Outbound Transportation Management Analysis : Case Study: Fox Head Europe

This thesis was made as a case study for Fox Head Europe. The purpose of this thesis was to find a more cost effective and efficient way for FHE to transport their merchandise to their customers. The main objective of this thesis was to investigate if the carriers used were the best possible choices for the company in terms of cost and quality of service. The aim was to find out whether using these carriers was truly in the best interest of the company and their customers. Secondary data and an open interview were used to compare the two main carriers used by FHE. The secondary data analyzed included the prices for each carrier, their transit times, and volume statistics. Open interviews with 6 customer service employees were conducted to ascertain how the customers felt about the carriers. The results showed that while the main carrier was indeed the cheapest option in many countries in Europe, also the service level had room for improvements. The main carrier used had 10% of delayed deliveries, of which they caused almost half. In the interviews the majority to the customer service employees felt that there were much more issues with the current carrier in use than with the previous one. Half of the customer service employees would prefer switching back to the old carrier. The findings indicate that the company should do something to better their outbound transportation choices. The service quality of the main carrier used for small shipments needs to be addressed with the carrier to set new standards for performance. If the carri-er complies and makes efforts to improve their services, the carrier can be used in the future. If however the carrier makes no changes to their current service quality, other carriers with better quality services should be looked at