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in this issue
· Opening Keynote & Day One
Sessions
· Dinner Speaker
· Day Two Sessions
· Thank You to Our
Sponsors
· Discovery Room
Packed with New Technology
· Hold the Dates
· Fall into
"Out to Lunch" Training
· Calendar of Events
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Greetings,
Welcome to
a special edition of the CLI newsletter. In this issue we will recap the
Annual CLI Leadership Summit, which was held at the end of September in
Tarrytown, NY. We are pleased to report it was a resounding success.
Attendees from as far away as the United Kingdom and the West Coast were
treated to three days of intense learning and exclusive networking.
The theme
this year was "Growing Your Trucking Business" and the emphasis was
on sales, marketing, and customer service. From motivating keynotes to lively
workshops to interactive roundtables, this event had it all. Attendees
explored ways to increase business by differentiating themselves from their
competitors and were given instruction from a high strategic level down to
practical tips.
New this
year were two sessions that had been suggested by last year's attendees: a
cutting-edge technology showcase and roundtable discussions. The showcase
featured CLI partners discussing the latest in wireless technology, Business
Intelligence and costing systems. Roundtables focused on the topics of
"Fuel Issues," "Security Concerns in Our New World," and
"Building a Customer System."
We would
like to thank all of the attendees who helped make this a world-class
conference. Your participation in this program made it the valuable event
that it truly was. We would also like to thank the speakers whose time,
talents, and efforts took the program to a whole new level.
If you
missed out on attending this year's program, please mark your calendar now
for next year's Summit on September 27 - 29, 2006 in Tarrytown, NY. This is a
unique industry event targeted exclusively to multi-stop carriers that really
delivers an educational punch. As one attendee wrote in his evaluation,
"This was a great opportunity to discuss similar problems and concerns
with peers while learning from the interesting topics presented."
Opening
Keynote & Day One Sessions 
Opening
Keynote
After a spirited opening reception and dinner on Wednesday night,
participants got down to business first thing Thursday morning with Paul
DiModica's opening keynote on "Growing Your Trucking Business in This
Competitive Market." DiModica, the president of DigitalHatch, is an
engaging and riveting speaker who delivered a tremendous amount of valuable
information that will surely resonate with attendees for months to come.
Declaring that in the trucking and transportation industry the current
environment is, "Hunt now or be eaten later," DiModica took the
audience through ways to sharpen their marketing and sales to increase profits.
After reviewing the six methods to grow your company, DiModica had the
participants fill out an LTL Business Growth Audit. DiModica stressed the
need for a growth plan, driving home the point that "Growth is a
proactive plan, not a reactive approach."
Communicating
Value When Marketing Your Services
DiModica also presented a session on communicating value, which is a proven
way to differentiate your business in the marketplace. The first exercise the
group did was to determine their company's "Sales Value
Proposition" or SVP. An SVP as defined by DiModica is a unique
communication hook to get past the management filter of being just another
logistics company. DiModica shared the five rules for developing an SVP and
then reviewed each person's SVP in this highly interactive session. DiModica
finished up the session discussing how to create value-driven marketing
tools.
Web
Services and Connectivity
David Olson, director of enterprise solutions for Progress Software
Corporation, led the next session on the highly relevant and cutting-edge
topic of connectivity. In the past technological innovation pushed business
but now it is business innovation that pushes technology, said Olson. He went
on to define web services and noted their value lies in their ability to
connect applications together through agreed upon standards, i.e., the
ability to share information between applications without writing a
customized interface. He finished up his session with an example of a
shipment being tracked by RFID and how connectivity can take simple data and
makes it very meaningful for the trucker and shipper alike.
How to
Recruit and Manage Salespeople
After a lunch in the Biddle House mansion, attendees reconvened to listen to
Marty Shapiro, president of Martin Shapiro Associates, discuss recruiting and
retaining sales people. Shapiro, a transportation veteran now running his own
executive search firm, shared his insights on this important topic. After
discussing ideas on alternate ways to recruit salespeople, Shapiro switched
gears and talked about how to manage your sales team through incentives. He
finished up with the benefits of managing through incentives, which included
increased profitability, improved morale, and reduced turnover.
How to
Sell Your Services while Managing Competition
After the "Spotlight on Partner Technology" session, Paul DiModica
returned for his final session sharing some nuts and bolts ideas on how to
sell your services. DiModica offered both high-level strategic plans and
basic sales and marketing advice such as making sure your telephone number is
on every page of your website. He also discussed the topics of parallel
imaging and the importance of creating "visual brochures." He
finished up by telling participants how to create business value by using a
"Value Forward" method of selling.
Utilizing
Technology to Maximize Sales Efficiencies
Ben Wiesen, senior transportation consultant at CLI, presented a session on
how to use technology to improve sales and retain customers. Beginning with the
same premise introduced at the start of the day, Wiesen noted that in the
trucking and transportation industry it is very difficult to differentiate
yourself from the competition. One way to distinguish your business from the
crowd is through the use of technology. Better technology systems mean
efficient processes, better data/information and fewer mistakes - all things
that can attract new customers while keeping your current clients happy.
Wiesen gave examples of the latest technologies that are available including
web-based customer service and sales systems, as well as Business
Intelligence, which can be a boon for managing your sales staff.
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Dinner Speaker
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 Industry Trends:
The View from Wall Street
After some dedicated time spent reviewing products and services in the
Discovery Room (see the article below for more details), the group
reconvened for cocktails and hors d'oeuvres in the Biddle House music room.
A private dinner in the elegantly appointed Garden room followed, capped by
a speech by Merrill Lynch's senior Airfreight and Surface Transportation
analyst Ken Hoexter.
Hoexter
shared his view of the transportation industry including the current state
of economic affairs particularly in the wake of the destruction caused by
Hurricane Katrina. After a lengthy Q&A with the group, where Hoexter
showed his incredible depth of knowledge, the program wrapped for the
evening.
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Day Two Sessions
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 Importance of
Customer Analysis
After another dedicated session in the Discovery Room and roundtable
discussions on industry topics, Steve Raschilla, vice president at
MastioGale Consulting, began his two-part session on Customer Value
Analysis. He began by posing the key Customer Value question: How will I be
better off if I buy from you rather than from your competitors? Raschilla
explained that customer satisfaction is not as important as a customer's
perceived value. Customers buy on perceived value, which is equal to
benefits relative to cost. Raschilla said that benefits include all
non-cost attributes and that benefits, costs, and value are perceived
relative to competition. Once he had explained the importance of Customer
Value, Raschilla went on to discuss how it provides powerful tools to
understand targeted markets and drive growth.
Managing
Customer Value
After a short break, Raschilla continued with part two of his session
explaining how to measure and manage customer value to earn market share
and improve profits. Beginning by sharing the results of a 2005
MastioGale Case Study of National LTL Carriers, Raschilla showed what
the customers of these LTL carriers felt was important in choosing a
carrier. The survey showed that competitive pricing, operational
effectiveness, and courteous/professional service are key themes that drive
carrier selection decisions. Raschilla noted that very often the internal
perspective varies widely from the market perspective. For example,
accurate invoices scored low on the internal survey and yet customers
scored it near the top in importance. Clearly there is a disconnect.
Raschilla then finished up his session discussing the proven process for
implementing Customer Value Management and how to go about surveying your
customers.
Presentations
If you are interested in viewing any of the PowerPoint presentations,
including the 2005 MastioGale Case Study of National LTL Carriers, please
contact Craig Lis at CLI at clis@carrierlogistics.com.
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Thank You to Our
Sponsors
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 CLI would like to
thank Progress Software Corporation and the Transportation Costing Group
(TCG) for their sponsorships at this event. Progress, CLI's platform
partner, sponsored in part the opening keynote by Paul DiModica. Anthony
Payer and David Olson, who also led a session on connectivity, represented
Progress at the event.
TCG
sponsored the opening reception. TCG creates costing software that works
seamlessly with the FACTS™ system. Ken Manning, TCG president, represented
the company at the program.
Thank you
Progress and TCG. 
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Discovery Room
Packed with New Technology
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 CLI Invites
Partners to Participate
CLI once
again set up a separate "Discovery Room" at the Summit, where
participants could try out some of the newest technology products for the
industry firsthand. This year CLI invited several of their partners to
participate as well. The Discovery Room was very well received by
participants and the addition of their partners was a welcome one as
indicated by this attendee's comment: "Very impressed with all of the
product offerings and the wide range of affiliations CLI has with other
vendors."
CLI
showed off its FACTS™ suite of software solutions including FACTSview™,
Business Intelligence software, FACTSweb, the web-based customer service
module, and DMS, CLI's dock management system. Other demonstrations
included ABC costing software from Transportation Costing Group, Fathom,
the disaster recovery solution provided by Progress, wireless solutions
from KonaWare, imaging from E-B-E, and data, technology and education
solutions from SMC3.
For
further information on any of the above products or to set up your own
demo, please contact Ken Weinberg at kweinberg@carrierlogistics.com.
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Hold the Dates
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 The 2006
Leadership Summit will be held September 27- 29, 2006 at the Tarrytown
House Estate and Conference Center in Tarrytown, NY. Please mark your
calendar, as we will once again be providing a strong program relevant to
the transportation industry, a unique opportunity to network with your
peers, a stellar roster of dynamic speakers, and an exclusive chance to
view firsthand the latest technology and solutions available.
Pictured above is just one of the roundtable discussions from this
year's program.
"Well
chosen speakers." "I received value for the time invested."
"Excellent program on a broad base of subjects." These are just a
few of the comments that we received on this year's evaluations. CLI will
once again put together a program that is well-organized, timely,
educational and one that will benefit you and your business.
Watch
your e-mail for updates as the program draws nearer.
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Fall into
"Out to Lunch" Training
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Autumn is traditionally back to school time, so why not head
back for some education yourself at the one hour a week "Out to
Lunch" training. "Out to Lunch" sessions are a great and
inexpensive way to learn how to maximize your CLI software. This training is
a terrific opportunity for you and your team to get up-to-speed on the
FACTS™ system. If you have not yet signed up, please do so today.
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Date
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Topic
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Oct. 14 12:00pm EDT
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Carrier Setup and Rates (Interline/Agent)
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Oct. 21 12:00pm EDT
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Operations: Daily Start-Up Procedures
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Oct. 28 12:00pm EDT
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Rating Precedence and Options
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REGISTER TODAY!
The fee
for the session is $75. If you need more than one connection to the
conference call, each additional connection is $30. This additional fee
covers the conference call and the WebEx cost, both priced by user. For
questions or to register for any of the above sessions, please either reply
to this e-mail or send an e-mail to at training@carrierlogistics.com .
Registration is required at least 24 hours in advance as we may need to
increase the number of connections required for a given session. Please
supply the following when you register: Company Name, Your Name, E-mail
Address, Phone Number and Topic.
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Calendar of
Events
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Quick Links
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