After a successful Melbourne launch of our lunch 'n' learn event series where we invited a mix of logistics and routing specialists to share ideas, Adiona again hosted a lunch, this time in Sydney.
With schedulers, route optimizers, fleet managers, and more in attendance, there was a healthy discussion of different areas of logistics optimization and lots of open sharing of tips and tricks. The most common sentiment in the room was people wanting to hear how others are using technology to address different areas of delivery operations, hoping to find inspiration for new ways to think about their own operations.
Most logistics businesses have been in operation for a long time, with set ways of working. Gaining a fresh perspective to rethink "the way we've always done it" is an invaluable opportunity for those looking to find improvements in their existing processes.
Sydney trends
Premium delivery experiences
With many companies tracking customer satisfaction as a key metric in the business, the delivery experience is being refreshed. From real-time ETA updates via email and text, to the uniforms of the delivery drivers, "delivery experience" was a hot topic of the day. Attendees discussed how the delivery experience needs to match the value of the items being delivered. Premium or luxury products need a premium delivery experience to match.
Exceeding customer expectations not only gives a higher NPS score, it leads to repeat business!
AI in logistics
A big topic not just on the day but in the industry right now is how AI can be applied to logistics. In particular, the rise of agentic AI (where multiple AI agents work together) was discussed. "Vibe coding", a new term for using no-code AI platforms to build your own custom apps, was also a hot topic. Using this, schedulers and optimizers can rapidly test ideas without investing in technology to see if the idea works, however once validated it's still a good idea to then go looking for a proper technology solution.
One of the suggested uses of agentic AI was using it for customer assistance, for example helping customers reschedule deliveries.
AI is not advanced enough to develop its own AI, and AI-generated apps will have reliability and security issues, especially for enterprise-grade applications, so they're best suited for quick proof of concepts and not for full rollouts.
Optimization technology needs to work for the business, not the other way around
Adopting new systems and technology is difficult for any business. Adopting a piece of technology that has a huge learning curve and requires staff to struggle to get it to fit your existing systems isn't going to end in success. When evaluating technology, selecting one that has an easy setup and onboarding is crucial.
Flexibility: Not all routing requires the same optimization
Attendees contrasted the difference in routing needs for vending routes vs single product routes as a key example for why routing software needs to be flexible. Similarly, the needs of a daily dynamic route, next or same-day delivery, refrigeration, and even routes where all stops must be on the same side of the road all have unique requirements for an "optimized" routes.
Adiona just launched a new content series on how optimization changes depending on the city layout! Checkout our first posts on Australian cities and continental US cities.
Reliability: Optimization technology needs to work!
For same-day or next-day deliveries where the turnaround time from receiving the stops to instructing drivers on their routes is minimal, having a route optimization platform that doesn't break down on you is essential. One attendee told a story where their next-day delivery business was evaluating software providers and were surprised by how many had reliability issues. Multiple vendors had platforms that would often break, and it would take longer to fix than the turnaround time the team had to plan their routes for the next shift.
Join the next Adiona lunch
Our first lunch 'n' learn was so well received, we're hosting another! With spots limited, the lunches are invite-only, however you can reach out with your interest in being included. Simply get in touch.