aside, it shouldn’t take a house landing on any industry or firm to wake up supply chain leaders to the ill effects of ignoring the importance of transparency (no matter how one defines the term).
By taking action in monitoring shipments, be they palm oil or ruby red shoes, ParceLive begins the data capture process for a firm in a friendly, turnkey manner with respect to current enterprise and resource planning processes previously in use by a shipper, receiver, or warehouse.
What’s more, Hanhaa sees itself as a partner within any customer supply chain and frequently attends transparency forums, be they industry- or NGO-focused.
Thus, Hanhaa invites all supply chain companies to join in shifting the paradigm away from one of mere compliance in favour of building out secure global networks intended to improve the lives of farmers, consumers, and executive officers alike.
Conclusion & call-to-action:
And so, whilst there is no place like home, it should not take one (that is, a house from Kansas!) falling on an entire operation to alert supply chain personnel and logisticians to the fact that they, too, are increasingly being held accountability for sustainability initiatives the world over.
Whether this is fair or not is beside the point as disputes and other legal matters can also ruin a firm’s reputation and negatively impact their first, second, and third bottom lines, or those of profit, people, and planet.
In order to avoid such an outcome (and avoid putting on a pair of red slippers!), supply chain firms would be wise to invest in technology that acts as not only a monitoring system, but also a data and information repository should the need for an ultimately audits arise.
This is precisely what ParceLive did, does, and will continue to do; not just for lions, tigers, and bears (OH MY!), but for the simple fact that good business is only good so long as it is sustainable, smart, and easily communicable with all.
