Freight to the Point: Recent Episodes
Zencargo
Welcome to Freight to the Point, the podcast show created by Zencargo. Tune in every week as we’ll be exploring a wide range of topics from sustainability to technology from different perspectives. We will be inviting leading supply chain experts to talk about their origins, experiences, how they have made ship happen and what they think is the key to disrupting the traditional supply chain industry.
This month, Anne Sophie Fribourg, Zencargo's VP of Global Ocean Freight and Catia Fernandes, Zencargo's Head of Trade Asia and IPAK - Europe and Intra-Europe, hosted a webinar on ‘Rates: Our insights after Chinese New Year”.
In the webinar they explored:
- Their observations post Chinese New Year
- How shippers should approach contract negotiations and tender strategies
- Predictions on the ocean market for the next few months of 2024
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Red Sea Disruption Q&A: What Shippers Are Asking
Everything Shippers Need to Know About Rates in 2024
How should shippers collaborate with their freight forwarders?
“Shippers need to work in a partnership mode rather than a purchase mode with their freight forwarder. The main failure is that shippers are looking into transportation as a purchase service.”
In the latest episode of Freight to the Point, we’ve featured Okyay Oztugran, VP of Supply Chain Europe at Spreetail. Spreetail is an e-commerce company specialising in selling a wide range of products through various online platforms, including their own website as well as marketplaces like Amazon and eBay.
Okyay joins Lucie Phillips, Zencargo’s Chief Operations Officer, to talk about the world of e-commerce supply chains and how to create resilient supply chain strategies to work towards business goals.
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All together now: Coordinating for success in modern supply chains
How digital freight forwarding is shaping the future of retail success
In the latest episode of Freight to the Point, we’ve featured our most recent webinar, recorded on 10th January on the Red Sea Crisis. Carriers have suspended vessels from passing through the Bab al-Mandab strait after the recent attacks by the Houthis which has had implications for the shipping industry.
Our experts, Anne-Sophie Fribourg, VP of Ocean and Catia Fernandes, Head of Trade Asia and IPAK - Europe and Intra-Europe, share their insights on the repercussions of the crisis on:
- Rates
- Transit times
- Equipment
- Capacity
Discover how shippers should work with their freight forwarders and adapt their strategies to mitigate risks in their supply chain. From rate negotiations to pushing shipments back to a later date, stay informed on the latest developments by listening to this insightful episode.
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Watch the full webinar: https://content.zencargo.com/redsea-crisis-video
In the most recent instalment of Freight to the Point, Lucie Phillips, Zencargo's Chief Operations Officer, engages in a discussion with Nicolas Vandeput, the CEO and Founder of SupChains, a company which specialises in demand forecasting and inventory optimisation. In this conversation, they delve into the significance of demand forecasting in supply chains and the potential it holds when combined with technology and machine learning.
They explore:
- The starting steps for any company who is looking at demand forecasting
- The KPIs that need to be put in place when it comes to forecasting
- What role technology will play in evolving demand forecasting.
Nicolas Vandeput
Nicolas Vandeput is a supply chain data scientist specialising in demand forecasting and inventory optimisation. He founded his consultancy company, SupChains, in 2016; and SKU Science, an online platform for supply chain forecasting, in 2018. He enjoys discussing new models and how to apply them to business reality. Passionate about education, Nicolas is both an avid learner and teaches at universities. Since 2020, he has been teaching demand forecasting and inventory optimization to master students in CentraleSupelec, Paris, France. He published three books: Data Science for Supply Chain Forecasting in 2018 (second edition in 2021), Inventory Optimization: Models and Simulations in 2020, and Demand Forecasting Best Practices in 2023.
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Episode 47: How should businesses approach inventory management?
De-risking inventory in an uncertain market
As we prepare for the year ahead, it's crucial to consider the three pillars that will shape the freight industry in 2024: competitiveness in rates, quality of service, and sustainability.
In our most recent episode of Freight to the Point, we’ve featured our most recent webinar, “Rates: What’s next for 2024?” which explores rate strategies going into 2024.
Zencargo experts Anne-Sophie Fribourg, VP of Ocean, and Catia Fernandes, Head of Asia-Europe Trade Lanes, explore:
- The main trends and challenges for customers in 2024
- How BCOs are approaching tenders in the market
- Our predictions for the market in the run up to Chinese New Year
- Recommended strategies on how customers can prepare themselves
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Episode 62: Mastering tender strategies
Heard of a diversified rates strategy? Here’s how to build one
To make the right changes in an organisation, it's crucial to attract the right talent, and diversity plays a significant role in achieving this.
Diverse teams bring together people with different backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives, which leads to innovation, creativity, and better decision-making.
Tune into the latest Freight to the Point episode as we’ve featured a Navigate session with Ilhan Hartigan, People Director at Zencargo, Sophie Swift, Head of Delivery at MATCHES and Lucy Harding, Partner and Global Head of Practice, Procurement and Supply Chain at Odgers Berndtson to discuss the opportunities and challenges of diversity in the supply chain industry.
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Episode 68: How can we inspire the next generation of supply chain leaders?
What will it take to bridge the supply chain talent gap?
What steps can we take to cultivate the next generation of supply chain leaders?
“So it's about positioning the sector as one that is evolving, but that you can evolve with it”
In this week’s episode of Freight to the Point, Bethany Windsor, Interim Director of Stakeholder Engagement and Relationship Management at the CILT, joins Alex Hersham, CEO and Co-Founder at Zencargo to uncover how to attract talent for modern supply chains.
Together they explore:
- How the role of supply chain management has evolved
- The challenges the industry faces with recruitment
- How to make supply chain more attractive for new talent
- The training resources that are available to grow careers in supply chain
Bethany Windsor
Bethany Windsor is Interim Director of Stakeholder Engagement and Relationship Management at CILT(UK). Bethany’s role centres around promoting the profession to underrepresented groups and securing the next generation of supply chain professionals through a wide range of programmes, including Generation Logistics. Her work with Women in Logistics won Bethany the 2015 Multimodal “Woman of the Year” award, followed by recognition as a finalist in the Everywoman in Logistics and Transport awards (2018) and securing the Talent in Logistics awards (2019), both for “Industry Champion”. As a former teacher, inspiring the next generation to choose the logistics sector is a personal and professional passion.
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Working around labour shortages in supply chain
Episode 4: How to become a supply chain leader
“And it's like a marriage, it takes some effort to maintain the relationship. It's about compromise and trust.”
As the business landscape is constantly evolving, companies are increasingly recognising the need to build resilient supply chains to withstand disruptions.
Alex Hersham, Zencargo’s CEO and Co-Founder is joined by Frederic Gomer, Managing Partner of B2G Consulting, to talk about how collaborative relationships in supply chains can help drive supply chain resilience.
Together, they discuss:
- Defining resilience in modern business
- How to establish collaborative relationships in the supply chain
- Technology’s role in improving collaboration
Frederic Gomer
With an impressive portfolio spanning over two decades , Frederic has successfully assisted numerous industrial organisations in overcoming crisis situations. His past engagements include turnarounds, ramp-ups and restructuring powerhouses names like Schindler, Smiths, and Faurecia, showcasing his adeptness at navigating high-stake environments.
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Beyond rates: Why it’s time for the value of freight forwarders to evolve
How digital freight forwarding is shaping the future of retail success
“If we focus on the logistics sector or the wider transportation sector, it's actually one of the highest emitting sectors on the planet.”
In the latest episode of Freight to the Point, Alex Hersham is joined by David de Picciotto, CEO and Co-founder of Pledge. During the episode, we delved into the crucial topic of sustainability regulations that businesses must stay informed about, and explored effective strategies for examining and enhancing their supply chain practices to ensure compliance.
Together they explore:
- The motivations for the creation of regulations
- Regulations businesses need to look out for
- The consequences of being non-compliant with the regulations.
David de Picciotto
David is the Co-founder & CEO of Pledge, a climate software company helping decarbonise the logistics supply chain through its accredited and integrated platform. Founded in 2021 in the UK, Pledge is backed by institutional investors including Zinal Growth, Lowercarbon Capital and Visionaries Club.
Before Pledge, David worked for Partners Group, a global private equity firm, where he focused on growth equity investments and previously led International Expansion at Revolut, the UK FinTech. David is also the co-founder of media start-up iRewind, where he exited in 2016.
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Read about Zencargo and Pledge’s partnership
Episode 65: Driving change from the top: Getting C-Suite support for sustainability
Sustainability is a critical aspect of modern supply chain management, but achieving sustainable goals can be challenging. This is why it's more important than ever to get the C-Suite involved.
By engaging the C-Suite in sustainability initiatives, it ensures that sustainability is integrated into the organisation's strategy and culture, driving stakeholders across the supply chain towards more sustainable practices.
But how do you successfully engage the C-Suite in sustainability efforts?
Listen to our latest episode on Freight to the Point as Jasmine Bosenick, Head of GTM at Zencargo and David de Picciotto, CEO and Co-Founder at Pledge give their insights on how to create a compelling business case for sustainability to the C-Suite.
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Read about Zencargo and Pledge’s partnership
Episode 37: Saving the planet, smarter
“Digitalisation gives a retailer a platform to see their shipments from end-to-end, which drives a whole heap of benefits from data, but also to give them an ease of access to data and to shipment locations.”
In our latest episode of Freight to the Point, Greg Tress, Logistics Operations Manager at MATCHES joins Alex Hersham, CEO and Co-founder at Zencargo on Freight to the Point to discuss how retailers can unlock supply chain success with digital freight forwarding.
Together they explore:
- The requirements retailers should look for in a digital freight forwarder.
- How to leverage data from partners to optimise the supply chain.
- The importance of partnerships and collaboration in the supply chain.
Greg Tress
As the Logistics Operations Manager at Matches, Greg oversees all inbound freight activities, manages compliance operations related to CFSP/AEO Authorisations, and handles supplier management within the supply chain. With a tenure exceeding 2 years at Matches, Greg has a background of working in the retail freight environment.
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Measuring a freight forwarder’s value
Episode 14: The value of strategic partnerships with Gareth Davies
As ChatGPT and other AI language models made significant progress this year, it has prompted all industries, including the supply chain, to think about how AI can drive efficiency.
In this podcast episode, Alex Hersham, Co-founder and CEO at Zencargo and Tamir Strauss, Chief Product and Technology Officer at Zencargo discuss the impact of AI on businesses and the supply chain. Tamir, who boasts an extensive career in the science and tech space, shares his insights on existing AI technologies that have been in use for a long time, such as OCR and robotic process automation.
They explore:
- How AI is being adopted by businesses to drive operational efficiency.
- How AI can revolutionise supply chain decision-making, especially in demand forecasting, inventory management, and optimising warehouse intake.
- How AI capabilities will evolve to help companies stay competitive and make data- driven decisions.
Tamir Strauss
Tamir has over 25 years of experience in product and tech, working with companies such as Huma and Snatch before joining Zencargo. Driven by analytical problem solving, strategic thinking and innovating Tamir’s goals focus on improving business processes.
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Episode 3: Tamir Strauss and Priscilla Parrish on how to build a smarter supply chain
Check out Zencargo’s platform
For Episode 62 of Freight to the Point, we’ve featured a great session from our webinar, ‘Mastering tender strategies: How to negotiate the best deals in shipping’ with Anne-Sophie Fribourg and Catia Fernandes from Zencargo.
Together they explore market trends, how shippers can negotiate the best deals in shipping and what to look for in a partner that can help you during negotiations.
They cover:
- Market uncertainty in 3 areas
- Whether contracting is the right choice
- How to mitigate risk in contract negotiations
- What to look for in a partner during tendering
Resources
Measuring a freight forwarder's value
Midyear Review: Four Key Trends That Will Define Supply Chains In H2
Catia Fernandes
Catia Fernandes is the Head of Ocean Trade Lanes at Zencargo. Since starting at Maersk in 2005, Catia has worked in the supply chain space for over 15 years. At Zencargo, Catia is part of the pricing and procurement team, who develop relationships with carriers to help customers find the best rates and space for their shipments.
Anne-Sophie Fribourg
Anne-Sophie has over 20 years of experience in the freight forwarding industry, having worked in Singapore, the Middle East region and France for a French freight forwarder. At Zencargo, Anne-Sophie leads the ocean team to obtain the best rates and space and build supply chain resilience for our customers.
Join us for an exciting new episode of our Navigate series, fresh from our most recent session held just last week, “A balancing act: Is restocking on the horizon?”.
Tune into industry experts Sam Greenhalgh, Chief Revenue Officer at Zencargo, Sigrún Gunnhildardóttir, Chief Product Officer at AGR and Okyay Oztugran, VP Supply Chain Europe as they explore when the potential restocking period will happen and how businesses need to remain agile with inventory management solutions.
They cover:
- Why businesses need inventory management solutions
- How business can adapt their strategies against volatile demand
- The tools available to help
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Navigate June 2023
Episode 26: Balancing demand and supply with Finnur Bragason
In Episode 60 of Freight to the Point, we invited Jacob Nedergaard, CEO and Co-Founder of Qarma, which provides digital tools to help companies stay on top of quality and compliance in their supply chain.
In this episode, Alex Hersham, CEO at Zencargo and Jacob delve into:
- Why quality is so important in the supply chain
- How technology can enable transparency in the supply chain
- The benefits of a bottom-up approach to drive supply chain optimisation
Jacob Nedergaard
Jacob is the CEO and Co-founder of Qarma. Qarma provides a suite of easy-to-use digital tools to help companies stay on top of quality and compliance across their supply chain. Qarma works with some of the global leading brands, retailers, and manufacturers. Jacob is driven by solving everyday problems, simplifying processes while using data to demonstrate and drive real impact. He is a big advocate of contextualising data and believes that stakeholders need to understand their own data sources and demonstrate due diligence deep in their supply chains.
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Qarma
Partners of Zencargo
Join us for an exciting new episode of our Navigate series, fresh from our most recent session held just last week, “The future of rates: Should you lock in long term?”.
Tune into industry experts Niels Madsen and Anne-Sophie as they delve into the dynamic landscape of the ocean market, uncovering key insights on topics ranging from schedule reliability to GRIs (General Rate Increases).
They cover:
- Whether an increase in capacity will affect the market
- The future of alliances amongst carriers
- What shippers need to do to remain competitive on the rate market.
Niels MadsenNiels has been working in the container transportation industry for almost 30 years, dispersed amongst almost all aspects of the transport solution, including logistics,intermodal, finance and sales, but primarily working on strategic route planning and operations. Niels began his career at Maersk Line in 1992 before joining Sea Intelligence in January 2021, as Vice President of Product and Network.
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Navigate June 2023
What does the future hold for schedule reliability?
Want to find out about our prediction for rate trends over the next couple of months?
Then don’t miss out on the latest episode of Freight to the Point as Anne-Sophie Fribourg, VP of Ocean at Zencargo and Richard Fattal, Chief Commercial Officer and Co-Founder at Zencargo delve into the most recent updates on the ocean market.
They talk about:
- The developing situation in the Panama Canal
- Contract negotiations between ILWU and PMA
- Top rate market tips for shippers
Anne-Sophie Fribourg
Anne-Sophie has over 20 years of experience in the freight forwarding industry, having worked in Singapore, the Middle East region and France for a French freight forwarder. At Zencargo, Anne-Sophie leads the ocean team to obtain the best rates and space and build supply chain resilience for our customers.
Richard Fattal
Richard Fattal is Co-Founder and Chief Commercial Officer of Zencargo, the digital freight forwarder enabling organisations to make smarter decisions through real-time data of their supply chain. Based in London, Zencargo helps customers manage their supply chain such as Swoon Furniture and Ribble Cycles.
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May Ocean Update
Rates strategy consultation
How has schedule reliability improved over the past year? What will happen to the market after the 2M split?
These are some of the questions we’ve answered in our most recent episode of Freight to the Point.
In this episode, we take a deep dive into the current state of the ocean market and the challenges faced by the supply chain industry. As we reach the halfway point of the year, our guest, Catia Fernandes, Head of Ocean Trade Lanes at Zencargo, shares her insights and expertise.
We discuss:
- the evolving nature of the market
- blank sailings
- industrial action
- the dilemma of long-term rate locking
Catia provides valuable perspectives and observations, shedding light on what we can learn from the ocean market in 2023 so far. Join us for this insightful conversation with an industry expert.
Catia Fernandes
Catia Fernandes is the Head of Ocean Trade Lanes at Zencargo. Since starting at Maersk in 2005, Catia has worked in the supply chain space for over 15 years. At Zencargo, Catia is part of the pricing and procurement team, who develop relationships with carriers to help customers find the best rates and space for their shipments.
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How can shippers plan around schedule reliability?
“It all starts with creating a win-win scenario where you're aligned for a mutually beneficial outcome.”
This week we’re bringing you some insights on the road industry as Ahmed El-Alfy is joined by Michael Starr, Overland Commercial Director at Zencargo.
Together they explore:
- How road freight has changed since before the pandemic
- The main challenges for shippers
- How shippers and carriers come together to build more value-driven relationships
Michael Starr
Michael Starr, Zencargo's Overland Commercial Director, brings over 15 years of expertise in logistics, freight forwarding, and SaaS across America, Australia, and Europe.
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Episode 50: Coping with labour shortages in 2023
Zencargo’s freight forwarding solutions
“For us, when we talk about regeneration and regenerative impact, sustainability is no longer enough. And that's truly at the heart of what we believe as an organisation.”
Tune into our latest episode of Freight to the Point as we’ve featured another Navigate session from February with Charlotte Pumford from Vivobarefoot on ‘Don’t forget about sustainability. It’s not going away.’
Together we explore:
Using B-Corp as a framework to implement sustainable practices
- The importance of data and how to set a baseline for GHG emissions
- How businesses can move from a sustainable business to a regenerative business
Charlotte Pumford
Charlotte has almost 10 years of experience working in sustainability across the textile and footwear sector, spanning global FTSE 100 organisations, high-growth SME’s, local government and the management of a small-scale start-up when she founded her own brand in 2013.
For the past 3.5 years Charlotte has been working at Vivobarefoot, a UK-based natural health brand making barefoot footwear and experiences that bring people closer to nature. Charlotte heads up their Regeneration team, managing their journey towards becoming a truly regenerative business, the strategy that delivers on that vision.This is also accompanied by their B Corp Certification and value chain environmental impact programme. Recognised by Edie in 2020 as one of the UK’s 30 under 30 sustainability leaders, Charlotte is a passionate advocate for the protection of our natural world. She believes businesses can be a force for change, identifying the regenerative solutions we need to address global challenges.
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Episode 9: Sustainability in the supply chain with David de Picciotto
Register for Navigate again
Want to find out about our prediction for rate trends over the next couple of months?
Then don’t miss out on the latest episode of Freight to the Point as Anne-Sophie Fribourg, VP of Ocean at Zencargo and Richard Fattal, Chief Commercial Officer and Co-Founder at Zencargo delve into the most recent updates on the ocean market.
They talk about:
- The development of the carrier industry over the past couple of months
- The rate increases on the Trans Pacific trade earlier this month
- Predictions for rate trends in June and July
Anne-Sophie Fribourg
Anne-Sophie has over 20 years of experience in the freight forwarding industry, having worked in Singapore, the Middle East region and France for a French freight forwarder. At Zencargo, Anne-Sophie leads the ocean team to obtain the best rates and space and build supply chain resilience for our customers.
Richard Fattal
Richard Fattal is Co-Founder and Chief Commercial Officer of Zencargo, the digital freight forwarder enabling organisations to make smarter decisions through real-time data of their supply chain. Based in London, Zencargo helps customers manage their supply chain such as Swoon Furniture and Ribble Cycles.
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April’s Ocean Update
Rates strategy consultation
Schedule reliability has been a major talking point in the supply chain as shippers have struggled with blank sailings and schedule changes over the past few years.
For this episode of Freight to the Point, we’ve invited Niels Madsen, VP of Product and Operations at Sea Intelligence, to talk about the operational challenges shippers have faced due to schedule reliability.
Alongside Richard Fattal, they talk about:
- The factors that will affect reliability in 2023 and beyond
- The future of carrier strategies
- Alliance and carrier strategy in the future
Niels Madsen
Niels has been working in the container transportation industry for almost 30 years, dispersed amongst almost all aspects of the transport solution, including logistics, intermodal, finance and sales, but primarily working on strategic route planning and operations. Niels began his career in Maersk Line in 1992 before joining Sea Intelligence in January 2021 and is now currently the VP of Product and Operations.
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What can economic indicators tell us about what’s next for supply chains?
Why it's time to take a long view of rates
“Now is a good time to engage in the conversation. Rates are at lower historical levels and it's a good time to be thinking in terms of contracting.”
Long term or short term?
That’s the question we’ve been hearing a lot around the rate market. Rates appear to be bottoming out so is now the time for shippers to finally lock in long term contracts?
That’s what Richard Fattal, CCO and Co-Founder at Zencargo and Patrik Berglund, CEO and Co-Founder at Xeneta talk about in the latest episode of Freight to the Point.
They discuss:
- Rate trends on specific trade lanes
- Whether shippers should be locking in long term rates
- Will demand pick up in the later half of the year?
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Episode 15: Identifying reliable data in the supply chain with Peter Sand
Book your 1:1 rates consultation
Patrik Berglund
Patrik Berglund is the CEO and Co-Founder of Oslo-based Xeneta, the leading ocean and air freight rate benchmarking and market analytics platform transforming the shipping and logistics industry with data analytics. Berglund, a logistics and tech-enthusiast, possesses a true passion for modernising business processes related to logistics procurement and the supply chain. He has in-depth logistics and transportation experience from several years at Kuehne + Nagel in various roles and also as Co-Founder of Nordilog, a logistics consultancy firm. Founded in 2012, Berglund has grown Xeneta to be the top worldwide source comparing shipping rates against the market average, market highs and lows, ultimately transforming companies’ logistics procurement with actionable data intelligence. Berglund was the 2016 recipient of the prestigious Lloyd's List Next Generation in Shipping award.
“Shippers are now shifting their focus from transactional price focused relationships and are more so looking for long term freight forwarding partners that align with their strategic business objectives”
Disruptions have become the norm and shippers are no longer seeing the value of having a freight forwarder that just moves goods from A to B.
They want a partner that improves efficiencies in their supply chain, provides solutions and will go above and beyond the day-to-day operations.
Tune into the latest episode of Freight to the Point as James Fry, Director of Solutions at Zencargo, is joined by Taylor Burge-Paxon, Senior Customer Success Manager at Zencargo to talk about the benefits of a true partnership with a digital freight forwarder.
They talk about:
- The risks of a transactional relationship
- The factors driving the change in relationship between shipper and freight forwarder
- How can shippers identify what a great freight forwarder looks like
James Fry
James is Zencargo’s Director of Solutions and has worked in supply chain for over 10 years. James leads a team of experts who work with Zencargo customers to identify areas of opportunity and build bespoke solutions to deliver value. James and his team focus on optimising costs and ultimately driving supply chain performance for customers.
Taylor Burge Paxon
Taylor Burge-Paxon is a Senior Customer Success Manager at Zencargo and works with brands in the retail sector to maximise supply chain opportunities. Prior to Zencargo, Taylor also worked for CH Robinson, a multimodal transportation services and third-party logistics company managing high growth accounts especially in the food and beverage sector.
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Measuring a freight forwarder's value
What should shippers expect from a modern freight forwarding service?
“You can never completely avoid it. There will always be supply chain disruptions.”
Even though China has lifted its zero-Covid policy which had a huge impact on labour shortages in the supply chain, it’s not over yet.
With demonstrations in France and port disruption in Europe and the US, labour shortages are still impacting the supply chain industry.
So how do you navigate it?
Join Ahmed El-Alfy, Strategic Account Manager at Zencargo and Markus Klinge Knudson, Operations Manager at Zencargo as they talk about the ongoing labour shortages that are affecting our supply chains.
They discuss:
- How shippers had to navigate around port strikes such as Felixstowe.
- The impacts labour shortages have on shippers.
- How shippers should be working with their freight forwarding partners to build contingency plans.
Ahmed El-Alfy (Alfy)
With nearly 20 years of experience in the supply chain industry, Alfy has an extensive background in supply chain, transportation management, change management and logistics. Alfy is dedicated to working with customers to ensure supply chains are optimised to create a competitive advantage for their businesses.
Markus Klinge
Markus is an Operations Manager at Zencargo and has been in the supply chain industry for nearly 10 years. Markus manages Zencargo's global freight service delivery teams and leads on global account implementations to ensure that goods are shipped efficiently around the world.
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Never-ending disruption: how should you tackle it?
Lockdowns in China: questions to ask yourself to prepare for supply chain disruption
Is rate erosion easing? Are shippers leaning on the spot market too much?
This is what we explore in our latest Ocean Update episode as Lucie Phillips and Richard Fattal talk about major events that have happened in the ocean market over the last month.
They discuss:
- Whether rates are bottoming out
- More updates from the 2M sailing schedules
- Industrial action across Europe.
Lucie Phillips
Lucie is an integral part of the Zencargo team, helping with service delivery and setting up Zencargo’s ops team to scale with the right technology and platform. Lucie is Zencargo’s Chief Operations Officer, offering teams key insights to help make ship happen every day.
Richard Fattal
Richard Fattal is Co-Founder and Chief Commercial Officer of Zencargo, the digital freight forwarder enabling organisations to make smarter decisions through real-time data of their supply chain. Based in London, Zencargo helps customers manage their supply chain such as Swoon Furniture and Ribble Cycles.
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March’s Ocean Update
Rates strategy consultation
Are you still using manual processes and outdated systems to manage your supply chain?
If so, why?
Why not make the leap and invest in technologies and services that can help your supply chain work towards your business goals?
This is what we explore in this week’s episode of Freight to the Point as we’ve featured another Navigate session. In this episode, Caroline Wainwright, Head of Strategic Accounts at Zencargo is joined by Taylor Burge-Paxon, Senior Customer Success Manager at Zencargo and Priscilla Parrish, Head of Logistics at Velocity Commerce and Majority Audio.
In this episode, they discuss:
- How to drive positive change in the supply chain with good collaboration
- How to implement workflows, scorecarding and bespoke reporting to increase efficiency and accountability
- The results supply chain managers will see including improvements in CBM split, container utilisation and supplier management.
Priscilla Parrish
With a focus on international trade, B2C, B2B, and Amazon, Priscilla is extensively experienced in increasing efficiencies and cutting costs in retail supply chains by managing 3PL partners across the globe using data-driven solutions.
Taylor Burge-Paxon
Taylor Burge-Paxon is a Senior Customer Success Manager at Zencargo and works with brands in the retail sector to maximise supply chain opportunities. Prior to Zencargo, graduated from a top supply chain program in the US then worked at CH Robinson and specialised in Refrigerated LCL.
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Episode 7: Problem solving through data solutions with Priscilla Parrish
Episode 28: Why change management will make your supply chain competitive
We’ve spoken a lot about consumer demand and when businesses should be restocking.
But the big question is: How should businesses manage their inventory to remain agile?
This is what we explore with Haukur Hannesson, CEO at AGR Dynamics as he joins Alex Hersham to talk about the value of inventory management and importance of demand and supply data.
They talk about:
- How the relationship between inventory management and supply chains have evolved
- The importance of having access to the right data
- How businesses should be approaching inventory management in the supply chain.
Haukur Hannesson
Haukur Hannesson is the CEO of AGR and has been working for more than 20 years with the AGR customer base to minimize waste in their supply chain. Before becoming the CEO of AGR in 2008, Haukur was working as a supply chain consultant at AGR.
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A Guide to Fluctuating Demand
Episode 45: What’s next for consumer demand? Part 1
Episode 46: What’s next for consumer demand? Part 2
How are consumers reacting to economic headwinds?
“At a very high level, the picture that we are seeing is that inflation will drive top level growth in the industry. We expect retail sales to hold up, but that's being driven by inflation.”
For this episode of Freight to the Point, we’ve featured Part 2 of our Navigate session ‘What's next for consumer demand?’ with Alex Hersham and Richard Lim, Chief Executive of Retail Economics.
They discuss:
- Recessionary behaviours in consumers
- What the future of retail looks like
- How businesses should prepare in the event demand increases
Richard Lim
Richard is the CEO at Retail Economics and previously headed up the ‘Retail Insight and Analytics’ team at the British Retail Consortium. Before that, he worked in mergers and acquisitions for Citi Group. He has a wealth of experience in data analytics, consumer research and macroeconomics, and is skilled in generating actionable insights for clients. Richard is based in London and has a keen interest in Behavioural Game Theory.
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Episode 45: What's next for consumer demand? Part 1
What can economic indicators tell us about what’s next for supply chains?
What are we hearing in terms of market inventory levels?
“Nobody knows if we’re going to have restocking. Everyone thinks that we're getting to a point where inventory levels are starting to balance out, but that doesn't mean that we're going to have a restocking environment”
For this episode of Freight to the Point, we’ve featured Part 1 of our Navigate session with Alex Hersham and Richard Lim, Chief Executive of Retail Economics. In this episode, they explore how the economic headwinds have changed since September and how it has affected inventory levels as a result.
They discuss:
- Comparisons to previous financial recessions such as 2001/2002 and 2008/2009
- How inflation has affected retail sales
- How businesses have acted with their inventory levels.
Richard Lim
Richard is the CEO at Retail Economics and previously headed up the ‘Retail Insight and Analytics’ team at the British Retail Consortium. Before that, he worked in mergers and acquisitions for Citi Group. He has a wealth of experience in data analytics, consumer research and macroeconomics, and is skilled in generating actionable insights for clients. Richard is based in London and has a keen interest in Behavioural Game Theory.
Resources
Episode 38: What can we learn from previous recessions to ensure supply chain resilience?
What can economic indicators tell us about what’s next for supply chains?
Tune into the latest episode of Freight to the Point as we’re giving you another monthly ocean update from the Zencargo team.
Richard Fattal, CCO and Co-Founder at Zencargo and Marina Lennie, Director of Ocean Growth sat together to talk through some of their latest insights for February.
Together, they explore:
- Capacity reduction strategy now vs beginning of the pandemic
- How to approach rates in the current market
- Factors shippers should consider in the coming months
Marina Lennie
Marina Lennie is the Director of Ocean Growth at Zencargo. Marina has over 20 years experience in the shipping space, having worked at MSC for over 10 years. She now leads the pricing team at Zencargo, and is responsible for the company’s pricing processes and strategy.
Richard Fattal
Richard Fattal is Co-Founder and Chief Commercial Officer of Zencargo, the digital freight forwarder enabling organisations to make smarter decisions through real-time data of their supply chain. Based in London, Zencargo helps customers manage their supply chain such as Swoon Furniture and Ribble Cycles.
ResourcesRegister for the upcoming Rate Strategy Roundtable
A Guide To Fluctuating Demand
What advice would you give to companies that are thinking of entering the Chinese market?
“Go big or go home.”
In our latest episode of Freight to the Point, Alex Hersham, CEO and Co-founder of Zencargo is joined by Fabienne Pellegrin, Partner at LBB Asia Limited, a brand management and consulting firm which helps brands set up or accelerate their presence in Asia.
Together, they explore:
- What has happened since China reversed its zero-Covid policy
- How this has impacted manufacturing in the country
- How the last few years have changed the way brands work in China
Fabienne Pellegrin
Fabienne Pellegrin was formerly the Head of Digital & Ecommerce Asia for Salvatore Ferragamo and the China Ecommerce Country Manager for the Tod’s Group (Tod’s, Roger Vivier & Hogan). During her tenure she spearheaded both the strategy and the execution of ecommerce & digital ecosystems for both luxury brands.
Today she is a Partner at LBB ASIA a brand management & consulting firm founded over 10 years ago which helps brands set-up or accelerate their presence in Asia. Fabienne holds an MBA from NYU Stern School of Business and grew up in Singapore in the 90s.
Resources
Lockdowns in China: questions to ask yourself to prepare for supply chain disruption
“We truly believe that we're not doing enough and that we could be doing much more.”
This week, we’re joined by one of Zencargo’s customers, Charlotte Pumford, Head of Sustainability and Regenerative Impact from Vivobarefoot, to explore the benefits of using sustainability as a framework for businesses and creating regenerative impact in value chains. A value chain is defined as a collaborative network of partner relationships, adding value at every stage.
They talk about:
- The evolution of sentiment towards sustainability for businesses
- Using B-Corp framework to help create a roadmap for improvements
- Understanding your impact through good data collection in order to action change
Charlotte Pumford
Charlotte has almost 10 years of experience working in sustainability across the textile and footwear sector, spanning global FTSE 100 organisations, high-growth SME’s, local government and the management of a small-scale start-up when she founded her own brand in 2013.
For the past 3.5 years Charlotte has been working at Vivobarefoot, a UK-based natural health brand making barefoot footwear and experiences that bring people closer to nature. Charlotte heads up their Regeneration team, managing their journey towards becoming a truly regenerative business, the strategy that delivers on that vision. This is also accompanied by their B Corp Certification and value chain environmental impact programme.
Recognised by Edie in 2020 as one of the UK’s 30 under 30 sustainability leaders, Charlotte is a passionate advocate for the protection of our natural world. She believes businesses can be a force for change, identifying the regenerative solutions we need to address global challenges.
Resources
Episode 9: Sustainability in the supply chain with David de Picciotto
How data can help you lower supply chain carbon emissions
Since starting Zencargo in 2017, our co-founders have been dedicated to driving success in the supply chain.
Tune into our latest episode of Freight to the Point as we’ve featured another Navigate session from October 2022. Alex Hersham and Richard Fattal, Zencargo’s co-founders, talk about Zencargo’s vision and mission and how they aim to drive impact in the supply chain industry.
They delve into:
- Making better decisions with a wealth of data
- What it means to drive a world with smarter trade
- How smarter trade can drive economic growth
We’re hosting Navigate again next Thursday on 23rd February and we’ve got some exciting guest speakers including: Richard Lim, CEO at Retail Economics, Priscilla Parrish, Head of Logistics at Velocity Commerce and Majority Audio and Charlotte Pumford, Head of Sustainability and Regenerative Impact at Vivobarefoot.
To sign up for your space, click to our event website visit navigate.zencargo.com.
ResourcesNavigate February 2023
Episode 1: The Zencargo Co-Founder’s story by Alex Hersham
Tune into the latest episode of Freight to the Point as we’re giving you another monthly ocean update from the Zencargo team.
Richard Fattal, CCO and Co-Founder at Zencargo and Anne-Sophie Fribourg, VP of Ocean Procurement sat together to talk through some of their latest insights for February.
Together, they explore:
- How the IMO regulations affects shippers and carriers
- The recent announcement of the 2M alliance split
- Whether it is a good time for shippers to tender
Anne-Sophie Fribourg
Anne-Sophie has over 20 years of experience in the freight forwarding industry, having worked in Singapore, the Middle East region and France for a French freight forwarder. At Zencargo, Anne-Sophie leads the ocean team to obtain the best rates and space, building supply chain resilience for our customers.
Richard Fattal
Richard Fattal is Co-Founder and Chief Commercial Officer of Zencargo, the digital freight forwarder enabling organisations to make smarter decisions through real-time data of their supply chain. Based in London, Zencargo helps customers such as Swoon Furniture and Ribble Cycles, manage their supply chains.
Resources
Zencargo's Big Ocean Update
Ocean Deep Dive: 5 Things You Need To Understand This January
Why is it important to have the right fulfillment partner to help you scale your business?
This is what we explore in our next episode of Freight to the Point. Today, we are joined by Alexander Leichter, CEO and Founder of byrd, who provide an all-in-one fulfillment solution that helps businesses to outsource and automate their order fulfillment.
We explore:
- What makes byrd stand out against other fulfillment solution providers?
- What are some of the outcomes byrd's fulfullment solutions can provide?
- How does byrd support customers with their routing decisions?
Alexander Leichter
Alexander Leichter is the Founder and CEO of byrd technologies GmbH. A dynamic leader with more than 15 years of experience in driving innovation and growth in the supply chain and technologies space. Alex founded byrd in 2016 with the vision to redefine European e-commerce logistics. Through his execution, the company has become the first European fulfillment network (25+ DCs) and a global technology leader within just 5 years. This has earned him membership in several governmental and industry advisory boards.
Resource
What can economic indicators tell us about what’s next for supply chains?
Zencargo partners with byrd to help customers maximise revenue and customer service
It’s 2023 and we’re in a very different place compared to last year. This time last year, shippers were getting inventory in as quickly as possible and the supply chain was faced with tight capacity and blockages.
Today, we are now facing a potential recession. After two consecutive quarters of destocking, demand has fallen and supply chains are looking very different.
In Episode 38 of Freight to the Point, Alex Hersham is joined by Richard Lim, CEO at Retail Economics and Chantal McRoberts, Head of Advisory at Drewry Shipping Consultants as they talk about the economy and how it has affected the supply chain market.
They cover:
- The state of the economy and how it has impacted day-to-day consumer activity
- Which sectors are more impacted than others
- How shippers are reacting to the changes in the economy.
- Their predictions for Q2 and Q3 in 2023
- Key takeaways on how businesses can get through this environment
Richard Lim
Richard is the CEO at Retail Economics and previously headed up the ‘Retail Insight and Analytics’ team at the British Retail Consortium. Before that, he worked in mergers and acquisitions for Citi Group. He has a wealth of experience in data analytics, consumer research and macroeconomics, and is skilled in generating actionable insights for clients. Richard is based in London and has a keen interest in Behavioural Game Theory.
Chantal McRoberts
With over 20 years of experience in the maritime and container shipping industry, Chantal McRoberts has worked for a range of companies including P&ONedlloyd, APL and Maersk in trade management and operational roles. As Head of Advisory at Drewry Shipping Consultants, Chantal is a qualified project manager and oversees core deliverables for bid events and advisory work.
Resources
Do shippers now have the power in contract negotiations?
Ocean outlook 2023: Are you prepared for next year?
Episode 19: How can you be a shipper of choice? A discussion with Chantal McRoberts
Welcome to Freight to the Point where we’ve featured another episode from one of Navigate sessions from earlier last year.
Our session, “Saving the Planet, Smarter” features Ian Powell, Head of Solutions Consulting at Zencargo, who is joined by Vivobarefoot and Pledge to talk about how businesses can track their supply chain emissions with better insights, technology and data-integration.
They talk about:
- Why businesses should offset carbon emissions in their supply chain
- What are some of the challenges facing businesses that want to measure CO2 emissions in their supply chain
- Measuring carbon emissions against recognised standards such as the GHG Protocol and ISO14000
Resources
Episode 9: Sustainability in the supply chain with David de Picciotto
Zencargo partners with Pledge to bring climate transparency and action to supply chains
In September 2022, shippers were required to migrate from CHIEF to the Customs Declarations Service (CDS) and declare their imports on the new system.
We’re now 4 months past the deadline and importers are still struggling to migrate. HMRC have also extended the deadline to declare exports through CDS from March 2023 to November 2023 to ‘spend more time working with the industry in delivering and testing critical functionality’ and to ‘help declarants move across to the new system’.
For this episode, who better to join us than Lorenzo Rossetti, Director Trade & Customs at KPMG. With nearly 40 years of experience in customs under his belt, Lorenzo is a thought leader in the customs space, providing businesses invaluable insights on how to navigate the industry.
Tune in as we’ll be talking about:
- What are the challenges businesses have faced with the migration
- What shippers need to do to be compliant with CDS
- What are the lessons we’ve learnt from the first CDS migration.
Lorenzo Rossetti
Lorenzo is the Director Trade & Customs at KPMG UK. With nearly 40 years experience, Lorenzo is a leading expert and thought leader in the customs space with proficient knowledge on legislations, policies, day-to-day operations and customs software.
Resources
https://www.zencargo.com/resources/the-supply-chain-leaders-guide-to-brexit/
https://www.zencargo.com/resources/prepare-for-cds/
“Chinese New Year is earlier this year, and everyone is looking to really understand whether or not there’s going to be a rush on cargo in advance. The news so far is that volumes continue to be at low levels.”
Tune into our first episode of 2023 as we’re giving a January Ocean Update with Marina Lennie and Richard Fattal.
This month, we’re covering insights on:
- How an early Chinese New Year has affected shippers
- What we’re seeing in the rate market
- Whether the changes in China’s zero-Covid policy will affect supply chains
Marina Lennie
Marina Lennie is the Director of Ocean Growth at Zencargo. Marina has over 20 years experience in the shipping space, having worked at MSC for over 10 years. She now leads the pricing team at Zencargo, and is responsible for the company’s pricing processes and strategy.
Richard Fattal
Richard Fattal is Co-Founder and Chief Commercial Officer of Zencargo, the digital freight forwarder enabling organisations to make smarter decisions through real-time data of their supply chain. Based in London, Zencargo helps customers manage their supply chain such as Swoon Furniture and Ribble Cycles.
Resources
- Ocean outlook 2023: Are you prepared for next year?
- Your rate strategy – what options are available?
How will shipping alliances change next year? Will we see a change in carrier behaviour? Will annual contracts play a big role in 2023?
These are some of the questions we asked Anne-Sophie Fribourg, VP of Ocean Procurement at Zencargo. For this week’s episode Anne-Sophie sat down with Alex to answer some of the big questions we had for 2023.
They cover:
- How will capacity affect the market next year?
- Will we see a shift in carrier and shipper behaviour?
- How will the rate market play out next year?
- Will sustainability impact shippers and carriers in 2023?
Anne-Sophie Fribourg
Anne-Sophie has over 20 years of experience in the freight forwarding industry, having worked in Singapore, the Middle East region and France for a French freight forwarder. At Zencargo, Anne-Sophie leads the ocean team to obtain the best rates and space and build supply chain resilience for our customers.
ResourcesOcean outlook 2023: Are you prepared for next year?
Your rate strategy - what options are available?
“In the past, it would cost tens of dollars per megabyte. And now it's in cents, a few cents per megabyte, depending on the country and location that you're in. And that connectivity cost is going down, creating more of a global structure around being able to connect.”
Tune into another episode of Freight to the Point as Alex Hersham is joined by Krenar Komoni, CEO and Founder of Tive, a visibility solutions provider delivering critical shipment location and condition data via its real-time, best-in-class sensors. They talk about real-time visibility, how it has evolved over the years, why it’s important now and how it can help businesses stay competitive.
Listen if you want to hear more about:
- How real-time visibility has evolved over the last 10 years
- The value real-time visibility can bring
- Krenar’s vision for real-time visibility in the future
Krenar Komoni
Krenar Komoni has developed breakthrough ideas in data analytics, logistics, and electronics design for nearly 20 years. Most recently, Krenar founded the global supply chain visibility company, Tive, and serves in the CEO role. Tive is a cloud-based platform that uses IoT sensors to capture critical real-time shipment sensor data as products are shipped worldwide. Krenar embodies the leadership, management, and vision necessary to deliver market innovation, drive growth, and unlock hidden potential.
Resources
Zencargo partners with Tive, providing in-transit, real-time shipment visibility into shipments
How Zencargo makes the visible supply chain a reality
4 types of supply chain visibility your supply chain needs
“We don't anticipate any shocks on the demand side coming into December. Whilst Black Friday is a peak period, and the run-up to Christmas, we do think that businesses will be running through existing stock until the new year”
Are you up to date with the latest ocean freight market news? Are you prepared for the month ahead, especially as we head into 2023?
In the latest episode of Freight to the Point, Marina Lennie and Richard Fattal sit down to explore what has happened in the last month and how it has affected the market.
They talk about:
- Continued announcements of blank sailings throughout November
- Port decongestion in the US
- What could happen to demand levels before Chinese New Year
- How shippers should approach their budgets when entering 2023
Marina Lennie
Marina Lennie is the Director of Ocean Growth at Zencargo. Marina has over 20 years of experience in the shipping space, having worked at MSC for over 10 years. She now leads the pricing team at Zencargo, and is responsible for the company’s pricing processes and strategy.
Richard Fattal
Richard Fattal is Co-Founder and Chief Commercial Officer of Zencargo, the digital freight forwarder enabling organisations to make smarter decisions through real-time data of their supply chain. Based in London, Zencargo helps customers manage their supply chain such as Swoon Furniture and Ribble Cycles.
Resources
Rate strategy consultation
Heard of a diversified rates strategy? Here’s how to build one
“The industry is entering a period of managed decline. So capacity management will be key to determining what the freight levels are.”
This week, we have another special episode as we’re featuring a throwback to one of our Navigate sessions in October, ‘2023: It’s Time to Take Action’. In this session, Alex Hersham and Chantal McRoberts, Head of Advisory at Drewry Shipping Consultants talk about what shippers need to do when heading into 2023.
They discuss:
- How shippers are currently navigating the market
- What shippers need to do when it comes to contract negotiations
- How to become a shipper of choice
Chantal McRoberts
With over 20 years of experience in the maritime and container shipping industry, Chantal McRoberts has worked for a range of companies including P&ONedlloyd, APL and Maersk in trade management and operational roles. As Head of Advisory at Drewry Shipping Consultants, Chantal is a qualified project manager and oversees core deliverables for bid events and advisory work.
Resources
- How to become a shipper of choice
- Navigate – Why now is the time to diversify your rate strategy
- Balancing risk and opportunity during tender season
“The challenges were directly linked to customers not having enough inventory in the right places at the right time, as lockdown happened. No one knew, no one could predict the behaviours that would drive a consumer”.
Tune into another episode of Freight to the Point as James Fry, Director of Supply Chain Solutions at Zencargo joins Helena Wood. During their conversation they discuss how shippers should be collaborating with their freight forwarder and why the traditional, transactional relationship is no longer suitable for the current market.
Listen if you want to hear more about:
- What you’re missing out on if you’re not working with a digital freight forwarder
- How bespoke solutions can unlock great potential in your supply chain
- How your freight forwarder should be marrying data and service to drive your supply chain goals
James Fry
James is Zencargo’s Director of Solutions and has worked in supply chain for over 10 years. James leads a team of experts who work with Zencargo customers to identify areas of opportunity and build bespoke solutions to deliver value. James and his team focus on optimising costs and ultimately driving supply chain performance for customers.
Resources
What does strategic value look like from a freight forwarder?
Supply chain collaboration is more vital than ever - here’s how to do it
3 ways to optimise your supply chain through strategic partnerships
“Let’s go back a couple of years when we were hit by the pandemic. We kept hearing this phrase that soon we’re going to be out of the tunnel only to discover that the bridge we go onto has collapsed.”
In this week’s episode Alex Hersham is joined by Lars Jensen, CEO and Partner of Vespucci Maritime as they talk about their predictions for 2023 and how they can draw lessons from the past.
They delve into:
- The inventory-led recession in the US in the first half of 2001
- The potential for volatility in 2023
- How the 2023 market will affect tenders
Lars Jensen
Lars Jensen is CEO of Vespucci Maritime, and has 21 years of experience in the container shipping industry. Lars is an analyst and thought leader providing expert assistance in strategic decision making and analysis in the wider container shipping industry.
Resources
- Understanding (another) unprecedented tender season
- Understanding the changing demand of demand planning
- Ocean Deep Dive November: Balancing Rate Risk and Opportunity
Digital transformation is needed to tackle the current market and a digital freight forwarder can help you achieve this. However, change management can be difficult especially as people can be afraid of change when the market is moving so quickly.
So how can we educate our peers on the benefits of changing to a digital freight forwarder?
In episode 28 of Freight to the Point, Elvy Jenniskens, Global Logistics and Transport Specialist at Thetford joins Helena Wood to discuss Thetford’s move to digital supply chain processes and how they used data to optimise their supply chain.
We’ll be exploring:
- Setting the foundations in the supply chain using quality data
- How to work with a digital freight forwarder to set up an efficient supply chain framework
- How to succeed with change management
Elvy Jenniskens
Elvy is the Global Logistics & Transport Specialist at Thetford Group and has worked in supply chain roles in the FMCG industry. Since joining Thetford in 2021, Elvy focuses on connecting and optimising the company’s global supply chain to ensure it stays competitive.
Resources
- Do freight forwarders need to become technology companies?
- What does strategic value look like from a freight forwarder?
What’s happened in the last month in the ocean freight industry?
In this week’s episode of Freight to the Point, Richard Fattal, Zencargo’s co-founder and Chief Commercial Officer, gives us his updates on the ocean market and how it will affect rates and shippers.
Episode 27 will explore:
- How blank sailings have not been enough to stem the decline in rates
- Demand post Golden Week
- Whether demand will pick up pre-Chinese New Year
Richard Fattal
Richard Fattal is Co-Founder and Chief Commercial Officer of Zencargo, the digital freight forwarder enabling organisations to make smarter decisions through real-time data of their supply chain. Based in London, Zencargo helps customers manage their supply chain such as Swoon Furniture and Ribble Cycles.
Resources
- Rate strategy consultation
- Heard of a diversified rates strategy? Here’s how to build one
What is demand planning in the supply chain?
“In a nutshell, it is the process of forecasting demand for a product so it can be delivered and produced more efficiently.”
Tune into the next episode of Freight to the Point as Helena Wood is joined by Finnur Bragason, Sales Director at AGR Dynamics, a company that provides demand planning and forecasting solutions to businesses.
For this episode, they’ll be talking about:
- Why demand planning is essential now
- What data points businesses need to look at
- The technological potential of demand planning software
Finnur Bragason, Sales Director at AGR Dynamics
Finnur has been the Sales Director at AGR Dynamics for over 13 years. He has worked with international retailers and wholesalers to improve their supply chains by implementing best practice processes through AGR´s inventory optimisation solutions.
Resources
Zencargo and AGR’s partnership announcement - https://www.zencargo.com/resources/zencargo-and-agr-dynamics-form-a-partnership-to-transform-the-way-companies-deliver-on-supply-chain-demands/
Spot rates are falling and shippers are still faced with market volatility and global uncertainties.
With so many changes to account for, how should shippers approach their rate strategy to help their supply chain stay competitive?
Richard Fattal is joined by Anne-Sophie Fribourg, Zencargo’s VP of Ocean and Peter Sand, Chief Analyst at Xeneta to discuss how businesses should be diversifying their rate strategy.
They discuss:
- The changes in the market
- What shippers should look out for
- How should shippers conduct a rate strategy based on trends
Resources
Rate expectations: A strategic approach to shipping relationships
What is a diversified rate strategy and why do you need one now?
Tender season is approaching and with rates falling at such a rapid pace, questions have been raised by shippers about how they should approach contracting going into 2023.
For this episode, Alex Hersham, co-Founder and CEO at Zencargo, is joined by Chantal McRoberts, Head of Advisory at Drewry Shipping Consultants, to talk about how shippers should approach the upcoming tender season.
They discuss:
- The risks shippers should look out for
- Whether shippers should seek longer-term contracts
- How are people approaching index-linked contracts?
- Building relationships with carriers and forwarders
Resources
Rate expectations: A Strategic Approach To Shipping Relationships
Heard of a diversified rates strategy? Here’s how to build one
Welcome to Episode 23 of Freight to the Point. This week, Richard Fattal, Zencargo's co-founder and Chief Commercial Officer, gives us his updates on the ocean market and how it will affect shippers and rates.
We'll be discussing:
- Blank sailings in Q4
- The trends in demand in October and November
- How the devaluation of the sterling affects supply chain
Resources
- Rate strategy consultation
- Weekly Market Updates
What should your freight forwarder do to help you achieve your business objectives?
That’s the conversation we’re having with Zach White, our VP of Customer Success as he gives us his insights on what an effective Customer Success Team looks like in the freight forwarding space.
He discusses:
- Why your forwarder relationship needs to be more than transactional -and how to get there
- How Zencargo’s Customer Success Team works to build bespoke plans for customers
- How working with a digital freight forwarder can help you approach supply chains in a strategic way
Zach White, VP Customer Success at Zencargo
Zach White brings 10 years of SaaS customer success experience to supply chain, having worked as a Customer Success Lead at Forester and building customer support, implementation and customer success at Cognism.
Resources
- 4 things your freight forwarder should be doing for you
- 3 ways to optimise your supply chain through strategic partnerships
Welcome to another episode of Freight to the Point. This week we're super excited to launch our first of a series of monthly recurring episodes on the ocean market with co-founder and Chief Commercial Officer, Richard Fattal.
We’ll be discussing:
- The industrial action across Europe which has affected supply chains.
- How the rate market has changed
- What shippers need to look out for when approaching Golden Week
What are the pitfalls when working with a traditional freight forwarder?
“They don’t specialise in tech and making changes to their platform is difficult for them.”
This week, Helena Wood is joined by John Smith, VP of Global Operations at Zencargo as he gives his insights on how the supply chain has evolved since he started working in the industry 30 years ago.
They discuss:
- The differences between traditional and digital freight forwarding
- The pitfalls of working with a traditional freight forwarder
- Why digital freight forwarders are more agile, especially in a volatile market
John Smith
John Smith is the Global VP Operations at Zencargo and has over 30 years of experience in the supply chain industry. Prior to Zencargo, John has worked for a range of companies including Damco and CEVA Logistics. John oversees the operations team at Zencargo, ensuring that customer cargo is successfully delivered from origin to destination in the most efficient way.
Resources
- 4 things your freight forwarder should be doing for you
- 3 ways to optimise your supply chain through strategic partnerships
Shippers are still constantly battling the complexities of the ocean market and it isn’t going to get better any time soon.
So how should shippers position themselves to stay on top of the volatile market?
Tune into the latest episode of Freight to the Point where Chantal McRoberts, Head of Advisory at Drewry Shipping Consultants Ltd joins Helena to discuss her views on the ocean market and how it is impacting shippers.
They talk about:
- What it means to be a ‘shipper of choice’
- How to become a shipper of choice
- What shippers should look for in a partner
- How should shippers look at their data and information
Chantal McRoberts
With over 20 years of experience in the maritime and container shipping industry, Chantal McRoberts has worked for a range of companies including P&ONedlloyd, APL and Maersk in trade management and operational roles. As Head of Advisory at Drewry Shipping Consultants Ltd, Chantal is a qualified project manager and oversees core deliverables for bid events and advisory work.
Resources
What is a diversified rate strategy?
4 types of supply chain visibility your supply chain needs
How to optimise your supply chain through strategic partnerships
What are the benefits shippers experience through data and visibility?
We explore this topic in the latest episode of Freight to the Point as Michel Stekelenburg, Senior Director Strategic Accounts at project44 joins Helena Wood to talk about the advantages of visibility in the supply chain.
They explore:
- The importance of data in the supply chain
- The starting steps shippers should take to achieve good visibility.
- How the events of COVID has accelerated the adoption of visibility from shippers
Michel Stekelenburg
Michel is the Senior Director Strategic Accounts EMEA at project44, a supply chain technology company that offers an end-to-end visibility platform. With over 20 years of experience. Michel holds a background in both the transportation, logistics and supply chain software industry. Michel is also a Board Member at the CSCMP Benelux, where he works with other supply chain professionals to educate the transport, logistics and supply chain industry.
Resources
How visibility can help with supply chain inventory management
How Zencargo makes the visible supply chain a reality
4 types of supply chain visibility your supply chain needs
In this episode of Freight to the Point, we’re featuring another one of our Navigate sessions which we hosted back in April, ‘Supply Chain Resilience: Welcome to the Shortage Economy’.
Marina Lennie, Director of Planning and Pricing at Zencargo is joined by Bjorn Vang Jensen, VP Advisory Services at Sea Intelligence as they talk about the value of data in the shipping industry.
They explore:
- How shippers can ensure that their data is reliable
- The need for granular visibility at SKU level
- How to eliminate black holes in your knowledge
ResourcesNavigate Recordings: https://navigate.zencargo.com/navigate-smarter/
Episode 16: An insight into the shipping industry with Marina Lennie
Tune into the latest episode of Freight to the Point as Helena Wood is joined by Marina Lennie, Director of Ocean Planning and Pricing at Zencargo as they talk about the trends in the shipping industry.
They talk about:
- how to deliver the best pricing for customers
- how data and visibility can help shippers navigate the volatile market
- the trends and risks to look out for in the rate market
Marina Lennie
Marina Lennie is the Director of Ocean Planning and Pricing at Zencargo. Marina has over 20 years of experience in the shipping space, having worked at MSC for over 10 years. She now leads the pricing team at Zencargo, and is responsible for the company’s pricing processes and strategy.
Resources
What is a diversified rate strategy? - https://www.zencargo.com/resources/what-is-a-diversified-rate-strategy-and-why-do-you-need-one-now/
Book your rates strategy consultation - https://content.zencargo.com/rates-strategy-consultation-session
Felixstowe strike update - https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6962354251427672064
Are you scrutinising your data enough to understand if you’re getting the best rates and space?
Tune into Episode 15 of Freight to the Point as Peter Sand, Chief Analyst at Xeneta and Helena Wood discuss how shippers should be looking at the data to understand how to navigate the market, especially as rates have come under pressure in recent months.
They discuss:
- the value of understanding the data in your business
- how to seek reliable information in your data
- Peter’s predictions for the market over the coming months
Peter Sand
Peter is the Chief Analyst of Xeneta, the rate benchmarking platform. Before joining Xeneta, Peter was the Chief Analyst at BIMCO for over ten years and prior to that, he worked at DS Nordon, a Danish shipping company, operating in the dry cargo and tanker segments worldwide as a Senior Analyst.
Resources
Rate strategy consultation: https://content.zencargo.com/rates-strategy-consultation-session
Blog - The cost of bad data: https://www.zencargo.com/resources/the-cost-of-bad-data-in-supply-chain-management-heres-how-to-tackle-it/
Blog - How you can build a data-driven supply chain: https://www.zencargo.com/resources/data-driven-supply-chain/
Are you collaborating with the right carriers and freight forwarders to achieve operational excellence in your supply chain?
Tune into this week’s episode of Freight to the Point as Gareth Davies and Helena Wood discuss the importance of strategic partnerships with both carriers and freight forwarders, and relationships in the supply chain network.
They explore:
- The value of transparency and communication
- The importance of keeping an open mind to new partnerships with freight forwarders
- How to assess whether a partnership is right for you
Gareth Davies
Gareth Davies is the Head of Global Logistics at Lenovo. In this role he is responsible for the transportation of over 120m devices globally across Lenovo’s portfolio. He also oversees global trade compliance, customs, procurement of services, sustainability, risk and loss and VMI operations across omni-channel solutions.
Resources
Supply chain collaboration: https://www.zencargo.com/resources/supply-chain-collaboration-is-more-vital-than-ever-heres-how-to-do-it/
How experts at Lenovo and DS Smith tackle supply chain disruption: https://www.zencargo.com/resources/supply-chain-disruption-advice-from-experts/
Navigate recording: Complexity in the Supply Chain with Harold Hendrickx and Gareth Davies: https://navigate.zencargo.com/navigate-smarter/
How much visibility do you have over your supply chain? Is it enough to make informed decisions?
Tim Ball, Director of Product Management is joined by Michel Stekelenburg, Senior Director Strategic Accounts EMEA, project44 and Ahmed-El Alfy, Zencargo’s Strategic Account Manager to discuss how businesses can optimise performance in their supply chain through data.
They discuss:
- The benefits of granular visibility
- How businesses can ensure that their data is reliable
- How data can help with short and long-term strategies
Resources
Navigate recording: Best-in-class: Using Data to Optimise Performance - https://navigate.zencargo.com/navigate-smarter/
Data integrity: How does it strengthen your supply chain - https://www.zencargo.com/resources/data-integrity-how-does-it-strengthen-your-supply-chain/
According to a survey by Gartner in 2021, women makeup 41% of the supply chain workforce however only 15% of those women are in senior positions. However, this is only the tip of the iceberg as DEI is not just restricted to gender diversity.
For Episode 12, we invited Ella McCann-Tomlin, CEO and Founder of Ardent, a diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) consultancy to talk about the value of driving DEI initiatives in an organisation.
This episode explores:
- the first steps organisations should take when creating their DEI strategies
- the value of gathering workforce data
- why DEI needs to impact all levels, especially leadership teams.
Ella McCann-Tomlin
Ella is a Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Consultant with a passion for organisational change. She works with companies to transform their leadership cultures, the diversity of their teams, and their social mission. She spent almost a decade working in high-growth tech before setting up her own consultancy business. It was this experience in fast-paced environments that led her to want to work with other companies on how to get their culture right, and how to live by their values, as they scale.
Resources
Gartner’s Women in Supply Chain Survey in 2021
Ardent, the DEI consultancy
What has been the biggest challenge for customs specialists in the past decade?
In this week’s episode of Freight to the Point, we’re joined by our very own Aaron Richardson, Customs Specialist at Zencargo to discuss the complexities of customs and how businesses can stay on top of the added customs legislation introduced over the past decade.
They explore:
- The challenges of navigating Brexit custom controls
- How customs brokers should be supporting businesses
- The value of building partnerships to drive business outcomes
Aaron Richardson
Aaron is a customs specialist at Zencargo. He focuses on clearance, providing guidance on evolving legislations, and partners with businesses to streamline customs processes.
How has the air freight industry developed over the past 10 years?
In this week’s episode of Freight to the Point, Helena Wood is joined by Wissam Madi, VP Global Airfreight at Zencargo to discuss how the industry has evolved over time and the impact COVID has had on the air freight industry.
They explore:
- The shift in demand for air freight over the past decade
- How businesses should include air freight into their planning
- The tough conversations shippers may have with management when discussing air freight costs
ResourcesCOVID-19 page - https://www.zencargo.com/resources/category/covid-19/
Zencargo's freight forwarding page - https://www.zencargo.com/freight-forwarding/
Are businesses doing enough to make their supply chains more sustainable?
Find out more in this episode of Freight to the Point as Helena Wood is joined by David de Picciotto, CEO and Co-Founder of Pledge. Pledge provides tools and infrastructure to allow businesses to measure their carbon impact on their environment with a focus on the supply chain. This year, Zencargo and Pledge have worked together to offer businesses SKU visibility across shipments, and giving them an instant view on emissions in their supply chain.
They discuss:
- Why businesses should prioritise sustainability in their agendas
- The business benefits of having a sustainable supply chain
- The value of data when looking at supply chain emissions
Resources
Zencargo partners with Pledge - https://www.zencargo.com/resources/zencargo-partners-with-pledge/
How data can help you lower carbon emissions in your supply chain - https://www.zencargo.com/resources/how-data-can-help-you-lower-carbon-emissions-in-your-supply-chain/
Navigate: Saving the Planet, Smarter - https://navigate.zencargo.com/navigate-smarter/
Over the past two years, challenges such as COVID-19, rising costs and port congestion have rocked the supply chain industry.
With all of these added complexities, how can businesses stay on top of their supply chain and still optimise performance with their suppliers?
Lucie Phillips, Zencargo’s Chief Operations Officer, is joined by Gareth Davies, Head of Global Logistics at Lenovo, and Harold Hendrickx, Director of Global Procurement Enablement & Transformation at DS Smith, to discuss how businesses can use technology to understand and align with their suppliers.
They discuss:
- The importance of visibility in the supply chain
- How businesses should prioritise which problems to tackle first
- Why all teams in the supply chain need to be aligned on decisions
Resources:
Navigate recording:https://navigate.zencargo.com/navigate-smarter/
How experts at Lenovo and DS Smith tackle supply chain disruption:https://www.zencargo.com/resources/supply-chain-disruption-advice-from-experts/
How do you solve supply chain problems, when you can’t see what’s going on? Priscilla Parrish, Head of Logistics at Velocity Commerce explains the challenges she has faced and how she has solved problems through data.
We discuss:
- How data drives confidence in decision making
- Influencing senior management to adopt improved data and tech in the supply chain
- Reducing human error through API connections and data streams
Useful resources
- Microsoft Excel video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kOO31qFmi9A
- Navigate: Building for a Smarter Supply Chain - https://navigate.zencargo.com/navigate-smarter/
Priscilla Parrish, Head of Logistics, Velocity Commerce
With a focus on international trade, B2C, B2B, and Amazon, Priscilla is extensively experienced in increasing efficiencies and cutting costs in retail supply chains by managing 3PL partners across the globe using data-driven solutions.
On this week’s episode on ‘Freight to the Point’, we invited Catia Fernandes, Head of Trade (Far East - UK) to talk about how she started in the supply chain industry through a graduate programme with Maersk, all the way to her role in the pricing and procurement team at Zencargo.
This episode explores:
- The complexities of making the best decisions for the customer
- How Zencargo reacted to space shortages on carriers last year
- The carrier alliances formed before the pandemic
Catia Fernandes
Catia Fernandes is the Head of Trade (Far East - UK) at Zencargo. Since starting at Maersk in 2005, Catia has worked in the supply chain space for over 15 years. At Zencargo, Catia is part of the pricing and procurement team, who develop relationships with carriers to help customers find the best rates and space for their shipments.
Tune into Episode 5 of Freight to the Point as Ian Powell, Head of Solutions Consulting at Zencargo, talks about some of the memorable supply chain projects he has worked on and what he thinks is key to driving disruption in the industry.
This episode discusses:
- Identifying opportunities to drive value for customers
- Developing solutions for different supply chains
- The types of projects Ian has worked on for customers while at Zencargo
Ian Powell
Ian is the Head of Solutions Consulting at Zencargo. He holds an MBA from Cranfield University and has worked in supply chain for over 20 years. At Zencargo, Ian works with prospective customers to intrinsically understand their supply chains, identify areas of opportunity and build Zencargo solutions that deliver value. He also works closely with existing customers and leverages Zencargo data to identify areas of opportunity to drive out supply chain inefficiency, optimise cost and supply chain performance.
In this week’s episode of Freight to the Point, we invited Lucy Harding, Partner and Global Head of the Procurement and Supply Chain Practice at executive search firm Odgers Berndtson, to talk about recruitment in the supply chain and how she would like to see change in the industry.
This episode discusses:
- The role of the Chief Supply Chain Officer
- The skills required to become a supply chain leader
- Diversity and inclusion in the workspace
Lucy Harding
Lucy Harding is a Partner and Global Head of the Procurement & Supply Chain Practice at Odgers Berndtson, based in London. The practice operates across all industries in both the public and private sector. Lucy has significant experience operating in the procurement and supply chain search environment following 10 years operating in a leading boutique firm. She has successfully completed appointments across a range of leading global companies in both the UK and internationally.
In Episode 2, we invited Laura Odell, Head of Air (Demand & Supply), Europe at Zencargo, to talk about her supply chain career journey in the Air industry.
She explores:
- How an apprenticeship brought her to logistics
- The fast pace of the air industry
- Gender diversity and the need for more women in senior roles in supply chains
Laura Odell, Head of Air (Demand & Supply) Europe, Zencargo
With over 20 years of experience in the supply chain industry, Laura specialises in helping customers get their goods from A to B via air transport.
We’re kicking off the podcast series with Alex Hersham, CEO and Co-Founder of Zencargo. Since co-founding the company with Richard Fattal (CCO at Zencargo), the digital freight forwarding company has raised over $50 million and has grown to over 250 people worldwide.
He discusses:
- How he started Zencargo with his co-founder
- The journey Zencargo has been on and how the company has disrupted the industry
- And the three main accelerators he thinks will create change in the industry: Data, Revenue and Sustainability
Alex Hersham, Co-Founder and CEO, Zencargo
Alex Hersham is Co-founder and CEO of Zencargo, the digital freight forwarder enabling organisations, from FTSE 100 businesses to fast-growing startups, to make smarter decisions through a real-time overview of their supply chain.
In Episode 3, we have featured a clip from Navigate Smarter, Zencargo’s supply chain conference for professionals. This episode features Tamir Strauss, Chief Product and Technology Officer at Zencargo and Priscilla Parrish, Head of Logistics at Velocity Commerce.
This session discusses:
- The technical problems they’ve encountered
- The raw ingredients required to start a smarter supply chain
- How the right tools can help add value to the logistics function
Tamir Strauss
Tamir has over 25 years of experience in product and tech, working with companies such as Huma and Snatch before joining Zencargo. Driven by analytical problem solving, strategic thinking and innovating Tamir’s goals focus on improving business processes.
Priscilla Parrish, Head of Logistics, Velocity Commerce
With a focus on international trade, B2C, B2B, and Amazon, Priscilla is extensively experienced in increasing efficiencies and cutting costs in retail supply chains by managing 3PL partners across the globe using data-driven solutions.
Welcome to Freight to the Point, the podcast show created by Zencargo. Tune in every week as we’ll be exploring a wide range of topics from sustainability to technology from different perspectives.
We will be inviting leading supply chain experts to talk about their origins, experiences, how they have made ship happen and what they think is the key to disrupting the traditional supply chain industry.