Flexport in San Francisco offers a freight forwarding solution via its eponymous platform, designed to bring visibility, analytics, and collaboration to large shipping operations.
Flexport changed the way we looked at importing. Prior to Flexport, importing was a bit of a black box, with low transparency which meant adding a buffer to shipment times to account for unforeseen delays. Historically we had inboxes full of documents with no roll-up view. Now we have a roll-up view, and visibility to underlying documents should we ever need them.
Appian is excellent for use in both the analysis arena and ongoing operations support. The speed to solution and quality of solution is at the top of the market.
The configurability of the system gives the user the flexibility to address almost any route problem imaginable. Analysts have the ability to recreate the "world" to fit their customer's needs rather than forcing the customer into a predetermined framework.
The installation of the software is flexible and can be structured to fit any work group's format, from a centralized core to a distributed mobile analysis team.
Many issues with the system and I will probably recommend other type of software if the question arises. Because of the investment my company has made, I will use the system for now.
Support teams are fantastic. I've been lucky enough to meet teams from NY, LA and HK offices. They have prioritized building a culture of talented and energetic people who push projects and tasks forward. They don't sit back and wait for things to happen they're constantly pushing things forward to be on time with all information organized and ready.
Historically we worked with and agent who and did not have a software platform like Flexport. We made the decision to test volume, and they quickly earned the rest of our business. The on boarding process was easy, pricing was competitive and the product delivered in every way we were promised.
Appian was best suited for an analysis environment both functionally and from a cost structure standpoint. Other packages are targeting ongoing operations and their cost structures reflect that goal. The purely analytical environment can underestimated in these situations. There is definitely a need for non operation specific analysis tools in the marketplace.
Improved service to customers by being more aware of ETA's and how they relate to each store's receiving hours.
Reduced transportation costs in dynamic environment where routes are optimized daily using Direct Route.
Better customer service to field by generating e-mail notifications for following day's ETA's, along with notifications when trips are behind schedule.
