A new report by report by the AberdeenGroup, reveals how top companies have greatly reduced their logistics costs through a new approach that is gaining ground in the marketplace. The report, titled, "Closed-Loop Transportation Spend Management-New Approaches to Improving Procurement & Payment" outlines how companies like Unilever, Pinnacle Foods, and Papa John's have successfully reduced contracted freight rates, and cut invoice processing costs at the same time through this ground-breaking new method.

"For most companies, transportation spend management isn't really 'owned' by any one person or department," says Ian Hobkirk, Senior Analyst in Aberdeen's Supply Chain Execution practice, and author of the report. "As a result, it's very different to achieve end-to-end efficiencies since the data resides in different places, and no single person or department is incentivized to make it work. Some visionary executives are starting to drive 'closed loop' logistics processes from the top down, leading to double digit savings in freight spend and administrative costs."

Some key findings of the report include:
Best-in-Class are TWICE as likely as their peers to practice closed loop transportation spend management today
Best-in-Class companies are TWICE as likely as their peers to perform extensive analysis of historical freight spend data and convert it into a request for proposal
Best-in-Class companies are 27% more likely than their peers to allow expressive carrier bidding
Best-in-Class companies are 46% more likely than their peers to automatically audit freight invoices against electronic rate tables

This research report was made possible, in part, with the financial support of our underwriters, including: MercuryGate, Manhattan Associates, LeanLogistics, BravoSolution/VerticalNet, CombineNet, and USBank/Powertrack. These individuals and organizations share Aberdeen's vision of bringing fact based research to corporations worldwide at little or no cost. Underwriters have no editorial or research rights and the facts and analysis of this report remain an exclusive production and product of Aberdeen Group.
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