“Why Innovation Must Be Grounded in Customer Reality“- By Ashok Johnson
Over the past decade, the freight forwarding and logistics industry has seen an influx of technology-first companies aiming to modernize and digitize the traditional supply chain model. These platforms promised greater efficiency through customer portals where importers and exporters could request quotes, manage shipments, and interact with service providers in a streamlined digital environment.
Despite significant investment and early enthusiasm, many of these companies struggled to gain meaningful traction. Traditional freight forwarders remain dominant—and for good reason.
While these new-age logistics companies focused on product innovation, they often failed to fully understand the evolving needs of their customers. The assumption was that competitive pricing and digital convenience alone would be enough to shift customer behavior. In practice, however, most mid-to-large exporters and importers had different priorities.
Beyond cost savings, these organizations were—and still are—under increasing pressure to optimize the administrative cost and complexity of managing logistics. The fragmented approach of dealing with multiple service providers, emails, or individual portals only added to the burden on supply chain teams. What customers truly needed was consolidation, simplicity, and end-to-end operational efficiency.
In response to these challenges, many businesses gravitated toward third-party logistics (3PL) platforms that aggregate service providers and offer a single interface to manage the RFQ (Request for Quotation) process. These platforms enable users to obtain competitive rates and manage logistics workflows without the need to toggle between multiple systems.
Meanwhile, technology-led freight forwarders who built proprietary platforms expected customers to adopt additional digital ecosystems—essentially requiring them to log in, search, and manage quotes in silos. This approach proved counterproductive. Rather than enhancing efficiency, it increased operational complexity and fragmented the decision-making process.
These outcomes reveal a critical insight: technology should enable existing workflows and enhance decision-making—not seek to replace essential customer touchpoints.
There is a clear and growing demand for digital tools in logistics, but they must be applied where they add tangible value. Features such as real-time shipment visibility, performance deviation reports, and predictive analytics are invaluable to supply chain teams seeking better control, transparency, and responsiveness.
In contrast, tech that isolates the customer or undermines long-standing service relationships will face resistance—regardless of how sophisticated the platform might be.
The future of successful logistics lies in the strategic integration of technology with human relationships. Customers continue to value face-to-face interactions, relationship management, and service accountability. These factors remain foundational to trust and long-term partnerships.
Logistics companies that leverage technology to augment service delivery, streamline internal processes, and deliver actionable insights will differentiate themselves. The goal should not be to replace personal interaction but to empower it with intelligent tools and timely data.
The past decade has shown that technology, when introduced without a deep understanding of the customer environment, often fails to deliver impact. As the industry evolves, the focus must shift from building isolated platforms to solving real operational problems.
The logistics companies that succeed will be those who combine deep customer empathy with digital innovation, aligning every technology investment with clearly articulated customer needs. In freight forwarding, the winning formula is not disruption for disruption’s sake—but transformation rooted in relevance, relationships, and results.