Supply chain experts across different industries vary in the ways they use key performance indicators (KPIs) to track and leverage their transportation data, according to a study from transportation service provider RXO.
The report profiles the uses of KPIs in six industry verticals: automotive, consumer packaged goods, food and beverage, healthcare, manufacturing, and retail shippers. According to RXO, those findings can help shipping professionals reevaluate and optimize their own KPIs.
“Understanding how the entire freight market approaches KPIs is an essential foundation, but different industries can have slightly different norms and requirements,” Ben Steffes, vice president of solutions and strategy at RXO, said in a release. “Shippers want to know how their direct industry peers are setting and managing their KPI benchmarks. Now, with data from hundreds of companies, they can see exactly where other shippers in their vertical are setting the standard.”
Findings from the report, called “Logistics KPI Benchmarks, By Industry,” include these industry-specific breakdowns:
- Food and beverage shippers are the biggest believers in KPIs — A large majority of shippers believe KPIs are an essential part of logistics management, but at 96% of respondents, food and beverage shippers were the biggest believers.
- Healthcare shippers are the most advanced at KPI tracking — When asked to rate their ability at tracking supply chain metrics, healthcare was the most likely to rate themselves as advanced (58% of respondents, which was 14% ahead of the average).
- Retail and Healthcare shippers are the most likely to use AI — 74% of healthcare shippers and 73% of retail shippers stated that they’re using AI in their logistics operations, the highest reported usage.
- Automotive and CPG shippers are getting tougher on their carriers — 72% of automotive and 69% of consumer packaged goods (CPG) respondents said they’ve raised their carrier KPI standards in response to increasing consumer expectations, making them the only two industries above the average (60%).
- Manufacturers are the most demanding — With an average of 39% of respondents whose expectations exceeded industry standards across core logistics KPIs (on-time pick up, on-time delivery, primary tender acceptance, shipment lead time, payment terms, and demand forecasting accuracy), manufacturers were the most demanding industry.
“Managing supply chain data is incredibly important for shippers, regardless of industry. Modern logistics professionals can check their strategies against these profiles as they determine what technologies to use, which metrics to track, where to set benchmarks, and how to leverage data to drive efficiency,” Steffes said.
