Management consulting firm Accenture has released a new report focused on the digital performance of the post and parcel industry. The report found that while the majority of delivery firms are good at planning digital strategies, there was a distinct lack of investment when it came to putting them into action.
The report, titled The Value Game-Changer: Digital Performance in the Post and Parcel Industry, examined the digital performance of 31 post and parcel organizations to understand how digital technologies could help generate revenue in conjunction with a booming e-commerce market.
Using its Digital Performance Index, Accenture quantitatively assessed the level of digital investment and progress across four business functions plan (digital strategy); make (digital production and delivery); sell (digital customer experience) and manage (digital corporate culture and operations). The assessment entailed evaluating 42 business activities, including customer service, sales, operations and the supply chain.
The results showed that while e-commerce is driving a very different digital experience in retail, the shipping and delivery of goods purchased online is not nearly as digitally enabled as in other industries (electronics, communications, retail, banking and utilities) and lacks the investment required to keep up with changing consumer habits.
Brody Buhler, who leads Accenture’s global post and parcel business, said, “As the pace of digital change is accelerating, daily, last-mile delivery companies will need to leverage digital solutions to remain relevant and competitive in a fast-changing market. E-commerce growth is enticing new entrants and investment. This growth and competition will force post and parcel organizations to digitize to create the agility and flexibility they will need. And those same digital capabilities will be essential to creating the growth they’ll need to achieve high performance.”
The report revealed that the post and parcel industry, like many of the world’s leading companies, is not translating digital investments into better financial performance. For example, only 6% of all companies studied, as well as 6% of post and parcel organizations, are considered “Digital High Performers”, which combine strong digital performance with strong financial performance.
The report also found that while the post and parcel industry has 44% more “Business Leaders” than other industries assessed, only 10% of post and parcel companies are considered “Digital Leaders”.
Post and parcel organizations also score better at planning for digital than executing those plans, according to the report, which calls for additional action to assess and improve results of digital investments and to create a culture that takes full advantage of digital. While 90% of posts focus on digital capabilities such as data analytics and predictive modeling in their business strategies, and more than 70% have a social media presence for customer interaction, less than 30% have a dedicated budget for digital programs.
The report shows that digital strategies are just beginning to evolve in the post and parcel industry but predicted that these will become increasingly important over the next few years.
To read more from the report, click here.
April 18, 2017
