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Dear Jim,
Welcome to the first edition of Dove Dispatch!
Thanks to so many of you, Dove is growing faster than ever. As we grow
we continue to offer more services to help you do your job better.
In Dove Dispatch you will find shipping
tips, changes in the law that may affect your planning, as well as
stories from some of our customers who are using Dove in ways that may
surprise you.
This is your
newsletter. Please tell us how to make it better for you!
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6 Steps for Selecting a 3PL
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 A recent article in Traffic World looks as if we had
written it ourselves. Titled, "Finding a Match," it lists six
things to help you strike gold when selecting a third-party logistics
provider.
The article cautioned that price should not be the
deciding factor. Now, we know price is very important, and we all have
budgets. Still, as the article pointed out, many times apparently
brilliant solutions fade in the light of other considerations, such as:
·
Cultural alignment. Check for shared values, such ethics and responsibility. Make sure
you both agree on what "partnership" means.
·
Partnership. Are client and 3PL willing and able to invest in
common success? Do both agree on the meaning of
"collaboration?"
·
Infrastructure. Do both parties have, or do they plan to get, the
physical resources to meet each other's needs?
·
IT capabilities. You must be able to communicate via electronic data,
XLM or the Web. How responsive is each party to making changes to
accommodate the other?
·
Ease of doing business. Flexibility is important. Is each party willing
to make reasonable exceptions or changes regarding services and
schedules? Does the 3PL offer to customize its services?
·
Metrics. What defines success and how is it measured? Client and
3PL must agree on definitions and methodology and be committed to
continuous review and improvement.
Traffic World, June 18, 2007, p. 21
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Meet Chad Hughes
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 Chad Hughes brings high level corporate experience
and military discipline to his new position as Manager, Business Development
with Dove Logistics and Transportation.
A native of Piqua, Ohio, Chad
graduated from Arlington Heights
High School, in Fort Worth, Tex.,
both locations stopping points in his father's Air Force career.
After high school, Chad
enlisted in the US Army, where he served as a personnel specialist in Korea and at Fort Riley, Kansas.
He continued his studies with night school classes throughout his
military days, and graduated from KansasStateUniversity in 1996 with a
business degree.
Following graduation, Chad was accepted into the
management training program of ARAMARK Uniform Services. Several moves,
with increasingly higher level jobs, placed him in Nashville, Tenn.,
as a district manager. Chad
then was recruited for a sales position with T. D. Rowe, the nation's
largest supplier of coin operated games.
At T. D. Rowe he advanced from regional sales manager in
Nashville to handling national accounts
in Dallas,
and ultimately was promoted to vice president of sales. Following a
corporate buyout of T. D. Rowe, Chad had several
opportunities, but liked the strong upside Dove offered.
Dove CEO Mike Thomas likes the fresh perspective Chad
brings to Dove. "Chad's
corporate experience helps him know the needs of our corporate
customers especially well," Thomas said. "The discipline he
developed at home and in the army gives him the follow through so
necessary to serving our entire customer base."
Chad has enjoyed great success with Dove
from his first day, developing new corporate accounts. His secret?
"Listening to what customers want, then making it happen."
"I've worked for some good companies, but the team
at Dove is second to none," Chad said. "The
emphasis is on the word 'team' because we all help each other to
consistently come up with the best solution for our customers.
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Freight Index Up in May
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The U.S.
Department of Transportation said earlier this month the freight Transportation Services Index (TSI)
rose 0.1 percent to 109.7 in May from its April level, following a
decline the previous month.
The freight TSI measures the month-to-month changes in
the output of services provided by the for-hire freight transportation
industries. The index consists of data from for-hire trucking,
rail, inland waterways, pipelines and air freight.
The May gain was the fourth in the last six months, accounting for a year-to-date
gain of 0.8, down 3.0 percent from its peak of 113.1 in November 2005,
but up 1.3 percent from its recent low of 108.3 in November 2006.
Despite the recent declines, the freight index has
increased 8.5 percent in five years and 18.6 percent in 10 years .
The TSI still is under development and is considered experimental. The
seasonally adjusted index, which includes data from 1990 on, measures
changes from the monthly average of the base year of 2000. Release of
the June index is scheduled for Aug. 8.
Source: www.dot.gov
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Hiring & Pay Heading Up
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A report just released jointly by the Society for Human
Resource Management and Rutgers University
says U.S. manufacturers were hiring more workers in June than in
previous months this year, but the number is not as high as last June's
seasonal hiring spike.
The report also showed new hire compensation growth is
the highest it's been since such data began to be collected in February
2004. This may be a short term fluctuation or the beginning of a wage
inflation trend, the report's author said.
Source: www.shrm.org
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 As we prepared this first edition, I
asked our staff for contributions. One sent me a quote from business
expert Steven Covey:
"Communication is the most
important
skill in life."
It made me reflect on what Dove is all about. We are
about communication. Sure, we are an extension of your shipping
department - for some customers we are
the shipping department - but the essence of Dove is communication.
You want to know that your shipments arrive on time, in
good shape and that there are no surprises. We offer our automated Dove
Tracks system so you can track things online, but we encourage you to
call us or send an email any time.
Some companies don't like to be called at 3 a.m., or
can't be reached then. Dove can. We have people on duty 24 hours, seven
days a week. Most nights we sleep well because things are going right.
But never hesitate to call us, anytime.
We're excited about Dove Dispatch because it provides us
another way to communicate with our customers. Please help us make it
as much YOUR newsletter as it is ours. We want your suggestions and
constructive criticism. Tell us what you would like to see included, or
left out. We're listening.
To your shipping success,
Mike Thomas
Dove
Logistics & Transportation, LLC
Call Toll
Free 866-937-DOVE
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Featured Article
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The Conference Board Says Economic Outlook Good
Gail Fosler, Chief Economist for The Conference Board,
said June figures were overall positive:
· Higher long-term bond yields reflect
better outlook
· Manufacturing is recovering
· Housing will be neutral-to-growth
for the foreseeable future
· Wage increases help support consumer
spending
· Financial sector risk is of greatest
concern
The Conference Board is a leading business membership
and research organization, representing more than 2,000 companies in 5
nations.
The Board's US office publishes monthly
reports including the Consumer Confidence Index, U.S. Leading
Indicators, Help-Wanted Advertising Index and Help-Wanted Online.
Source: www.conference-board.org
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People Are Talking
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"You all did a great job on our first two
ship-ments. I appreciate your efforts on our behalf!"
Penny M., corporate shipper
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