Info-X Expands Relationship with INTTRA

As we wrapped up 2014 and looked ahead to 2015, I was reminded of one of my favorite quotes: “Technology does not run an enterprise, relationships do.”

As the director of Info-X Software Technology, I am very passionate about developing the most state-of-the-art software technology for the transportation industry—this is obviously they key to our success.  But as an entrepreneur, I am just as passionate about developing loyal, mutually beneficial relationships—this is, in my opinion, the key to sustaining our success.

To that end, Info-X is happy to announce we wrapped up 2014 by closing a deal that enhances our four-year relationship with INTTRA, the leading provider of e-commerce solutions for the ocean freight industry.  Info-X is now receiving a direct data feed for vessel schedules from INTTRA for the following carriers: 

 ALIANCA, ANL CONTAINER LINE, APL, CMA CGM,

COSCO, CROWLEY LINER SERVICES, CSAV, CSAV NORASIA,

DAL, DELMAS, EMIRATES SHIPPING LINE, EVERGREEN LINE,

HAMBURG SUD, HANJIN SHIPPING, HAPAG-LLOYD,

HYUNDAI MERCHANT MARINE CO., LTD., K LINE,

LIBRA, LIBRA URUGUAY, MAERSK LINE, MCC TRANSPORT,

MITSUI OSK LINE, MSC, NYK LINE, PIL, SAFMARINE,

SEAGO LINE, UNITED ARAB SHIPPING COMPANY

WAN HAI LINES LTD, ZIM

This is a great benefit to our customers because viewing vessel schedules in this way allows them to see the next 3 to 4 sailings on the rate quote. This streamlines the process by alleviating the need for them to go to multiple carrier websites to retrieve the information.

From the beginning, our alliance with < a href="https://infox.com/"> INTTRA has been about increasing productivity, enhancing our own services and offering the best solutions in ocean supply chain systems .

Connecting with INTTRA’s e-commerce platform has given Info-X’s customers the convenience of single-point booking and shipping instruction capabilities, as well as the opportunity to take advantage of the largest global carrier network.

Now Is The Time To Try Something New That May Actually Solve Your Logistics Documentation Headaches

Thomas Jefferson once said: “If you want something you've never had, you must be willing to do something you've never done before.”

We at < a href="https://infox.com/" style="color:#0000ff;">Info-X know that NVOCCs and freight forwarders are constantly trying to streamline their approach to handling logistics documentation. This part of the business is a necessary, but expensive headache for many companies. The current antiquated system is time consuming as well as stress inducing for their internal administrative staff.

And although finding a solution is a priority to these companies, most are resistant to trying something radically new that would ACTUALLY SOLVE the problem, as well as offer additional benefits of reduced costs and increased efficiency.  

Info-X’s back-office team , which is fully staffed by logistics domain experts, acts like an extension of the client’s office by being available 24/7 to handle all aspects of logistics documentation, including rate management , import-export shipping documents, custom filings , cargo tracking and accounting.  Shifting this part of the workload to outsourcing specialists allows companies to re-allocate internal manpower to more productive capacities.

We are offering freight forwarders and NVOCCs the opportunity to try our back-office services for free for one month. We believe that this 30-day free trial will demonstrate the benefits of reducing costs and increasing efficiency.  For your free trial, please contact rishi@infoxusa.com.

As I have mentioned before, reports indicate 73% of the top 100 companies outsource at least one of their business processes. Do you think this is because outsourcing doesn’t work? Of course it works, which is why budget allocation for outsourcing continues to grow.

Give Info-X’s back-office services a try to see how it can help you.

Learning form honest feedback -- both good and bad

I recently sponsored a membership meeting luncheon for the New York/New Jersey Foreign Freight Forwarders and Brokers Association. It gave me an opportunity to introduce or re-introduce my services to an important group of industry leaders.  Scheduling conflicts resulted in my being unable to attend and I had my marketing firm, BSYA, present on my behalf.

I prepared the presentation knowing the audience, and my favorite slide was based on years of research with long-standing clients.  It shows the allocation of the freight forwarders or NVOCC’s resources before Info-X, and after Info-X.  Which looks better—a day bogged down with admin or day spent closing deals?

Before Info-X outsourcing services:

• 15% of day spent on rate management  
• 15% of day spent on sale
•  5% of day spent on following up on sales calls
• 40% of day spent on documentation track and trace 
• 25% of day spent on auditing accounts

After Info-X outsourcing services :

•  5% of day spent on rate management
• 30% of day spent on sales
• 45% of day spent on following up on sales calls 
• 10% of day spent on documentation track and trace 
• 10% of day spent on auditing accounts 

Although I wish I could have presented myself, there was a benefit to my absence:  Complete honesty by the attendees.  My team got some important feedback for me that may not have been shared if I were in the room.

Let’s start with the positive feedback: my long-standing client Anura Rupasinghe of Ruky International, sang my praises like I had never heard before. Yes, we go back almost 10 years and I knew we have a strong relationship that we both value, but his passion for what I provide him blew me away.

When given the opportunity to discuss my services to a room made up of his peers, here is what he said:

“I have been with Info-X since 2005 and I am very happy with their services. I am not only using their software but I use their back-office services too. It has increased efficiency and reduced costs BIG TIME.” He continued to tout the convenience of the mobile applications and illustrate the cost savings by indicating at one point he had 16 employees working on the admin piece of the business, and now, with the help of Info-X he is down to 4.

Again, I know Anura has benefited from my services, but I never heard it put quite this way before, and I was thrilled to learn about the passion and excitement he has about my business, which reinforces we are on the right track.  That said, we also got some feedback that indicates we have some roadblocks to overcome specifically when it comes to U.S-based freight forwarders and NVOCC’s getting over some pre-conceived notions of outsourcing due to other companies letting them down.

During conversations with NVOCCs and Freight Forwarders at the luncheon, my team uncovered some apprehension with outsourcing rate management in particular because of some bad experiences in the past with other companies.  Rate management , of course, is our specialty and yes, in all likelihood, other companies may not understand the nuances and subtleties of dealing with rate management in the U.S. 

Clearly, Info-X should not be lumped in with other companies. Info-X has spent the last 15 years focusing on the understanding the nuances of European and U.S. rate management.  Some outsourcing companies spread their talent pretty thin and are involved in many different industries.  That is the complete opposite approach to how we want to build our business.  Info-X focuses solely on logistics management—we do not spend any time learning about another industry. 

I am fond of reminding nay-sayers that according to the Harvard Business Review, outsourcing is one of the most important management ideas and practices of the past 75 years.  But of course outsourcing would not have become so prolific if companies failed to deliver on their promises of increased efficiency and reduced costs.

Clearly, as with all business decisions, it matters which company you choose to handle your outsourcing, and our commitment to deliver on our promises further distinguishes us from the competition. We have testimonials going back more than 10 years and have a proven track record of delivering a 40% reduction in costs, without sacrificing quality or efficiency.

We understand not all outsourcing companies have the goods to deliver on their promises, but, please consider learning more about what Info-X can do for you. We think you will be pleased, and at a minimum your interest will be piqued. We stand behind our promises and have the customer feedback to prove it. 

We welcome the opportunity to discuss our services with you. Please visit us at https://infox.com/

Trying to meet demanding business objectives?

Learn more about back-office support -- spend less and sell more.

Although the trends all point in the direction of back-office support, I know that there are the traditionalists who do not buy into it.  But current studies and statistics are changing this view. Harvard Business Review hails outsourcing as one of the most important management ideas and practices in the recent times. So, gradually nay-sayers are getting to be believers.

And the key reason traditionalists are beginning to consider, and even embrace, outsourcing?
Simple economics Mantra:  Reduce Costs. Reduce costs. 

Even if you think outsourcing is not for you, who wouldn’t want to learn more about spending less and selling more? 

When we say reduced costs, it is not a few percentage points but a massive 40%, as practically demonstrated by Info-X to its customers. That will for sure boost the bottom line of your business. And when we say reduced costs, it is not just the savings on costs associated with data-entry manpower but the capital costs too—you don’t require the back office space , the infrastructure – no spending on workstations. No maintenance. Info-X provides all that for you. It is just a virtual extension of your office. Available for you real-time 24-7.

I will admit some meetings take a long time since many executives have yet to grasp the benefits of outsourcing.  

But it really isn’t that difficult to show the value of our services – it truly is black and white and impossible to ignore.

Let’s be honest—we all have business objectives, and each of us should be open to hearing new and different ways of meeting those objectives.  I think it is safe to say that no matter your business plan--you have bottom lines to meet, employees to satisfy and customers to please. 

We believe that today’s technology means in-house staff no longer needs to be bogged down with sifting through the current, antiquated, time-consuming systems, which drain manpower. 

At Info-X , the first India-based company to provide back-office support to the transportation industry, our goal is to enable you to re-allocate your resources, so you can put your staff in more productive, money-making roles. 
   

Info-X helps you do this by providing a staff of 150 professionals to handle all the data entry and processing , cargo tracking, tariff management, accounting and business coordination, resulting in 250,000 transactions per month. 

While the Info-X back office will be invisible to the client, the improved results will not be.  Clients will surely notice the quicker turnaround time and higher quality work with 99.9% document accuracy.  Our team of experts works on U.S. time and provides 24/7 on-line support. The system provides real-time global support so documents are worked on overnight, and promptly delivered to the client in their TMS application.  Also, the Info-X team can distribute the shipments documents via email /EDI to customers and carriers.  Of course, Info-X ensures all data is protected by an elaborate security system. 

If you are interested in learning about how Info-X can save your company money and improve customer and employee satisfaction, please visit https://infox.com/, or contact Rishi Parti at 646-915-0333.