Follow Up Q&A with David Branson: What’s so important about Managed Transportation Solutions?

ICYMI, in December 2021, TA Service’s VP of Managed Transportation Operations, David Branson, talked with The Fabricator about the value a 3PL can bring to metal fabricating companies and their supply chain operations. In the article, Branson covered everything from culture and developing strong partnerships to the importance of a solid managed transportation services (TMS) platform. We loved the article so much that we wanted to give readers a chance to hear more… And we have some follow up questions for David!

Q: In the interview with The Fabricator, you talk about the importance of change management and culture in an organization. What is the company culture like at TA Services? What values does your company stand for?

A: TA Service’s values are:

1. People First
2. Service
3. Safety
4. Results
5. Innovation

These are the values that we stand for and strive to portray to our customers, carriers, and vendors. In the simplest form, we are a services company, and we take pride in our people. It’s our hope and goal that the work we do resonates with everyone and builds trust. It is a fun, competitive, and problem-solving environment. Simply put: we Make Ship Happen.

Q: To be more specific, what can a company expect to learn from TA if they choose to do business with you and your team?

A: To steal the phrase from Stephen Covey, “Seek first to understand, then be understood.” Listening is critical to our success because a good conversation with a customer normally leads to uncovering a “nugget” of information about them that we would not have unearthed unless we had been open and engaged in Q&A sessions. The game of 20 questions doesn’t cut it when you are trying to connect our people, processes, and technology with a prospective company. We’re interested in getting at the root of our customers’ supply chain problems and finding ways to solve them efficiently and effectively, while reducing costs and the need for additional resources along the way.

Q: Still on the subject of change management and company culture, what piece of advice can you give companies with high-volume M&A activity about managing change and maintaining culture?

A: TA tries to understand the company’s structure while keeping in mind that change will inevitably happen. It’s important to find a partner and build a framework of processes and technology that can be nimble and will allow you to scale.

M&A can be a sensitive time because it can be uncertain to all parties; but it can be an exciting time, too. Business names can change, new divisions and locations can get created, process and organization may be revamped – this is all a part of being ready to adapt to changing goals. Remember what your company stands for and pass along that vision and “why” you stand for it.

Q: Do you see a lot of companies in this space struggle with managing their transportation management systems [TMS] in house? What are the top 3 challenges that most companies face?

A: 1. Selecting the right Transportation Management Systems (TMS) and/or managed transportation solutions provider that meets your transportation network and goals.

2. Implementation and training of your operators and back-office staff to fully utilize the TMS capabilities.

3. Leadership and Administrative TMS support to maintain and ensure you are getting the ROI envisioned to effectively support your supply chain. It can be easy for companies with the “do-it-yourself” attitude to lose direction and passion for something like freight management as that is not their core competency.

Q: What are some other trends that you see in the Metal Fabricating industry right now?

A: Many metal fabricators are experiencing challenges with inventory due to recent supply chain disruptions. With lower inventory, there is more of an urgency to process raw materials quickly and then get the finished product out the door as quickly as possible. Effective communication at the planning level and systemic communication between their enterprise resource planning (ERP) and TMS can help minimize the transportation planning time and, ultimately, get their loads picked up on the ready date.

Q: Is there any advice you can give manufacturers who are evaluating 3PL providers? What should they look for in a partnership with a third-party logistics provider?

A: Choosing the right 3PL services company can be a tough but important choice, especially with many logistics companies to choose from. Once you have narrowed your search to a few proven providers after your initial due diligence in investigating the right 3PL partner, keep an open dialogue and ensure a clear understanding of your business workflow.

Get an NDA in place and ask what information they need in order to provide a meaningful data driven analysis of your business. Work with them to figure out a viable operating process and to help support their efforts to uncover each area of opportunity for increasing efficiency, quality, and savings. Then go with the provider you trust.

At TA Services, our partnerships span years – not months or seasons. We build meaningful long-term relationships with our customers and carrier partners and we create extraordinary outcomes in the process. If you’re ready to improve your supply chain and begin your partnership with a trusted 3PL provider, give TA Services a call.