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Hey, good morning, good afternoon, good evening, wherever you may be.

Scott Lewton and Kimberly Reuter here with you on supply chain now.

Welcome.

Kim, how you doing?

I'm doing amazing.

How are you?

Wonderful.

Great to have you back.

I know you've had some really big travels, some really big discussions, keynotes, the whole shebang.

I look forward to getting updated properly later, but we've got a great show teed up here today.

We're going to be talking about this massive opportunity that logistics innovation poses for all organizations, but especially small and medium sized businesses.

We're going to get into some of the emerging trends you should be aware of.

We're going to be exploring some of the most common logistical challenges and better yet, how to overcome them.

We're going to be sharing how to make gains in sustainability, which everybody wants, but without significantly adding cost.

And, hey, just what is the best way to select the right logistics partner?

Well, we're going to cover all that and much more.

So stay tuned for a great show.

Kim, looking forward to a great conversation, huh?

Yes, it's gonna be great.

And I love that we're focusing on small medium because we certainly don't talk about them enough.

So it's been great for the little guys.

That's right.

So, folks, get ready two quick reminders before we dive into a conversation with a great panel.

First off, hey, let us know what you think.

And secondly, folks, if you enjoyed today's show, be sure to share it with a friend or your network.

They'll be glad you did.

Okay, let's get to work.

Kimberly, I want to introduce our esteemed panelists here today, starting with Glenn Clark, CEO of DP world in US and Mexico, and he serves as regional head of contract logistics.

He's joined by Terry Donohoe, senior vice president of freight forwarding for DP World Americas.

Hey.

Hey, Glenn, how you doing?

Doing great.

Thank you, Scott.

Thank you.

Kimberlake.

Wonderful to see you.

And Terry, how you doing today?

Great.

It's great to be here.

Thank you so much, Scott.

Kimberly, for this opportunity.

You bet.

And as we were saying, pre show, Terry, it's like you're tuned in from Mission control there at DP world headquarters.

I love it.

It's a trade secret.

I can't give it away.

Sounds like a competitive advantage to me.

Well, great to have you all.

So we got a big conversation teed up, as Kimberly was talking about, especially aimed at equipping small and medium sized businesses with information they got to know so they can compete and be more successful, especially when it comes logistics.

But before we get there, I want to find out from all three of you all, you know, we're on the final throws of summer 2024, at least here in North America, and it's been a hot one, so I can't wait to get into fall and football weather.

But I know you, all three of you all have done some special things this summer, right?

So as you look back, I want to ask each of you one of your favorite things you did in the hot, hot summer.

That was summer 2024.

Glenn, let's start with you.

What was one of your favorite parts of the last few months?

Thanks, Scott.

Yeah, we had the pleasure of taking a trip to Ireland with the family this year, and I've been there many times on business, but never for pleasure.

So we got a chance to tour Ireland, as I'll say, a tourist, and we got to experience some lovely delicacies and food and beverage and really got to see the countryside and just see the natural beauty of Ireland through train and through buses and really just had an exciting time together.

But I think, most importantly is we got to do with most of our family, which really made it a great experience.

Absolutely.

And you know what?

There's no shame in approaching any wonderful place around the world as a tourist.

Right?

Sometimes you got to embrace that to see everything.

So it sounds like a wonderful, wonderful trip.

We'll have to see some pictures later, Glenn.

Terry, that's gonna be a tough one to talk, but I know you had a special experience this past summer.

Tell us more, Terry.

I did.

So I'm hoping the audience is familiar with a game of cricket.

For those of you that's not familiar with the game of cricket, it's similar to baseball in the fact that it has a bat and a ball, but it's, I believe, the third largest spectator sport globally.

And DP World has an initiative called beyond boundaries, where we try to bring a cricket to communities that are lesser served.

And in conjunction with the International Cricket Council, I actually hosted, or the USA co hosted with the West Indians and its national cricket tournament this summer.

And I was fortunate enough, as I said, to be part of the Beyond Boundaries initiative with DP World and actually found myself at the fan zone in downtown Manhattan and part of the initiative was to pass out kit bags.

And a kit bag is basically everything that a young kid would need to play cricket.

Cricket ball, cricket bat, some protective equipment, etc, etcetera.

So I was on stage in the fan zone in downtown Manhattan with two of India's cricket legends, Ravi Shastri and Sachin Tendulkar.

And wow.

I was on stage representing DP and handing out to kids of the greater New York area boys and girls kit bags and they could take cricket into their communities.

It was a fantastic experience.

It sounds like, it sounds.

The experience alone must have been incredible.

I love the fact that that's a big part of y'all's give forward.

I had no idea, Kimberly, that cricket is the world's third largest watched and viewed sport.

That makes more sense.

I am also amazing.

Yeah.

And we were talking pre show about the bowler or, you know, baseball.

It's the pitcher that throws the ball towards the hitter and it's the bowler, as Terry shared with me, pre show.

And that is fascinating, the whole wind up and delivery.

I could watch a lot more cricket.

Maybe I'll get into the cool crowd and watch cricket.

But Kimberly, you had a special summer as well.

What was one of your highlights?

I did.

I just got back from Bangkok.

I was over there doing some keynote speaking, working with small medium freight forwarders and talking about e commerce and supply chain and how that has really changed e commerce and supply chain and what do you need to do if you want to be a part of that?

But I did.

I was able to get a couple of days to enjoy Bangkok and I think I saw every single Buddha statue in the country of Thailand.

But it was a great trip and I recommend Bangkok.

I cannot wait to go.

So let's get into it.

I love offering up contest.

World moves so fast and rarely do we get a chance to call time out and gather critical, critical context.

That's where I usually like to start each of these conversations.

So, Glenn, if you would tell us briefly about your background and the organization you lead there at DP World.

Yeah.

Thanks, Scott.

I've had the opportunity to work in this field of logistics for about 38 years.

I know from the picture it looks a little bit that I must have started around six or seven, but no, it's real true, but no.

I've had the opportunity to work in this industry and see a lot of things and a lot of changes.

But I think over the 38 years I've been very fortunate to work in different aspects of the business, whether it be in direct operations, working with customers on solutions to challenges with supply chain and efficiencies and cost and service levels.

I've had experience in engineering and business continuity plans and programs and even spent a tenure in human resources working with our internal teams to, because the human element and people are so important to this industry and their knowledge and expertise of how we adapt and move.

So I've been very fortunate over those 38 years to do a lot of exciting things like that.

Scott.

So I look forward to sharing a little bit about that experience in the gray hair today.

I love your holistic journey, man.

Goodness gracious.

And really to do supply chain right.

It's so helpful to have that holistic leadership and experience expertise.

So appreciate that.

Glen.

Hey Terry, same thing, context here.

If you would share a little bit about your background and your role there at DP World Americas.

Sure.

Love to.

I guess like most people in the industry, I kind of fell into the industry by chance.

I grew up very close to Heathrow airport.

Most of my parents were accountants.

Imagine trying to negotiate as a teenager walking around with two accountants.

It was tough, but I just imagined I would be an accountant.

Didn't know there was a freight forwarding business even growing up, as I said, close to the airport.

So I applied as a trainee accountant at a freight forwarding company.

Proposition was filled and I was asked if I had would be interested in joining the apprenticeship for their core business, which was the freight forwarding.

And it was a great experience for me.

It was an old fashioned english freight forwarding company, medium sized company, but they put me through a proper apprenticeship.

So I worked in a warehouse, I've loaded containers.

I worked in the air freight department back in the day.

There was european trucking, which was also a separate product because you still had to clear her customs in those days.

And I kind of fell in love with deep sea, as we called it, ocean freight.

I'm very, very grateful for that grounding and learning the business from the ground up.

Fortunate enough to transfer to the States in 1998.

So I've been here since 1998, had some very senior positions with some competition.

But I think I've got the best job in the industry right now.

Heading up DP world.

We're growing a frightful organization.

It's an amazing opportunity.

We've already really, truly expanded in the Americas in the last twelve months.

So my responsibility is from Canada all the way down to Argentina.

We brought 30 offices and about 200 plus people.

And a lot of that has been achieved in the last twelve months.

So I love my job.

I think it's brilliant opportunity industry.

And I'm very, very proud to represent DP.

Oh, Terry, I love that.

And I can only imagine all the stories and anecdotes, both of you all left out of your journey.

Kimberly, I think industry is better off because while today there's certainly a more targeted effort at bringing in talent, really from across all walks of life into.

And that's great.

But back in the day, as Terry was kind of describing, we're so fortunate that people like Terry fell into industry, as he mentioned, because that's oftentimes how it happened a decade or two ago.

Your thoughts there as Glenn and Terry were sharing a little bit about their background and journeys.

Yeah, I mean, back when we all started, I think we all have similar backgrounds and years of experience.

I don't need to put an exact number on it.

Less than Glenn, more than Terry.

But I.

But, you know, back then, we just kind of fell in it.

We didn't have college degrees in supply chain when I came up, and I kind of fell into the industry, too.

I graduated with like a bachelor's in arts.

I didn't even have a business degree.

And a friend of a friend and family got me a job.

And I was a telex girl.

That was my first job was sending telex to ships, helping them unload the ships.

I was a chief worker, host.

They were steamship line husbandry company.

And just like Terry started, you know, on the ground, like sorting papers, unloading, just anything to just keep freight moving.

And I think, you know, we all started that way.

And that gives us a great perspective on the industry.

That's right.

Yeah.

Where the gimba is, right.

Hands on where the value is created.

I love that.

Kimberly, Terry, and Glenn.

So, folks, we had a great conversation from a variety of perspectives here.

Speaking of one last piece of table setting here today, Glenn and Terry and Kimberly.

So all the experience we already talked about, right.

Lots of expertise, lots of accomplishments, lots of learnings from the good days and the bad days, I'm sure we're going to take advantage of all of that.

But when you look at how the industry has evolved, and goodness gracious that evolution velocity is picking up by the hour, it feels even, especially maybe in the last year or two.

What's a couple of observations in the logistics space that you can share here today?

Glenn, let's start with you.

Yeah, I think everyone's probably experienced this.

That works in this industry is expect the unexpected.

I think that's really what has really been a dynamic change for the last three or four years, but specifically in the last few, the disruptions, the things that we go through, the planning has to have a plan a plan b and a plan circumflex.

I think there's a lot of focus now for people that are doing this business and how we get products to market.

About the what ifs.

Well, what if this happens or what if that happens?

How do we adapt?

There's really a spotlight, I think, on the small and medium business market.

We've seen such a great increase.

I mean, in 2020 along, I think the statistics will say there's over 4 million small businesses, medium sized businesses that were formed in that period.

So that's the significant change.

And obviously the shift in supply chain during those transactions really drives a big change in the business and the industry and how we have to almost adapt on the fly.

And I think that it creates a lot of new opportunities in this world of logistics.

But I think also we can't be put our head in the sand around the technology and the changes in technology and the shifts of where that's going to take us, not just today, but for the future with AI and other things that are being more and more common in our world of logistics today.

Yeah, what a great, great.

You set the table well there, Glenn.

And I would just add, expect the unexpected.

I'm a big, big brother fan.

That's like the show's mantra, but it applies perfectly to global supply chain.

And then you kind of made talked about adapting and you also talked about the analogy.

I heard there is sometimes we just have to lean into flying the plane while we build the plane because of the rate of change and many other things that's thrown at us around, you know, curveballs coming around corners and whatnot.

So appreciate you sharing that, Glenn.

Terry, same question.

When you kind of look at how things have been evolving in recent years.

Your thoughts, Terry?

Increased flexibility.

I think the SMBs are driving logistics providers into scalable operations.

SMBs need to expand quickly.

They need new ideas and plans.

They're also looking for global access into different markets and connecting with the DP world and our facilities across the world, it gives them that capability.

They need to scale up and optimize growth.

They need to be able to take advantage of growth opportunities wherever they arrive in the world.

And the biggest thing I've seen in the last few years really is more transparency in pricing.

It used to be the competitive pricing was for the big guys and it was a trade secret.

But with the evolution of digital platform marketplaces, I think there's been an increased transparency in pricing that is obviously enables SMBs to deliver their product to their markets in a cost competitive fashion.

I'm so glad you spiked the football on that, because, Kimberly, that's the wonderful, that's part of the big good news we're gonna talk about here today is the immense opportunity that is out there for small and medium sized businesses to compete with all the big folks out there and the big brands.

And I love it.

And logistics, technology and many other tailwinds always get tailwinds.

And headwinds confused of the tailwinds is helping to make that happen in exciting new ways.

Kimberly, your thoughts on how Glenn and Terry kind of talked about the evolving landscape?

Yeah, so I totally agree.

There's been a huge growth in small medium businesses.

The growth of marketplaces has really kind of driven that.

We have a new importer out there in the world today.

There's a totally different importer than we've been dealing with in the past.

Small medium importers are looking for different tools.

They don't have the huge staffs.

They need support.

They need education.

They need ideas that Terry talked about.

They're not aware of the things that they can do to make their businesses better.

They're not supply chain experts.

They don't have a room full of supply chain experts.

So more and more, these non medium businesses are looking to their ports, their freight forwarders, their carriers, to provide them with that expertise and those solutions.

Well said, Kim and I wholeheartedly agree with you.

And I'll call out one more thing.

You know, in today's age, where we got so much information and data at our fingertips for a variety of reasons, to include the transparency that Terry was talking about.

We've got no excuses business leaders to have so much in our blind spots.

And I would argue that it's probably even more costly today to have items in your blind spot.

So we got to take a big old flashlight and make sure we stay aware, and that's kind of where we're going next.

Glen, Terry, and Kim.

So let me tee up the conversation again here today, because folks were talking about harnessing innovation for small and medium business growth opportunities and strategies, right?

So we got a lot to get into here today.

And I want to talk about the awareness and how important it is to be aware of emerging trends in logistics that SMBs should be aware of, number one, and how they can prepare to adopt to these trends to not just stay competitive, but to maybe increase their competitive advantage.

Glenn, let's start with you.

Trends, and maybe what business leaders should be doing to stay attuned to how they can compete.

Yeah, Scott, I think it's exciting because of some of the things I mentioned earlier around technology and the pieces of technology and what's available out there.

And Kimberly said it will.

How do we share that information with small and medium businesses who may not be on the cutting edge, but automation and AI, they're truly buzzwords.

But they're also having a significant change in the industry.

And the forecasts are only that it's going to continue to do so.

How do we leverage that?

And for small and medium businesses, I think the opportunity is how do we go from where you are today and plan the growth and have that ability to scale as the business grows?

Where it may be your distribution channels today are b, two c, and then you want to go now to b, two b.

How do you leverage that?

How do you plan for that as a significant shift, and how you manage your marketing, your planning, your forecasting, and even how over the last few years, all of these marketplaces have popped up and how it's driven the online sales and orders and what's going on.

Significant change around it.

Omnichannel.

And just the idea of how things move on almost a daily and weekly basis now for small businesses.

Yep, we could spend probably 3 hours talking just about your response, including AI.

And I would just throw out there because this comes up every time.

It's so important.

We're all rushing to AI to figure out how we can take advantage of this golden age, even though it's been around a little while.

But it's so important to stay focused on what we're trying to accomplish and then work backwards to using the right tool and solutions.

So good stuff there, Glenn.

Terry, same question.

Emerging trends in logistics and how can folks adapt?

I'm gonna go back to sustainability and it's no longer optional.

I think if some SMBs take advantage of the real time data and the visibility that's out there through the technologies that's being deployed in the industry, they can really start to adopt greener logistics solutions, such as optimizing transportation routes, reducing packaging waste, and partnering with providers who invest in sustainability.

I think that's non negotiable in today's world.

Excellent point.

Because everybody is demanding, consumers, shareholders, the whole supply chain ecosystem is looking for ways to get sustainability with results.

Right, enough talk.

Where's the action outcomes?

And that's excellent call out there, Terry.

Kimberly, we heard a lot there from Glenn and Terry in terms of emerging current and emerging trends.

And some steps that business leaders should take.

Your thoughts there, Kim?

Yeah, I don't know how much of an emerging trend it is anymore, but we are seeing a huge growth in direct to consumer shipping and really just cutting out the middleman altogether.

So building boxes in China with direct injection into last mile carriers in that country, and small and mediums have traditionally been like, oh, we can't do that.

We're not big enough.

There are opportunities, more and more opportunities for small medium businesses to tap into more complex supply chain and logistics solutions that worked traditionally just for the big guys.

So if you're small medium, look for those opportunities in supply chain because they are there for you.

Excellent point.

And I bet my hunch is that's music to Glen and Terry's ears.

Kim?

We'll touch on that probably more a little later.

All right, so now, from trends to challenges, folks, let's talk about what are some of the most common logistical challenges faced by SMBs here today, and how can they overcome these obstacles to scale effectively, successfully, profitably, and a whole bunch more.

So, Terry, let's start with you here.

Your thoughts?

It's a very disruptive world.

The first thing that comes to mind is managing inventory and the carrying costs of managing inventory.

How do you help some of the space challenges with accurate forecasting of shipment and shipment planning?

There are still visibility challenges in terms of knowing where your freight is at any given time.

These are real challenges I think any SMB faces.

The good news is I think there are people like DP world that are out there that are trying to fix some of these challenges.

And I think if you partner with the right person, you can overcome a lot of the challenges out there.

But it is a very disruptive world.

As I mentioned before, and as Glenn said, I think at the very beginning, expect the unexpected.

No doubt, no doubt.

It's like global supply chain is one of those bowlers, Terry, and those, what do they call the ball on cricket?

What they call the ball, Terry, the actual ball that folks are hitting.

What is that called?

It's actually just a cricket ball, but the difference between that and a baseball is it has a much thicker seam stitching, and depending upon where that stitching hits the ground, can determine whether the ball bounces head high, knee high, or chest high.

So.

Oh, man, watched out.

Yeah.

The vats need to be bigger.

If I played well, it's like global supply chain.

They finish that poor analogy.

Keeps throwing these cricket balls at us, right?

Yep.

And the seams always land in different places, so you got common and unique challenges.

But, Glenn, what else would you throw out there in terms of common logistical challenges and what folks got to do to overcome it?

Yeah, I think as we talk to our small and medium sized business customers that we have the opportunity to deal with and help find solutions for, it's scalability and how can they scale?

There's seasonality to a lot of projects and products that are going through.

How do they scale up and down to meet the demand on the changing seasons and the type of products moving?

We look at the big carriers, and I think they have a lot of planning and ideas of how theyre going to deal with some of these crises that go around.

But the geopolitical changes in todays business can have a huge impact on these small companies and the medium sized companies because are they ahead of the curve or are they behind the curve?

And then I think the whole shift in this last few years of, as Kimberly said earlier, the shift to this e commerce and moving to that type of supply chain efficiencies, it's that final mile.

How quickly can they get products to customers?

Because a lot of times that makes a big difference in their ability to service the customer, make a happy customer.

But also it's about cash flow.

The faster they can get the products to the customers, the quicker they get the return, and they have cash to reinvest in what is critical components to their business today.

Glenn, well said.

And Kimberly, I'm coming to you, but before I do, we've got a litany of challenges between Terry and Glenn.

Inventory management, forecasting, of course, managing those carrying costs, visibility, which I would argue is fastly becoming table stakes.

Right.

We'll save that for later.

How to scale.

How to scale successfully geopolitical, which is a gift that keeps on giving, unfortunately.

Final mile, of course, managing cash flow.

But it puts an emphasis on something I think Terry said we got to be really smart in how we choose our partners across the ecosystem.

But Kimberly, what did you hear there?

I heard all of that.

I would just build a little bit on what Glenn said is that in my opinion, the last mile is now an origin problem.

Yep, it used to be we didn't even care about that until it cleared customs and destination country.

But no, we're actually planning for last mile at the manufacturer's door in some cases.

Right.

And so that has drastically changed how we think about supply chain and especially how small and mediums need to be able to respond to it.

So what I see out there, a lot just to build on what we've already talked about is the need for flexibility and flexible, easy to access.

Going to aster that?

Easy to access.

Don't bring me something.

It's going to take me eight months to build easy to access, flexible supply chain solutions so that they can, like we said, get in front of the market instead of chasing the market.

Excellent point there.

Excellent point.

Don't bring that stuff in here.

Uh, Ken, we got their time for 18 month, no solutions.

You know, we measuring in weeks.

I love that.

Uh, Kim, and I also love your, how you called out the final mall is a origin problem more than ever before.

That's an excellent call out there.

Um, all right, so, uh, Glenn, Terry, y'all got a couple more hours?

Cause.

Cause I'd love to dive deeper, but I know time keeps on ticking.

I wanna switch over to, um.

I think Glenn made this comment earlier.

Maybe it was in the pre show.

We were talking about less tac tech savvy.

And I think I made the comment that all three of my kids would put me in that bucket.

Cause I am not a technologist.

And there's plenty of folks out there that aren't technologists, even this era in global supply chain.

So when it comes to SMBs that may be traditionally less tech savvy, how can we encourage them to adopt new technologies and integrate them successfully, especially when it comes to logistics solutions?

Glenn, your thoughts there?

Yeah, Scott, I think it's a challenge because the information flow from, you know, that small business to the end customer is so critical in today's business.

And I think that how they adapt is they can build it or try to figure out the trends, but also they can look for partners that have that experience.

I mean, one of the things we've had to shift in our business model is how do we build those communication tools so that people get the packages coming.

It's going to be arrived, the delivery has been processed.

It's giving that visibility, but it's also giving that understanding of the customer experience that's back to that customer.

And I think that many times those tools were built for large organizations and complex supply chains.

But the shift now is almost everyone needs that information.

Yes.

Well said.

That's a beautiful democratization play that's been at play for years now.

I love, it's one of my favorite movements, and it's hitting so many different aspects of business.

Terry, what would you add there?

Obviously, technology has the potential to streamline and ultimately improve the business processes.

Think about AI, just very briefly.

The version of AI that we use today will be the worst version of AI that we ever use in the future.

Right, right.

But I'm not a very tech savvy guy, certainly not mechanically oriented.

I can just about put gas in my car.

But I do think with API integration, but also investment from the industry into apps, I just booked an international airline ticket on an app, and no one taught me how to use the app.

There wasn't an airline that sat me down and hosted a teams meeting, told me how to use the app.

We're getting to the stage now where technology is becoming very, very easy to use, very easy to integrate through the use of APIs, as I've mentioned.

So I think it will become more intuitive and more streamlined, and that will lead to more opportunities for SMBs and adoption in adoption.

Glenn, I think you had one more comment before I go to Kim.

Well, I think that in the past, the EDI, the transformation of EDI and then to API, and now it's like with the small and medium businesses, they may not have some of those capabilities.

So as they have to adapt, can they find partners that in many cases we're able to take excel spreadsheets or Google sheets and translate that into data and information.

So I think that for whatever level you're at, there's a lot of different ways that companies have had to adapt, especially during that shift during the pandemics and Red Sea actions and Panama canals, all the stuff that drove us all crazy and sleepless nights.

But that's what I see as a continual change, that we're having to adapt to different types of customers.

Yeah, well said there, Glenn.

Kim, what are you hearing here?

So the smaller mediums, there is so much supply chain technology out there now.

There's been a huge growth in supply chain technology.

Supply chain management technology.

North America is the biggest producer of supply chain management technology.

So you don't have to be a huge company to have supply chain management technology.

You don't have to do a six month integration.

You don't even have to have EDI.

You don't even have to have APIs.

There's a lot of standard integrations that exist out there with quickbooks and other standard operating platforms that you're already using to manage your business.

So look for those.

And another thing I see is small mediums, they kind of get a little bit ahead of themselves, especially when they're getting into the bigger side of mediums, and they're like, we're going to build our own supply chain management technology.

There is no reason for you to build your own supply chain management technology.

Unless your business is supply chain management.

There is so many, there are so many solutions out there and the prices are very competitive.

Unless you are going to build something that you're going to in turn sell, or your business is supply chain management, you have no, do not build your own.

I love it.

No need to reinvent the wheel, the app or the platform.

Good stuff there.

Kim.

And I love Terry's app example about booking a ticket because we all have, but none of us have been trained that technology is built so intuitively that my twelve year old could figure it out in no time.

Another great part of the technology movement.

Let's see here.

Let's get to another topic here.

So with the lowering costs of logistics due to all these technological advancements that we're talking about, what are the most cost effective logistics strategies that SMBs should consider as to try to do what we're all trying to do, which is maximizing our return on investment?

Terry, your thoughts there?

I would urge SMBs to focus on the total cost of the logistics and not just the air and ocean freight component or the final mile component, but to take a look at the complete costs.

And what I mean by that is hidden costs.

There could be transit time delays, which means that your product's not getting to your customers as you promised.

That's cost of reputation there.

What is that going to cost you in future sales?

There could be demarrage and detention at quilts which rack up very, very quickly.

So I guess when you start looking at return on investment, for me it would be looked just beyond the pool to pour and the visible components of the cost and understand what the true cost is when selecting a provider.

Excellent point.

Those hidden costs will bite you in the ankle painfully, time and time and time again, if not worse.

Glenn, what would you add to that?

I take it from just feedback and talking to customers about some of their challenges.

It really goes back to how do we maximize the ROI of logistics and the costing?

Because for a small and medium business, reinvesting back into the business when either research and development or new products or even inventory and procuring more, the cash flow is so important.

So these disruptions and things that can go on is some of the challenges that I hear when I talk to our customers today of how can we help them through those type of challenges.

And I'm sure whether you're using a third party or, or you're doing it yourself, you're experiencing those.

So the better visibility that you have to shifts and changes, the better you can manage your cash, the better you can manage the business as a whole.

And to Terry's point, I think it's very important.

What does that whole end to end look like and the total cost, and really, what's the value creation?

Because depending on the industry, 16 to 20 or 22% is, you know, that the type of industries varies is that's how much of that cost of a product is in logistics cost and spend.

So it's a critical piece to the overall, you know, cost of goods sold from any small and medium business.

Well said, Glenn.

Well said.

Kim, what would you add here?

My big thing is that you have to start managing your supply chain at Po.

And I think that is the key for any business, small, medium especially.

But it's the mistake I see happening over and over and over again with what I see in the market and with companies that I've worked with is that they are blind to what is coming down the pipe until there's a booking.

And that is a big mistake.

So I think if you're a small medium, you need to be looking at technology business processes.

Look, if you have ten pos a year, that's fine.

Put them on Excel spreadsheet and just know that they're coming.

But, you know, that is the biggest mistake I see.

And there are plenty of solutions to help you with that.

Well said, Kim.

And along a similar line, this came up yesterday in the show yesterday.

I love all the different ways, especially including technology, that we're empowering our frontline.

And all four of us have frontline experience earlier in our careers.

Right.

To do business easier and to find more success and to let go of a lot of the blocking and tackling work.

Right.

The repetitive work.

And I love that movement.

Right.

But I think as managers and leaders, we can't stop there.

We got to find better ways to manage, kind of to all of y'all's points because there's some equally as exciting and critical levers we got to pull there so we can be in the know and be able to see things like these hidden costs or other hidden dynamics that can hurt our overall growth and success.

All right, so let's talk about sustainability.

Terry, you brought that up much earlier in our conversation.

So in this era where sustainability is so incredibly crucial, right.

More folks are demanding not just leaders to talk about it, but outcomes.

Right?

How can SMBs leverage logistics to enhance their sustainability practices and results, but without significantly increasing costs?

Terry, tell us more.

As I said earlier, sustainability is non negotiable.

The good news is there's a lot of resources out there in the industry.

There are eco conscious logistics providers that invest and allow you as an SMB to invest in green technologies.

There are obviously electric vehicles that are becoming more visible on the roads.

We've invested a lot in the eco warehouses.

Were all of the warehouses energy efficient, optimizing your method of shipment as well?

Does it really have to by air freight or can it move by ocean freight?

Does it really have to move by truck or can it move by rail?

So there's a lot of things that can be done obviously, deeply well operate ports and terminals.

But a lot of our ports and terminals are investing heavily, heavily in the use of green technology.

So even selecting the port of entry or the port of export can have a big effect here in North America.

Deep free world.

In Vancouver, we've got a pilot program where we operate our rtgs, our rubber tied gantry cranes.

They're powered by hydrogen electricity.

In Latin America, most of our DP ports are being powered 100% by renewable energy.

So I think selection of transportation provider, understanding the routing it takes and take a look at the ports and look at the port history.

And then the one last thing I would say is, if you desire to become more green, but you don't know how, companies like DP World are investing in specialists that will help consult with you and will help you understand how to partner and how to take advantage of technology and really start to change your partner footprint.

Love it, Terry.

Hey, we can tell Terry loves his job as he shared a couple of times on the front end, right?

And I love also, Terry, in particular your passion for practical sustainability, right?

Not lip service.

Let's switch gears here.

We're coming down a fast and furious finish, folks.

Let's talk more about some real examples, some practical examples of how SMBs have successfully utilized global logistics networks like DP worlds and others to expand their market reach internationally and take advantage of that growth, those massive growth opportunities.

Glenn, your thoughts there?

Yeah, I'll give just two quick examples of customers that I've had the opportunity to work with and understand some of their challenges.

One is it kind of lends to what Terry was just talking about with sustainability, companies like ours are able to take some of those challenges around sustainability and turn it into how can we help you?

So one example of the high tech customer that we have, we went to an automated boxing machine in the past.

And history, when you would take multiple items and put them into an overpack box, there was always space.

You could never find the right size over pack that would be filled specifically for that order.

Well, this new technology and investing in companies and working with companies like ours, we have capabilities to build the box to the size of the shipment in the ore.

It was a great sustainability, but it also was a cost savings on shipment because you had, you didn't have the extra tube inside of those trucks.

So it's kind of a win win opportunity.

And that's how we've helped some of our customers meet really two targets that are very critical to them and important on their priorities.

The second is scalability.

I know I said that a few times, but we have examples of customers who started out with us in one facility.

That one facility can meet all of their distribution needs because they were small.

As they've grown, the center of gravity of where those shipments go and how their customer base moves as they get larger, we've been able to provide solutions for multi client facilities so they can have inventory, storage and two or more locations.

And even some have grown to the global side of that to where if you partner with the right companies, they can give you options.

And we've been able to successfully find that those options and solutions for customers.

Now they can grow and they're not limited by how they handle their logistics because we've been able to provide solutions for them, especially around seasonality of products.

And you know, the holiday times when people are ordering hundreds and thousands of orders.

Hopefully for those size businesses, we have that scalability.

Love it.

I loved your first point.

Better boxes.

Goodness gracious.

We're entering the season where we're going to see lots of that.

And as we all see, it's gotten better.

But there's so many opportunities to ship smarter and with less waste.

And of course, I love your second point about breaking through constraints kind of in a general sense.

Terry, what would you add any other examples?

And I know you've got a couple dozen, I bet.

Yeah, well, let me focus just on e commerce, I think, for the sake of brevity.

E commerce, I think, is it's transformed how SMBs can access domestic markets by importing from overseas, or access international markets by exporting.

And market access, I think is really a key to global success.

That's a product that DP world has.

And if you allow me to just digress a little bit, what we do is reinvest in areas of the world such as Africa, where distribution is very, very tough and very, very complex.

And we have a product designed specially at SMBs that will allow access into some of these more complicated markets.

So I think with a combination of e commerce and products such as market access that we're driving, I really think it is allowing fantastic growth.

I'm glad you brought up Africa and all the many countries and regions that make up an incredible vibrant markets.

We have a series here, supply chain leadership across Africa, and it is amazing what they are doing from a supply chain perspective, from drones to building infrastructure.

Now they're investing in manufacturing centers so they can actually manufacture it in so many countries across Africa instead of shipping out the raw materials like has happened over the course of history.

So it is amazing.

So many great stories to be told.

Appreciate you mentioning that, Terry.

Hey, Kim.

They shared a couple of interesting stories and anecdotes in terms of how companies are adapting and overcoming, especially from a logistics standpoint.

Your thoughts there?

Yeah, I think any opportunity, we're going to talk a little bit like how to pick your carrier and how to a strong partner.

But any small medium company who's looking to do any sort of international expansion needs to really rely on their partners or international logistics partners to help them through that process.

So you know that a lot of the work that DP world is doing where they're focusing on these less serviced areas, I don't want to call them logistics deserts, but a little bit they are logistics deserts.

And trying to help develop these emerging markets is really key.

And that presents a lot of great opportunity for small mediums in those emerging countries, but also countries and people who are looking to do business within those companies, those countries.

Excellent, Kim.

And that's a perfect segue because one of the last things we're going to make sure folks know how to connect with Glenn and Terry.

We've got a resource that will help a lot of folks out there kind of get a better grasp of some of the cool things they're doing at DP world, especially from a contract logistics standpoint.

So stay tuned for that.

But your segue there, Kim, selection, and this has come up a couple of times, I think no less than four times in our conversation, the importance of selecting the right partners, whether you're in a logistics desert, as Kim mentioned, or if you're a in a market where you've got options everywhere you look.

So I'm going to ask, starting with you, Glenn, what are some of the key factors that SMB should consider when choosing not just a logistics partner, but the right one that's going to ensure that the solutions are scalable and tailored to what they need customized?

Glenn, your thoughts?

Yeah, Scott.

I think well, before just selecting, because I think that's a key item, but I think also looking at what information and data you have about your business, do you have the inventory turns, do you have the velocity, do you have the dimms?

We call them the dimms, which is the size and weight of the products that you're shipping.

All of that is really critical to any provider to know how to best solution and how to best cost and price, and become creative with what you do and what your needs are.

But I think when they're selecting a provider, I think what's very critical, and I may steal some of my colleagues information there, but I think it's important that whoever you select, can you collaborate with, can you have open and transparent conversations about what your challenges are, what your needs are, what your cost is, and what you're trying to achieve.

So the more collaboration, if you can find someone that wants to sit down, and it's not just a pricing exercise or how much can I save in my cost, how quickly can we work together to meet some of these, I'll say aligned objectives.

Again, I don't think there's a lot of original ideas sometimes, but I'll steal one from Mister Stephen Covey.

Win win mentalities.

Look for partners who have win win mentalities where both can be successful in accomplishing the needs of the supply chain and the challenges and the delivery.

And both are equally committed to the end customer and servicing that customer.

And then finally, sharing of knowledge and transparency, I think is very important.

How do both sides do it?

Because we get bids sometimes, or information to work with the customer and they hold back.

They don't share everything with us.

And then that makes us make a lot of assumptions.

So if you can find partners who really are wanting to share, collaborate and be transparent, I think those are the best partners and we find those are the best relationships to where we can create win win solutions.

Glenn, man, you shared.

I don't care if they're old or new.

That was a great list.

And one of my favorites is it's just not, in my view, it's not good enough just to get results.

There's got to be a great partnership that's not friction field, and that, that's one of the things that we certainly measure here.

Uh, Terry, what would you add to that?

And oh, by the way, I love that you backed it up too.

We got a first know that business and what our needs are before we even move into selection.

Tara, your thoughts there?

Yeah, I think when providing, when selecting a partner, I call us partners rather than providers.

I think you need to look for a company that has end to end capabilities, someone that can support all aspects of your supply chain.

And as Kimberly said, it starts at the purchase order level, and it starts at the very beginning of the transaction and not at the very end.

So having someone that can focus from purchase order management, to warehouse housing, to final mile and inventory management, etcetera, I think is key.

The second thing is, I would say source value over price.

Okay.

Cost is obviously a key component.

I think, as Glenn said, up to 22% of the landed cost.

But what is price and what is value?

And determine someone that in this disruptive world can overcome obstacles and that can problem solve on your behalf.

And then finally, I think building trust.

Glenn mentioned collaboration.

I think it's very, very similar to building trust.

But for me, trust is critical.

Choose a partner that has a history of delivering on chromosies.

Yeah, well said.

I'm so glad you you called out the trust factor, Ken.

We talked about that a lot.

And I also like what Terry mentioned there.

I'm acquainted aks, as Kimberly said, a new acronym here at Supply chain.

Now, Kim, I'm still get your key takeaway in just a minute.

But a quick thought there on not just selection, but kind of knowing your business, how to enter selection, and how to frame up the partnerships that you build.

Couple of points and leaning on Glenn and Terry, what they kind of said, one, you need to know, what problem are you trying to solve, right?

What are the key components that you need to see or manage and make sure that they have that.

So that's a big part, is knowing what you need.

And you don't need to know the software, right.

You just need to know what you need.

Like I need x, right.

Start there.

And then there is so much software, supply chain management software available out there for all the platforms, for all the marketplaces, for all the integrations.

Find software that actually has what you need working in the environment today.

Do not get, do not fall into that.

We'll put it on our roadmap, or we have a customer driven roadmap.

These are our terms that you will hear when you're looking at supply chain.

First of all, you should always have a customer driven roadmap.

So that just sort of table stakes.

Like, if you're just building software because you feel like it, then why bother?

But if you're a small medium and you're getting intimidated out there, and you're hearing people say, oh, we'll build it for you, or it's coming and it's key to your business.

Go talk to another software provider because I guarantee you it's out there.

Excellent point.

Great advice, Kim.

Gosh, the three of y'all, good stuff here today.

And I should also call out what Terry mentioned about prioritizing value over price.

Yes, that's a great advice there.

All right, folks, I hate that we're winding down our conversation with Glenn and Terry and Kimberly here today.

It's been a good one.

Let's make sure folks don't connect with Glenn and Terry.

Glenn, starting with you, how can folks connect with the one and only Glenn Clark?

Well, I'm on the LinkedIn of the world.

That's probably the best way of contacting.

And you know, I love networking with people because there are a lot of questions out there.

So that's one way of, probably the best way of finding.

Wonderful, wonderful.

It's kind of like I mess around with the kids and say, the Facebook or the twitters from time to time.

The LinkedIn, I love getting the eye rolls.

So good stuff.

I'm Glenn Clark.

Certainly on LinkedIn.

Terry, same question.

How can folks track you down?

Yeah, I've got a pretty unique name.

I'm on LinkedIn.

It's not very difficult to track me down.

And of course, the DP World website, if that doesn't work for you, please.

As Glenn said, it's a people's business, it's a network business.

Love to hear from you.

Well, I appreciate that.

One more quick resource from Glenn, Terry and the DP world team.

Hey, folks, if you're in the market for contract logistics services, you can learn much more about all that DP world offers.

Services, locations, industry, served benefits.

It's a very important one and a whole bunch more.

Okay, Kim, we covered a lot of ground very intentionally here today.

Ton of expertise.

I wish we had a couple more hours, but maybe next time.

What is one of the key takeaways that came out of this conversation that you would challenge our audience to keep front and center?

Small medium businesses are growing.

We know this.

They're going to continue to grow.

We expect the small mediums to double again in six years if they have already due to marketplace business.

And so if you are a small business, small medium business out there, there are tons of solutions out there.

Companies like DP World are out there fighting for you and trying to give you the competitive edge so that you can compete with the big guys.

So keep looking.

There are solutions out there for you.

Well said.

And looking new in exciting ways.

Make no assumptions.

Excellent advice.

There Kimberly, as we wrap here today, I definitely encourage you to connect with Glenn Cart and Terry Donahoe with DP World.

Check out what they do.

Hey, connect and follow Kimberly Reuter wherever you find her on social.

She's everywhere.

And she'll tell you more about that exciting trip to Bangkok.

Glenn Clark, great to have you here today.

Thanks for being here.

Thank you, Scott.

Thank you, Kimberly.

Safe travels back to the hometown.

And Terry Donahoe, thank you for what you do.

I appreciate your passion, especially for that give forward that you and the DP world team is investing in.

Thanks for being here today.

Terry Donhot, it's been a pleasure and time has flown by, so it's been a real pleasure.

And thank you again for the opportunity.

Oh, it always does.

It always does.

Kimberly Reuter, always a pleasure.

Thanks for being here.

Thank you.

You bet.

You bet.

Great conversation.

But, folks, now you got homework because Kim, Glenn, and Terry, man, I've got about seven pages of notes here today.

Plenty of actionable insights.

Your homework is you gotta take just at least one, at least one of the great tips they shared here today.

Put it in action because you know what?

Your team's ready to do business like never before.

Your customers are demanding it, your team, your suppliers, your whole ecosystem.

And it's all about deeds, not work.

So with all that said on behalf of the entire team here at supply chain now, Scott Luden, challenging you do good.

Give forward, be the change that's needed.

And we'll see you next time.

Right back here at Supply chain now.

Thanks, everybody.

Thank you.

Thanks for being a part of our supply chain now community.

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