How often is your management team discussing innovative, out-of-the-box strategies to bring more value to your customers?
A recent Boston Consulting Group research report indicated that companies doubling down on innovation during downturns – using the opportunity to invest and position for the recovery – outperform over the long term.
Industrial Real Estate Industry – LEADER in Innovation
In terms of the industrial real estate industry, Prologis leads the industry in implementing innovative strategies. At a recent Freight Waves – A Look Forward: Global Supply Chains in 2021 and Beyond video conference Gary Anderson, COO, Prologis said, “We are positioning Prologis for the future by building solutions beyond the four-walls. Our focus and commitment are on helping customers solve pain points adjacent to real estate.” Strategies include:
- Prologis Essentials – Program which helps customers reduce the cost of purchasing warehouse operations equipment and supplies
- WorkStep Investment – Digital platform to hire & retain full-time workers.
- Community Workforce Training – Collaboration with local workforce programs to provide mentorship, skills training, internships, and job placement services for people interested in pursuing careers in logistics, distribution, and transportation
- Connected Facility Tool – The digital interfaces enable users to monitor energy consumption, manage maintenance deadlines, and detect operational malfunctions.
Recommendation
Here are two tenant-focused pain point solutions your team might want to consider.
Include Warehouse Location Logistical Advantages story in facility marketing messages. Warehouse tenant executives face severe pressures to develop the best possible operating warehouse location networks. Tenant’s pain points come about when under tight timelines and limited resources, they must make the best possible site selection decisions.
SOLUTION: WCL Consulting’s Warehouse Location Logistical Advantages profiles provide critical site selection insights to support tenants’ facility location decisions. Elements covered include Labor Pool, Education, Major Employers; Transportation Costs (Inbound & Outbound), Proximities to Major Highways, 3PL service providers, small parcel regional hubs, LTL truck terminals, Quality of Life, etc.
2. Local government agencies’ Environmental Impact Report (EIR) processes often add unnecessary time and cost to a development project. It is not uncommon for tenants to skip considering a potential facility involved in lengthy EIR processes (pain point).
SOLUTION: Educate local government planning agencies on the incredibly positive 2020 Warehouse and Trucking Operations Sustainability story.
Sustainability Story market dynamics include:
- Millennials are more likely than Baby Boomers (53% vs. 34%) to say they’d be willing to forgo a brand to buy environmentally friendly products.
- Fortune 100 corporations reporting comprehensive sustainability. programs have increased from 20% in 2011 to 86% in 2018.
- More than 95% of the Top 100 major trucking companies participate in the EPA SmartWay Greenhouse Gas Emission monitoring program.
- Amazon on October 8, 2020, announced it is purchasing 100,000 electric delivery vans.
- These are only a few examples that tell the story, “It is not our grandfather’s warehouse and trucking operations.”
Today’s rising customer expectations across all industries require innovative strategies. Let’s talk about tenant-focused pain point solutions that help your firm gain a strategic advantage.
Please call me at 310-963-5172 or email: jondecesare@wclconsulting.com
Jon DeCesare
President
WCL Consulting, Inc.