Is Container Shipping Becoming ‘Digital-first’ Fast Enough?
Andre Simha
Global Container Shipping | Digital Shipping | Smart Containers - Chief Digital and Innovation Officer
At 5pm, I can order a pair of shoes from London, and by 2pm the next day, they’ll be at my front door in Geneva.
Beyond all other considerations, this speed and efficiency is impressive – and it’s made possible by seamless digital integration.
By automating manual processes, digitising bills of lading, integrating with customs, and offering a range of digital customer services, next-day delivery services have created a seamless experience, which in time will become commonplace across the broader logistics industry — including shipping.
Regardless of the complexity of change, physical documents, manual data entry, and isolated information are not suitable for a digital-first world.
A digital-first world needs a digital-first approach.
It’s not a matter of if, but when, and that ‘when’ is set to become sooner.
As governments and global trade organisations put a digital-first approach in their focus, the issue goes from being just a key theme in shipping, to an essential for the future of global trade.?
New trade agreements, global policy recommendations, and data sharing initiatives all look to digitalisation as the way forward. The scope of digitalisation in shipping is moving from a tech-focused discussion to a total reimagining of how global trade will work in the future.
To see how we see our our digitalisation journey, I posted a LinkedIn poll to get your perspective. The consensus is that things are happening, but we’re just getting started.
Thank you everyone for your inputs (you can see the full poll results here).
It seems we can agree that things are starting to happen, so in this article I’ll explore several of these key initiatives that may suggest an acceleration in digital-first adoption is on the horizon.
This article is the first of a five part series exploring the five major themes affecting digitalisation in shipping. You can find the original article here. As always I welcome your feedback and input.
Digital-first world, digital-first shipping?
Recently, I spoke at a World Trade Organisation (WTO) and World Economic Forum (WEF) virtual conference called “The promise of TradeTech: Policy approaches to harness trade digitalization”.
The conference (and the paper of the same name) focuses on the important role technology plays in creating a more efficient, inclusive and sustainable global trade. It also outlines how policymakers can create a favourable ecosystem for widespread adoption and scalability.
The paper zeroes in on five core frontiers of policy, what it refers to as the 5 Gs of TradeTech:
Of particular note is point four that stresses interoperability and standards. From e-invoicing, to transaction management, and government procurement, these standardisation initiatives are likely to converge and, in time, increase the uptake of digital in shipping.
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As organisations like the WTO and WEF wield influence in setting policy, such policy papers have the potential to move the needle and push digitalisation up the priority list.
But it’s not just organisations that are talking digitalisation.
More trade. Less paper.?
While policy directions play a critical role, trade agreements have clearly established terms, which makes them particularly influential in accelerating adoption.?
In February this year, the United Kingdom and Singapore shared an outline of one such agreement. The Digital Economy Agreement (DEA) is “the world’s most innovative trade agreement, covering the digitised trade in services and goods across the whole economy”.?
Central to the agreement is open and inclusive digital markets, data flows, and most notably for the logistics industry, digital trading systems.
Digital trading systems include modern electronic contracts, digital authentication, digital invoicing, paperless trading, digital customs and other areas concerning modern logistics — in other words, all the documents and processes needed to facilitate digital trade.
Such an agreement sets a precedent for a digital-first approach. And as one of the busiest transit ports in the world, Singapore’s adoption of such policies could soon become the standard with other countries, further accelerating adoption. As a member of the board, I’m looking forward to further exploring the opportunities it presents.
A digital data convergence
In March this year, the US government announced the Freight Logistics Optimization Works (FLOW). A major information sharing initiative, including representatives from all stakeholders of the supply chain to help speed up delivery times and reduce consumer costs.?
Additionally, the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) launched the Maritime Transportation Data Initiative with the goal of cataloging the status quo, identifying gaps, and developing recommendations to improve existing data collection and flows.
In summary, we’re seeing a convergence of focus towards a digital-first approach. Importantly, it’s not just those within the shipping industry – this has become a global trade priority.
As governments, influential organisations and other key stakeholders emphasise digital-first, a digital-first approach in shipping becomes a greater priority.
These are my predictions.
What do you see happening?
If our goal is being truly-digital first, what would you score the shipping industry out of 100?
What do you think it will take to speed up adoption of a digital-first approach?
Let me know your thoughts in the comments below.?
Founder & President at KeeeX
2 年Congrats Andre What is required to leverage individual digitization is a proof oriented data interchange scheme, that allows parties not necessarily trusting each other to collaborate, in a context where data is not shared to a single centralizing party, and where everybody can rest assured that nobody can cheat. This is exactly what KeeeX Stories allows for. What is needed is also a Data collection scheme working in very cumbersome situations. And this is exactly what KeeeX PhotoProof Pro and KaaaS are doing. Enjoy Fran?ois-Xavier Didelot, Emeric LAVEIX, Christophe Reynaud, jean yves longere.
I enable Maritime companies to build their digital future TODAY with Data & AI ?? Strategic Enterprise Solutions on Data Orchestration and Real AI Solutions | Public Speaker on Digital Transformation | Courageous Leader.
2 年Great hearing about these initiatives in TradeTech, Andre. Yet, it made me think that the Industry as a whole will take the approach, as usual, compliance-first digital-second shipping. Tradelens is a great example of what other initiatives and policies may contribute. Many companies will be forced to comply and then all their weaknesses will be exposed, but still, their internal digital adoption will be slow, as is the case with many companies onboarded on Tradelens with huge data problems inside. I wish we can see more players leading the way with a real digital-first approach that is embraced by the company's leadership regardless of policies. Think of Zappos (based on your shoe example ??), the company's culture made it a success, not the existence of an online store capability, not to mention a policy.
Strategic Advisor - Technical Roadmap Design - Innovation
2 年I might as well add another dimension to consider: Accessibility. Success of digital initiatives is amplified by the adoption of said initiatives by all supply chain parties, especially the least technical players (ex: small trucking companies, warehouses, etc.) If you compare Tradelens versus drayOS (Drayage), the accessibility factor is way different. Software such as DrayOS by PortsPro focuses on the end user (Truck Dispatch), possibly the player least apt to onboard Tradelens yet one of the biggest beneficiaries of data sharing. Port Community Systems act in the same manner - allowing accessibility for the least inclined for the benefit of all. If Tradelens partnered with such community centric applications (PCS or Drayage TMS), benefits would be apparent immediately. Otherwise, only big players will be able to participate and as such, gain will be minimal versus the status quo.
LogTech Venturer
2 年Shipping is almost fully Digitised, but all that digital data is still being processed manually. It’s in silos. What we need is Digital Transformation, in order to DigitALise the end-to-end processes/workflows. Imagine if MSC could run it’s entire global network of ships, trucks, trains, planes and containers on a single platform, that not only handled daily execution, but could also automatically handle exceptions and even optimise the network in real time. A startup has already developed that platform, and implemented it at a number of Logistics Service Providers around the world.
CEO of Bifrost Tug for sustainable workboats & icebreakers | Personal and professional development coach
2 年It is a complex ecosystem with different players but the technology is already there. I believe focusing on the users and offering them a very straightforward and intuitive yet effective interface will accelerate its digitalization and prevent fallbacks to our trusted emails and phone calls.