Nowadays, countless systems churn out shipment tracking statuses like “shipped” or “delivered”—just to mention a few. Incredibly, some systems are designed to transmit thousands of unique free-form text statuses, while others limit themselves to just a few specific shipment status codes. Furthermore, there is a wide array of systems that provide tracking updates. These range from shipment tracking systems and carrier systems to transportation management systems (TMS) and 3rd Party Logistics (3PL) systems, among others. At first glance, these shipment statuses might seem both informative and easy to grasp; however, reality tells a different story.

This article examines how custom-built shipment statuses hobble our supply chains’ data flows by offering little insight to decision-makers. Moreover, new tech such as AI won’t fix this since the root issue is a lack of data interoperability between organizations, which is primarily a business problem. Specifically, we don’t have the operational clarity needed for effective communication across supply chains. Indeed, this situation worsens as we add more functions and automation while expanding globally. To better explain, I’ll also give examples showing the need for strong business leadership to bring operational clarity to our information exchanges. Lastly, I’ll suggest solutions for better data interoperability in our supply chains.

1. Lost in Translation: Tech Cannot Fix Supply Chain Information Flows that Are Hobbled by Customized Shipment Statuses.

Indeed, logistics has become increasingly automated, bringing with it the expectation of real-time, precise updates on shipment statuses. This seems reasonable as supply chains now have the ability to deliver shipments in hours instead of “4-6 weeks”. However, we are not there yet with accurate, timely shipment statuses. This is despite the fact that now there are countless logistics organizations that routinely exchange data between systems. The real problem is that every system that transmits data has a slightly different definition of what the data means. This is because almost all logistics companies are transmitting custom-built, proprietary shipment statuses. As a result, supply chain information flows do not provide the operational clarity needed in our digital supply chains.

The root cause of this lack of clarity is that these countless systems each generate ambiguous, free-form text strings. As a result, these custom-built shipment statuses, at best, provide limited meaning to the intended recipient.

To illustrate, each major U.S. parcel carrier, FedEx, UPS, and USPS, has their own set of shipment statuses with their own definitions. For instance, each of these sets of custom-built shipment statuses can include terms like Shipped, Acceptance, Arrived at Unit, Forwarded, Exception, and hundreds of other tracking updates. Amazingly, this illustration is just the tip of the iceberg that includes just three organizations providing custom-built shipment statuses. In reality there are thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of logistics organizations generating their own brand of shipment statuses. Now, why is this happening? Below are the major reasons we have countless organizations transmitting custom-built shipment statuses that hobble our ability to have seamless information flows within our supply chains. 

Reasons Supply Chains Do Not Have Seamless Information Flows

Poor Operational Definitions Impede Supply Chain Tech Adoption: Now Is the Time For A Big Change

• Lack of Common Business Glossaries With Clear Operational Definitions. Indeed, clear operational definitions are needed for both business systems and organizations to ensure that what is communicated is understood. This is especially true of shipment status transmissions for both operations and financials within supply chains. For more detailed discussion with examples, see my article, Poor Operational Definitions Impede Supply Chain Tech Adoption: Now Is the Time For A Big Change.
• Data Transferred Routinely Gets Lost in Translation, Losing Its Meaning. Most supply chains now have a web of “dumb” data Integrations due to each data interface having its own custom-built set of shipment status definitions. For a more detailed discussion, see my article, Achieving Logistics Interoperability: The Best Way to Breakthrough The Tangle Of Dumb Data Integrations.

Achieving Logistics Interoperability: The Best Way to Breakthrough The Tangle Of Dumb Data Integrations

2. Increasingly Global, Multifaceted Supply Chains Need a Breakthrough in Data Interoperability.

So, these countless sets of data interfaces with custom-built shipment statuses are a primary reason that supply chains have major data interoperability challenges. Moreover, this situation is getting worse. This is because supply chain operations are getting more complex and collaborative. Hence, the need for seamless interoperability is even more critical. 

Let’s Breakthrough The Data Interoperability Nightmare: It Is The Best Way To Unlock Supply Chain Innovation

For instance, international and intermodal shipping require precise shipment status updates. This is due to their need for visibility across numerous shipment-related events, which include not only operational but also administrative and financial activities. Indeed, supply chain organizations need clarity on such events as border crossings, financial dealings, and handovers to other carriers. Unfortunately, these complex operations often suffer from incomplete, inaccurate, and untimely tracking updates, negatively impacting multiple stakeholders. This ongoing issue poses a significant challenge to our increasingly intricate and collaborative supply chains.

To sum it up, this massive and continuing failure in data interoperability is a supply chain nightmare!  Indeed, this problem hobbles supply chains from achieving their basic function – getting the right product to the right place at the right time. To do this paramount supply chain function, we need to have data that is accurate, complete, and timely. So, it is impossible for supply chains to work well when there is a lack of data interoperability between different systems and partners. For more details on exactly what is data interoperability, its benefits, and ways to improve it, see my article, Let’s Breakthrough The Data Interoperability Nightmare: It Is The Best Way To Unlock Supply Chain Innovation

3. Example of Misunderstanding a Proprietary, Custom-Built Shipment Status.

Positively, our sophisticated computer systems increasingly have difficulties interpreting even the most simple tracking text strings such as “shipped”, “in transit”, or “delivered”. Indeed, even humans have problems understanding many of these shipment status messages that are generated from a multitude of proprietary systems. For example, let’s take the tracking status of “shipped”. Surprisingly, this seemingly simple shipment status is in fact a very ambiguous term within most supply chains. This is because of the lack of clarity in its use across countless systems that generate shipment status. To illustrate, see below for all the possible statuses that the term “shipped” could actually represent within a typical supply chain.

Examples of Shipment Events Labelled as “Shipped”

• Carrier In Possession of Shipment. The carrier took possession of the shipment and it is in transit. This is the most common interpretation, but not necessarily what actually happened.
• Barcode Label Printed. The shipper printed a shipping label and placed it on the package. Many systems will generate a “shipped” status based on this event.
• Ready For Pickup. The shipment is on the shipping dock ready for the carrier to pick up. Again, at least from a customer perspective, this is not “shipped”.
• Shipment Loaded on a Trailer. The shipment is on the trailer in the dockyard ready for the carrier to pick up. Here again, this event is routinely identified as “shipped”.
• Absolutely Nothing. I have even seen cases where a user accidentally enters an erroneous tracking number like “123” into the data entry field of a tracking web page. Then surprisingly, the web page provides an updated status of “shipped”. 

Bottom line, shipment statuses don’t always mean what you think it means. This may have been OK in simpler times. However, not now where supply chains are increasingly automated, interfacing with many systems, and customer expectations are measured in hours, not weeks.

Supply Chain Visibility Of Cargo: Know Your Need And The Surprising Challenge To Secure It

Summary and References.

Measuring Ecommerce On-Time Delivery: Instructive Advice To Best Avoid Pointless Mistakes

So, there is a pressing need for intelligent tracking capabilities to ensure total shipment visibility. We need to stop the ambiguity and provide operational clarity. Indeed, custom-built tracking status schemes are increasingly creating significant data interoperability issues within supply chains. Certainly, it is time to seriously consider what is required to deliver accurate, complete, and current information to our supply chain partners and end-customers. For more references on data interoperability challenges and possible solutions, see below:

• Measuring On-Time Delivery. For a more detailed discussion about the problems with shipment statuses specifically on-time delivery, see my article, Measuring Ecommerce On-Time Delivery: Instructive Advice To Best Avoid Pointless Mistakes.
• Supply Chain Visibility Challenges and Solutions. See my article, Supply Chain Visibility Of Cargo: Know Your Need And The Surprising Challenge To Secure It for more details on problems as well as solutions.
• Data Interoperability and Intelligent Tracking Status. For more details on both the challenges and possible solutions for intelligent tracking, see my article, The Way To Better Supply Chain Analytics: Overcome Data Interoperability With Intelligent Tracking Status.

The Way To Better Supply Chain Analytics: Overcome Data Interoperability With Intelligent Tracking Status

For more from SC Tech Insights, see the latest articles on Interoperability, Shipping, and Supply Chain.