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When most people think about freight audit, they think of paying invoices correctly and on time. And that matters. But if that's where your view of freight audit stops, you're leaving an enormous amount of value on the table.
The thing about freight audit is that it sits at the end of the logistics supply chain process. By the time you get the invoice and pay it, you know when it was shipped. You know when it was delivered. You know what delays happened. You know what extra fees were charged. You have the full picture of visibility. That data becomes the baseline for making other business decisions, making predictions, and adjusting for next year.
Freight audit doesn't have to be the back-office function that confirms whether an invoice is correct. It can be the forefront of the data you use to make supply chain decisions.
The Data Means Different Things to Different People
One of the things I'm most excited about right now is how we give users not only the data that's been happening, but also highlights of the anomalies and the trends. And beyond that, allowing users to configure what their dashboards look like.
Each of our personas has different needs. Finance, logistics, and procurement all need the data that's relevant to them. The ultimate goal is that we let our companies have the data they need so they can make strategic decisions. When you think about it that way, a freight audit stops being a cost center and becomes a data asset that drives the business forward.
Dashboards Show You Where You Are but Not What to Do
A dashboard is great. You have to have them. They provide visibility, showing you where you are today and how that compares to where you were yesterday. That's great information to have.
But where dashboards break down is in the recommendation. What do I do with this information now that I have it? So now I know I'm not paying my invoices on time. How do I fix that?
Focusing on the workflow lets you see each step of the process and identify the recommendations you need to make changes. That's really where the industry is going. Recommendations over data.
The Timing Gap That's Costing You the Most
If I could fix one timing gap in the typical supply chain workflow, it might not be the most common answer, but for me, it would be the time to receive the invoice. We spend a lot of time, and our customers spend a lot of time, trying to figure out the smallest set of transactions. Which invoices aren't in the system? Go ask all the carriers for their data. Go look at shipping records. It's an immense amount of time to find such a small data set.
That's really two things. It's the carrier getting the invoice generated right away and receiving it in electronic format. Anytime you throw in paper, it's going to slow you down. To me, that's the critical gap. Getting visibility into the transaction.
Why Exception Resolution Is the Close Second
The closest exception most people might think of is the time it takes to resolve an exception after you receive the invoice. The invoice is not right, but the time between when you know you have a problem with the invoice and when the carrier gets paid can be long.
You still have visibility to the liability, which is the most important thing. But then, having tools that quickly resolve that exception becomes very important. Having tools that allow the customer, the carrier, and Trax to all interface and work together on the same exception is almost just as important as getting the invoice in the first place.
Freight Audit Is the Starting Line, Not the Finish Line
The industry has treated freight audit as the end of a process for a long time. You ship something, you get invoiced, you pay it, you move on. But when you look at the data that comes out of that process and what it can tell you about your operations, costs, and carrier performance, it becomes clear that freight audit is where strategic visibility begins.
The companies that figure this out first are the ones that will turn their freight data into a real competitive advantage.
Dimi Kurtti is Senior Director of Product Strategy at Trax. With nearly 20 years at Trax spanning roles from business analyst to SVP of professional services and implementations, Dimi brings deep expertise in freight audit operations and supply chain data strategy.
Want to learn how Trax is helping companies turn freight audit data into strategic advantage? Contact Trax to learn more, or connect with Dimi directly on LinkedIn.