3PL Perspectives
WE ARE ONE month out from the Capital Ideas Annual Conference in San Diego on April 6-9. The last time we met at the Annual Conference in-person was in 2019—almost three years ago! And while I was not with you and TIA then, I can sense from our members how much they have missed being together. This pandemic has been extraordinary for so many Americans, and in so many ways: extraordinarily challenging personally and professionally; extraordinarily taxing, and sometimes extraordinarily heartbreaking.
Our TIA Members have faced constant headwinds from labor shortages to capacity crunches to inflationary pressures. Further, you all have not had much time to stop, think, and connect with your peers and colleagues because of the onslaught of freight—first because of high goods demand, and later, because of a congested supply chain.
I think it is time for us all to reconnect together in person. Sure, your businesses are busy enough that you likely don’t think you can afford to get away. But if you have been keeping your head down, just trying to keep up with the demands of your business, you may be missing perspectives on burgeoning issues or new takes on current trends. Or what your peers are experiencing and how they have dealt with the obstacles you face. That is what defines and differentiates the TIA Capital Ideas Conference & Exhibition.
First, the Conference provides the most relevant information on topics critical to your business, designed solely for 3PLs. Second, it gives you the latest intelligence on what is facing the 3PL industry. And finally, it brings 3PL professionals from every aspect of the transportation logistics business together to network and develop a larger pool of contacts. These experiences give you a fresh perspective that ultimately will make your business even stronger.
Every one of our annual conferences has stand-out sessions. There are too many this year to list, but here is a small sample of what you will see and hear:
- How to recruit and retain talent, especially with the advent of a remote workforce.
- What the new world of automated vehicles means for brokers from those professionals working daily in the AV space.
- How you can shape your company’s risk profile on cyber threats.
- How you can gain access to capacity in real-time.
- What the future of the digitization of freight could mean for you and your company.
- And finally, what are the Seven Deadly Sins of Sales Behavior?
There are so many more sessions to look forward to and so many top-tier talents to talk through these issues. So yes, you can keep running your business without taking time off to attend our conference. But attending may be what leads your business to grow, develop and innovate. There won’t always be this amount of freight hitting us. We want to make sure you get critical learnings and relationships, so that your business can survive any business cycle.
Before I close out, I want to call your attention to some tremendous contributions we have in this month’s magazine to celebrate National Women’s History Month. Three of our phenomenal TIA Board Members, Sarah Ruffcorn, Liz Wayne, and Erin van Zeeland, have articles discussing their philosophy on leadership, diversity, and women in logistics. Our very own TIA staffer Kelly del Percio, has a Women Leading in Logistics piece. Please enjoy the read! And to give you yet another reason to attend the Annual Conference, Sarah and Liz, who chair the Women in Logistics Committee, are planning a topical and insightful luncheon featuring a panel of top-notch female logistics leaders.
I will look forward to seeing you all in April. Just as kids learn and develop best at school in-person, adult professionals thrive and grow at in-person events. If you have any thoughts or suggestions about the Conference or your membership, as always, never hesitate to reach out to me at [email protected]. Thank you for all you do for the 3PL industry and TIA.
