Change management: 4 best practices for a smooth transition with your new logistics provider

While you’ll see certain improvements right away when you begin a new partnership, it may take a full year of collaboration for your team to reach the full transformation of your logistics program and the payoff. During this pivotal time, your overarching objective should be driving continuous improvement, even as you shift to new ways of running your logistics program. Achieving this requires a comprehensive strategy that outlines what each step of your onboarding process will entail, what the key changes will look like, and how both parties will manage the journey productively.

Your exact change management plan will depend on the logistics processes you’re planning to evolve with outsourcing. At a high level, apply these best practices to foster a culture of continuous improvement:

Create a common project plan to facilitate a guided and smooth onboarding process.

Collaboratively developing a transparent process plan will help you understand the steps your provider needs to take for seamless onboarding, including:

• Dedicated onboarding teams: Both the provider and your organization should assign teams to oversee the process.
• Clear timelines and goals: Set realistic milestones and be sure to clearly define your success criteria.
• Training and support: Your provider should provide comprehensive training and commit ongoing support for troubleshooting.
• Testing and feedback: Pilots help refine processes and address issues before full deployment.

Assess operational barriers to change.

Gartner® research suggests: “Supply chain leaders should identify what operational aspects of the initiative are likely to delay or hinder their ability to adopt change and transition to a new way of working. Common operational barriers include: Quantity of coinciding initiatives; overlap with key milestones of other projects; clashing ‘go-live’ dates across initiatives; implementation timelines that do not support transitions to new ways of working; business operating cadence; employee mental bandwidth for change; employee operational capacity for change; intersection with current workflows; coordination of partner resources/support; misaligned goals and metrics; systemic dependencies on other supply chain technologies.” How to manage change and drive continuous improvement

“You have to have a very robust and engaged change management strategy. There will always be some dissatisfaction along the way—and a change management strategy will shrink the time you’re in that valley.” — Bob Daymon, Head of Client Services, Uber Freight

Align on KPIs to measure as you deploy new strategies.

Core KPIs to measure typically include things like on-time service, cost reduction, carrier performance, tender acceptance, and cost of service. But these could change depending on the needs of your customers, so define them with your partner and tailor them around specific value props.

Schedule regular business reviews to monitor performance.

Committing to regular status updates with your provider is necessary to keep track of progress, and identify which changes are or aren’t working. These check-ins fuel a more consistent and transparent dialogue with your provider, helping you better navigate the ups and downs of onboarding and continuous operations. At Uber Freight, we understand that choosing the ideal partner to outsource your logistics—whether they’re a managed service or traditional provider—is a consequential choice for your business. Taking the time to thoroughly explore your options and prepare your company for change will ultimately help you improve service and reduce costs for the long term.

A thoughtful and proactive approach will lay the foundation for long-term success.

Successfully navigating the transition to a new logistics provider requires more than just operational adjustments; it requires a well-structured change management strategy. By creating a clear project plan, assessing potential barriers to change, aligning on key performance indicators (KPIs), and committing to regular performance reviews, businesses can ensure a smooth onboarding process and continuous improvement throughout the collaboration. While the full benefits of the transition may take time to materialize, a thoughtful and proactive approach will lay the foundation for long-term success. With the right partner and the right plan in place, businesses can optimize their logistics operations, drive efficiency, and ultimately achieve sustained growth and cost savings.