06.11.25 By Foster Kaman
We’re almost halfway through 2025, and no day has passed uneventfully. Tariffs are shifting under new trade policies. Fuel prices fluctuate weekly, and inflation remains a persistent drag on margins. Global trade continues to be shaped by geopolitical tension and protectionist policies, forcing transportation and logistics (T&L) companies to recalibrate operations constantly.
According to a study by Fitch Ratings, an average 10% tariff on imports could increase overall transport costs by as much as 15% due to higher handling, warehousing, and processing fees. For logistics firms that operate on tight margins, this increase could be significant. Meanwhile, diesel prices are up nearly 3% since Q4 of last year, and labor costs continue to rise in key logistics hubs across North America.
And yet, customer expectations haven’t budged. Shippers and receivers demand real-time tracking, rapid dispute resolution, and pricing that reflects speed and reliability – not volatility.
This leaves T&L leaders with a tough challenge:
The answer doesn’t lie in cutting corners—it lies in digital realization and optimizing operations where it matters most. Not just at the customer-facing frontlines or the strategic planning layer, but right in the middle of the process: where quoting, routing, warehousing, load matching, and fulfillment happen. This is the “efficiency zone”—where margin, speed, and customer satisfaction intersect.
Tariffs are more than policy—they’re a daily operational challenge for T&L firms. Here’s how they’re driving up complexity and cost across the board:
If improving margins through pricing or procurement is limited, the real opportunity lies deeper, in rethinking how the middle of the process runs.
This is where strategy meets execution, and where inefficiencies often hide in plain sight. Here’s a simplified view of the “efficiency zone”:
| Process | Role in Efficiency |
|---|---|
| Quote Generation | Speed and accuracy play a crucial role in boosting win rates and customer confidence. Manual quoting processes lead to delays and errors. With quote automation, you can dramatically improve your success rate. |
| Routing & Load Matching | Determines cost-effectiveness and timeliness of delivery. Smart load matching reduces empty miles and freight spend. |
| Warehousing & Fulfillment | Fulfillment speed and picking accuracy impact SLAs and customer satisfaction. Bottlenecks here ripple downstream. |
| Tracking & Visibility | Real-time insights enable proactive communication and exception handling. Lack of it causes blind spots and delays. |
| Claims & Dispute Resolution | Affects trust and retention. Efficient workflows here improve response time and reduce revenue leakage. |
Each of these steps impacts service quality, turnaround time, and cost-to-serve. When these processes run on spreadsheets, disconnected systems, or manual workflows, the business is left reacting to issues instead of preventing them.
At a recent Women in Transportation panel event, several logistics leaders pointed out that customers don’t remember what caused a delay, but they remember how you communicated, how fast you resolved it, and how consistent your experience was despite disruptions.
Example:
Consider a scenario where a shipment is delayed due to a port backlog. Without real-time visibility and automated customer communication, customer service teams scramble for answers, and clients are left frustrated. But when middle-layer systems are connected and responsive, the issue is flagged early, alternate routing is explored, and the customer receives a proactive update with revised delivery options.
When T&L companies invest in streamlining this zone by connecting data flows, automating decision points, and enhancing visibility, they gain control. They’re no longer managing exceptions manually; they’re operating with intelligence and elasticity.
Now that we’ve established the need to focus on the middle, the next question is: Where do you start?
The first step is consolidating operational data. In many T&L firms, customer data, load data, inventory records, and financials are spread across fragmented systems. Without unified visibility, AI, automation, and dynamic decision-making can’t function effectively.
But once this data is connected, T&L leaders unlock a domino effect of value: faster quoting, accurate forecasting, optimized routing, leaner fulfillment, and better customer experience.
What can leaders expect from this transformation?
Quicker response times, higher SLA adherence, lower operational overhead, improved customer satisfaction, and a more resilient business in the face of ongoing disruption.
| Lever | Description | Actions |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Integrated Tech Stack for Real-Time Visibility | Unify fragmented systems for a single operational view. |
– Replace legacy silos with integrated platforms – Use WMS, TMS, CRM and analytics to spot delays and cost overruns |
| 2. Smart Forecasting & Scenario Planning | Prepare for volatile demand and tariff shifts using predictive tools. |
– Apply AI/ML for scenario modeling – Dynamically plan reordering, inventory management and positioning |
| 3. Route Optimization & Dynamic Scheduling | Enhance cost-efficiency in transportation by using adaptive logistics. |
– Factor in tariffs, fuel, wait times for drivers and freight costs in routing – Leverage digital freight platforms |
| 4. Warehouse Automation & Labor Optimization | Reduce overhead while increasing speed and accuracy in fulfillment. |
– Implement automation to offset labor costs – Reconfigure layout for space and energy savings |
| 5. Automation of Operational Processes | Processes like quote automation streamline front-end quoting and back-office order workflows. |
– Use AI-powered quote automation tools – Reduce turnaround time and errors in high-volume scenarios |
| 5. Strategic Partnerships & Co-Loading | Share infrastructure and collaborate to lower fixed costs and avoid tariff-heavy zones. |
– Use shared warehousing or co-loading models – Localize fulfillment centers to reduce cross-border fees |
By unlocking these levers, T&L firms set themselves up to not only weather the storm but thrive.
Digitizing operations 100% translates into better customer experiences, and the efficiency zone is the key. Here’s just a few examples how:
When you manage the middle, you reduce churn, build loyalty, and stand out, especially in uncertain times.
From climate events to trade realignments and new competitors, tomorrow’s disruptions are already forming. Efficient, connected, and intelligent operations are no longer a competitive edge—they’re a requirement.
By investing in data analytics solutions, automation, and AI today, you position your organization to:
Which will result in:
Tariffs, inflation, mounting customer expectations – these aren’t temporary blips, but part of a long-term trend of market uncertainties.
Streamlining your operations, automating high-friction processes, and unlocking a 360-degree view of your data are critical steps to not only withstand uncertainty, but to emerge stronger.
Bridgenext can help.
We work with transportation and logistics leaders to reimagine their operational core. From integrating siloed systems and deploying AI copilots for quoting, to building intelligent dashboards and real-time visibility layers, our team brings experience, execution, and impact.
When you partner with Bridgenext as your transformation partner, you don’t just digitize -you modernize, optimize, and future-proof your business for the road ahead.
Connect with our T&L team to discuss the possibilities.
