Where does an organizational culture come from? 

Is the tone set from a singular mantra or is it built like a house, brick by consistent brick?  As we wrapped up a marathon of new team member on-boarding activities (growing our logistics specialist workforce by over 40% since January), we realized that our culture will continue to evolve and grow with each new team member’s influence.  How can we create an environment that is bigger than ourselves but also dependent on each individual to make the sum something worth protecting?

Imagine waking up tomorrow to every item you purchase increasing in cost by 25%.  That cup of coffee is instantly $5 instead of $4. Rent now shoots up from $2000 to $2500. Yet when you look at your paycheck, you see the same number you saw the week before. Instant disruption is now causing you to scramble to make ends meet. 

This is what many supply chains are experiencing in the midst of elevated tariffs. At LeanCor, we've been receiving inquiries from supply chain leaders looking for ways to extract these costs from other areas of the supply chain to make up for them.

FLORENCE, KY (June 6, 2019) – LeanCor Supply Chain Group, a provider of third-party logistics, supply chain consulting, and training services, has been awarded a Top Workplaces 2019 honor by the Cincinnati Enquirer. 

Recent tariff increases on over $200B of goods imported from China have been described as “catastrophic” by US companies with a significant Chinese supplier base. With so much trade uncertainty lingering, companies are taking actions now to mitigate the effect on their supply chains. Many are now forced to question how product is coming into the U.S. and forming new sourcing strategies: moving manufacturing to another low-cost country, stockpiling inventory, or "re-shoring" manufacturing to the U.S. are some examples.

Whatever your strategy may be, knowing where to locate and how to leverage your assets across the supply chain network are major decisions that depend on many variables.

In today's uncertain transportation climate, it's more important than ever to stay knowledgeable about market rates to ensure you're getting the best value for your transportation spend.

The LeanCor Logistics team was recently asked the question, "do companies with a higher transportation spend always get the lower transportation rates?"

We often run into a general assumption in the industry that companies with high-volume transportation spends (exceeding $100M) will have an advantage when it comes to securing lane rates.

But in our experience -- while there is an overall correlation, the causation comes from three, non-spend related sources.

Chicken of the Sea's "Journey to World Class" has yielded significant improvement results in production targets, cost reduction, and efficiency. As part of this leadership training journey, the team is leveraging LeanCor's ORLOE problem-solving model.

LeanCor Supply Chain Group has been recognized by ALM Intelligence as a global Vanguard Logistics Consulting contender in its latest 2018 report.

LeanCor was among a list of companies that made ALM Intelligence – Consulting division’s 2018 ratings of logistics consulting providers due to brand recognition in the industry.

By many reports, the trucking industry is facing a driver shortage. "The American Trucking Association figures companies need about 60,000 drivers, a number that could top 100,000 in just a few years" (MPR News). 

These conditions can prompt trucking companies to hire whomever they can find - and shippers to unknowingly partner with carriers that are unqualified to move their freight. This poses major risks in safety, quality, and liability for all parties involved. 

Making an effort to qualify and monitor your carriers for specific risk factors can go a long way toward building a stronger fleet of partners.