If we need logistics expertise why don’t we just recruit a new manager?

Sometimes this is the right solution. But there isn’t such a large pool of available and experienced logistics specialists, while the really good people will tend to be attracted to careers with the largest multinationals and 3PLs. You may end up recruiting someone who can follow orders but who cannot work out what the orders should be. And whoever you recruit will never be as knowledgeable as SCMO shared pool of expertise.

There will often be an option to use an advisor to define your logistics roadmap or diagnose your problems/ opportunities and design a project program to resolve them. SCMO is such an advisory firm. You will then be able to maximize the benefit from any external hires, or even promote from within your company. From a professional standpoint we are always keen to coach our clients' own staff and help them to develop their own skills and training in logistics.

How does SCMO compare with others in the advisory sector?

SCMO delivers work’s quality to the level of the best-in-class and oldest advisory firms, such asMcKinsey & Company, The Boston Consulting Group (BCG), AT Kearney, Booz Allen Hamilton, and more. SCMO unique selling point (USP) compared with those well established firms is that while they are all generalists, SCMO is a specialist.

SCMO only specializes in the advisory of logistics, transportation, and supply chain management. Moreover, SCMO experts all come from the industry of logistics, transportation, and supply chain management, where they were active operationally or functionally. None of them come from the advisory industry as such. As a consequence, not only is SCMO capable to deliver services at the strategic layer of expertise, but SCMO experts are also capable to implement what has been planned.

SCMO has a lot of respect for the leaders of the advisory industry. We are actually honored to frequently cooperates with those firms, such as some of the Big Four (Deloitte, PwC, Ernst & Young, KPMG) and others. Generally, they introduce SCMO to their customers, for which they have completed strategic advisory, and which need implementation they cannot undertake to avoid conflict of interest.

How do you charge?

SCMO helps you save money and generate value add. The way we charge depends on what you need.

Long term cooperation fee

Our subject matter exposure in terms of services and our geographical exposure in terms of offices allow us to offer global long term cooperation packages. SCMO prides itself to be the value partner of a number of companies, who outsource with us certain parts of their logistics, transportation and supply chain management functions on a long term basis (years). We have established preferential long term cooperation fees that recognize this win/ win situation.

Monthly, Daily & Hourly fee

For some projects, it may be easier to calculate SCMO input related to the time spent by our advisors on the assignment. It offers flexibility to our client, as far as costings are concerned, in relation with the time they wish us to spend on the question. It is also a convenient way for both parties to establish a fee base, when it is not possible to evaluate in advance what amount of time is necessary for the project.

Lumpsum fee

For standard projects or well identified missions, which are task oriented, it is possible to agree on a lumpsum fee for the specific project. Roles and responsibilities of our advisors are clearly defined and documented in our fixed price agreement with clients. Amounts of the lumpsum fee is to be discussed on a case by case basis.

Success fee

For tenders and cost optimization assignments, we offer the solution of a success fee, on a retained basis. Thus it allows an immediate return with a minimal investment for our customers! The project is carefully evaluated by our advisors prior to entering into an agreement with our clients. When our return expectancy is too low, we then switch from a success fee offer to a lumpsum fee or time fee offer. Our competitive advantage compared with "cost killers" is that our deep knowledge of the logistics & transportation industries allows us to reduce costs in a balanced way with our clients' subcontractors, while always improving the service quality.

How can we define the scope of a project tightly enough to ensure that our advisor delivers?

It often happens that advisory projects can only be loosely defined: “save cost”/ “improve service”/ “update our technology”,...etc. In this kind of situation your best strategy may be to commission SCMO to carry out a brief investigation that is geared to diagnosing the issues and proposing options for addressing them.

This type of work can take as little as two or three weeks and is where an advisor can often deliver maximum value. You will then be in a much better position to judge the skill and value of our expert, and will be able to commission any further work on a more tightly-defined basis and with a clear budget.

Can we have a SCMO expert speak to our students for free?

No. We do not work for free.

While SCMO experts are delighted to speak, mentor, or teach your students, they do not do this work for free. All teachers in schools and universities are paid a monthly salary. We are not.

SCMO experts are paid based on the revenues generated for the work they produce. This is why they do not produce work for free. And we do not consider schools and universities as NGOs at all. Those institutions are generally well founded by governments, regions, localities, and/ or benefactors. They are therefore capable to pay for services rendered.

Can we have a SCMO expert speak to our clients for free?

No. We do not work for free.

This request amazingly comes generally from wealthy organizations and institutions. They consider that due to their name, brand, and fame, their events attract people, who could be potential SCMO customers. They consider it even more when those attendees are existing and identified customers of theirs...

While we agree such attendees could be potential SCMO customers, it is against our company policy to work for free. We consider it unethically correct in our organization. Indeed we would not ask SCMO associates and partners to work for free, while it could be acceptable in other advisory firms with a different revenue sharing model.

Can we have a SCMO expert speak at our event?

Yes.

Most SCMO experts are not only great public speakers, but also knowledgeable subject matter experts. They are available to participate to your event as subject matter experts, panel experts, or even MC (Master of Ceremony).

Our fees are prepaid and span from "half day" to "full day". In case participating to your event requires us to fly, all traveling expenses and out of pocket expenses are at your charge. We do give discount for the time spent traveling.

Can SCMO do some transportation for me?

No.

SCMO is only an advisory firm, and we do not operate in order to prevent any conflict of interest. That is why we are called a 4PL.

That is also why advanced logistics 3PL, such as DHL and others, who do have excellent advisory services similar to SCMO called themselves 3PL. This is a sign that they are ethically correct. Indeed such operators will always use their own operations first, due to the "break-even" pressure, and shall only thereafter look for solutions outside of their own operations.

Beware operators that call themselves 4PL. They are probably advanced logistics 3PL trying to disguise themselves in 4PL for marketing purpose. Some also are sourcing or trading companies having integrated part of their supply chain, such as warehousing and distribution. In those cases, they are using the term "4PL" improperly, which is easy to do as it is a new term, and therefore a bit confusing for many people.

A 4PL is typically a non-asset based organization, as per Accenture's definition. At SCMO we do not have such challenge, as we do not have any operations, and we are non-asset based. Our only asset is our people's subject matter expertise.

Are SCMO experts ready to come to us anywhere in the world?

Yes.

SCMO experts pride themselves in being flexible, polyvalent, and mobile. We regularly service the resource industry (mining, oil, gas) in very remote locations for training, tender management, logistics reorganization, logistics due diligence...etc.

Similarly, we serve countries and cities, where we do not have a presence. For large engagements, we are ready to open an office upon request. Especially for projects at country level, and for recurrent projects in logistics training, benchmarking, and/ or infrastructure (logistics parks, special economic zones, logistics hubs, airports, ports & terminals...).

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