463: Simplify Your Last Mile with Technology That Delivers, with CXT SoftwareD
Release Date: 04/14/2025
Let's Talk Supply Chain
Melodie Van Der Baan talks about her career journey; juggling motherhood & entrepreneurship; positivity; and the intricate dance between supply and demand. IN THIS EPISODE WE DISCUSS: [04.04] The early years of Melodie’s career, why she fell in love with retail, and how her experiences laid the groundwork for her entrepreneurial journey. “I loved every store, every city, every boutique owner I visited and sold to. But, without fail, they would point out what didn’t sell from the season before, and say ‘Mel, what are you going to do about it?’ And so I had to find a...
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Megan Keith & Shawn Piper talk about Uber Freight; bridging tech & service; bringing product & design together; automation; & the future of freight technology. IN THIS EPISODE WE DISCUSS: [04.00] Introductions to Megan and Shawn, and their roles at Uber Freight. “I was drawn to logistics because of its complexity and impact. It’s a space where smart, intuitive tools can really make a difference, and I love simplifying that complexity so transportation teams can move faster and make better decisions.” [05.21] An overview of Uber Freight, the evolution that brought...
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Anthony & Lyle of ProcurementIQ talk about client collaboration, leveraging data, the growth of procurement & the biggest challenges impacting teams in 2025. IN THIS EPISODE WE DISCUSS: [06.08] Lyle’s background and the journey that led him to co-found ProcurementIQ. [09.00] How ProcurementIQ has evolved over the last decade, and where they are now. “We were learning – and so was procurement in its own right. The concept of category intelligence wasn’t really a thing in 2013... Back then there was market intelligence so what we really had to learn about was that...
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Craig Barth of Premier Trailer Leasing talks about understanding if your business needs to buy, rent or lease; & leveraging fleet management for success. IN THIS EPISODE WE DISCUSS: [05.31] An overview of Premier Trailer Leasing – who they are, what they do, and how they help their customers. [06.07] What sets Premier apart, and the secret to their success as they celebrate 20 years in business. “There are several companies that will rent or lease you a semitrailer. So why do people come to Premier? The reality is: it’s the people. It’s the partnerships we form, the...
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Alexia McLaughlin talks about making an impact through innovation; her commitment to cultures of excellence; & her big achievement as an industry rising star. IN THIS EPISODE WE DISCUSS: [03.52] An introduction to Alexia and her role at Veho. “If Uber and UPS had a baby, it would be Veho!” [05.08] How Alexia began her career in sales, and her journey through roles at Oracle and Jebbit to her current position at Veho. “I never thought I was going to be in sales! That used car salesman connotation springs to your mind… But, when I was coming out of college, a lot of...
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Dexter Weber of TGW Logistics talks about the trends, challenges & opportunities in warehouse logistics; building strategic partnerships; and TGW's new brand. IN THIS EPISODE WE DISCUSS: [05.31] TGW’s 50+ year journey from small fitters shop in Austria to global manufacturing leader. “Part of our journey was becoming a foundation-owned company... We reinvest our profits into our solutions and capabilities, and to charity. We’re not chasing goals and pleasing shareholders – we’re focused on that long-term vision.” [09.07] Where TGW are now, their vision for the...
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Beverly Steele talks about her journey, making a big change mid-career; what it means to be a workforce innovator; and her take on work-life balance. IN THIS EPISODE WE DISCUSS: [04.29] An introduction to Beverly and her role at Inmar. [05.11] Beverly’s career journey, and her decades of varied experience. “I’ve been in reverse logistics well over 20 years. I actually stopped saying how long because I realized I’d been in it longer than some of my colleagues have been alive!” [07.15] Beverly’s 20-year tenure at CORT, and an overview of the roles she took on as she climbed the...
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Phillip Lechter of CXT Software talks about challenges in last mile; building a people-first culture; & how they're helping customers grow, compete & thrive. IN THIS EPISODE WE DISCUSS: [05.45] How CXT innovated over the past 25 years to meet the changing needs of an evolving logistics landscape. “25 years is a long time in the software space!… In maturation of software, it’s easy to want to 'set it and forget it', and live off the benefits. But you can’t do that today. Supply chain is changing so rapidly, and our focus is on innovation, connectivity, and our...
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Carlos Perico of ProcureAbility talks about sourcing best practices in a tariff-driven world & how to turn procurement from cost center to competitive advantage IN THIS EPISODE WE DISCUSS: [04.29] An introduction to Carlos and ProcureAbility. “All we do is procurement! It’s our speciality, it’s what we’re passionate about. And that’s key.” [05.59] Tariffs: what they are, and why supply chain professionals need to pay attention. [07.07] Diversification: Some of the strategies companies can employ to build agile supply chains for long-term resilience, the big...
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Bill Catania of OneRail and Anna Farberov of PepsiCo talk all about their strategic partnership, how it works & the benefits it drives for Pepsi customers. IN THIS EPISODE WE DISCUSS: [03.42] Introductions to Bill and OneRail, and Anna and PepsiCo Labs. [06.22] Why PepsiCo reached out to OneRail to explore partnership opportunities. “They have the solution and we have the problem; they have an entrepreneurial mindset and can move fast, and we have the business expertise and deep industry understanding. And when we’re able to feed that back, that’s where the magic happens.” ...
info_outlinePhillip Lechter of CXT Software talks about challenges in last mile; building a people-first culture; & how they're helping customers grow, compete & thrive.
IN THIS EPISODE WE DISCUSS:
[05.45] How CXT innovated over the past 25 years to meet the changing needs of an evolving logistics landscape.
“25 years is a long time in the software space!… In maturation of software, it’s easy to want to 'set it and forget it', and live off the benefits. But you can’t do that today. Supply chain is changing so rapidly, and our focus is on innovation, connectivity, and our ability to make it easy for our clients to do what they want to do - and not be hamstrung by the business we’ve created.”
[09.13] Where CXT is now, what they do, and how they help their customers.
“It’s about making ourselves as configurable as possible to our clients... our ability to serve multiple workflows based on the business our clients are doing for their own customers.”
[11.08] The ideal client for CXT.
[13.25] From the uniqueness of workflows to real-time visibility, some of the biggest challenges in the industry right now, as last mile strives to catch up with changing consumer expectations.
“Amazon has done some amazing things, but it’s made it very difficult for the average courier service – everyone wants that Amazon experience… And that’s the opportunity we have in the TMS space, to even the playing field.”
[16.04] How CXT’s white-labeled portal empowers clients with the tools they need, without a big costly investment, and how that ultimately drives customer loyalty and boosts satisfaction.
“Too often we’re in reactive not proactive mode. And the more we can streamline that, the more we can meaningfully create relationships with our clients.”
[18.59] How CXT’s shipment management technology supports operations teams across a range of functions, and a closer look at the user interface.
“We’re ensuring that a dispatcher still has the ability to make decisions, but some of the heavy lifting gets done for them. They’re managing exceptions rather than every single element along the way.”
“We see a ton of waste that’s really low margin. Even a 1% increase in profit can be pretty significant in this type of business.”
[24.30] The importance of driver management, and how CXT’s app integrates with operational and client functions to tackle challenges, and drive efficiency, accountability and customer service.
[30.19] Some of the key opportunities and growth areas CXT are supporting their customers with.
[32.53] A case study showing how CXT helped a long-standing client enter the medical space and demonstrate a significant efficiency metric, and the importance of partnerships.
[36.44] Why CXT consciously built a people-first culture, and what we can expect from them in 2025.
“This business is a people business… We use software as a way to make efficiencies, but it’s still somebody delivering to somebody else!”
RESOURCES AND LINKS MENTIONED:
Head over to CXT Software’s website now to find out more and discover how they could help you too. You can also connect with CXT and keep up to date with the latest over on LinkedIn, Facebook, X (Twitter), Instagram or YouTube, or you can connect with Phillip on LinkedIn.
If you enjoyed this episode and want to hear more about last mile, check out 365: Delivering the Amazon effect: how to increase your last mile delivery efficiency by 30%, 348: How COVID Changed Last Mile Delivery Forever, with SEKO or 393: Get 100% Visibility Over Your Final Mile, with OneRail.