The Business of Independent Service Provider Contracting

Embracing Change: How "On-Time" Service Requirements Are Evolving and Why It Matters to CSPs

Posted by Jeff Walczak on 2/4/24 2:18 PM

The FedEx network, under the transformative wave of Network 2.0, is poised for significant change. This overhaul will extend its influence to all facets of FedEx and, by extension, to the lives of its customers. Amidst this transformation, there's a vital element that must remain unwavering for the successful integration of Express services into the Ground network: the FedEx Brand.

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Topics: FedEx, FedEx Ground, Contract, Metrics, Costs, Network 2.0, fedex ground contractors, fxg, CSP, time definite

Why is FedEx Making This So Hard? Advice for Frustrated Contractors.

Posted by Jeff Walczak on 12/20/23 11:34 AM

In our last blog post, we released a legal summary of the most recent lawsuit making the rounds in the transportation business industry. Our goal was to provide contractors with the facts  and a summary along with our best industry recommendations. Our advice is always based on past experience and what we believe is best for contractors, but ultimately we want to empower contractors to make their own choices based on their unique business situations.

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Topics: FedEx, Ground, ISP, FedEx Ground, Business, Contract, contractor, Profit, settlement, Cash flow, Costs, Network 2.0, Margins, time definate, low cost model, fxg, CSP

What A Long, Strange Trip 2022 Has Been - Where Do We Go From Here?

Posted by Jeff Walczak on 12/27/22 8:41 AM

By any measure, it’s been, and continues to be, a challenging time to be running a transportation business. However, as we often see, there are many opportunities that present themselves during challenging times.

As we look ahead to better times in 2023, it’s important to take a look at where we are currently at and how we got here so that we avoid mistakes of the past.

Our current situation is rooted in the events of 2019. This period introduced the density-stop / ecommerce push from FedEx Ground. As ecommerce deliveries gained traction and increased in number, they fueled the deterioration of contractor per-stop operating margins.

As you know, ecommerce stops are paid at a lower rate and typically include fewer packages per stop vs. commercial stops, resulting in a stealthy revenue per stop decrease across your entire business.

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Topics: Business Planning, Bookeeping, Management, Business Metrics, ISP, Business, Money, Cash flow, Inflation, Costs, Financial, Margins

Is The Service Provider Financial Crisis Getting Worse?

Posted by Jeff Walczak on 5/1/22 11:56 AM

By now, it’s easy to see that everyone’s operating margins are being seriously squeezed.

In an effort to force some sort of helpful response, some made a plea to FXG asking for assistance in various areas to solve a worsening financial situation. 

Trust us when we say that FXG is very aware of the plight of CSP & TSP’s.

But now, there is another added challenge that has reared its head. This one, along with inflation not seen for generations, is going to create some unprecedented financial problems that will test even the best operators…

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Topics: Business Results, Bookeeping, Training, Intelligence, Business Metrics, Negotiation, Profit, consulting, Money, Cash flow, Inflation, Costs, recession, expenses, renegotiation, Financial, Rates

The 2022 CSP Financial Crisis

Posted by Jeff Walczak on 3/13/22 1:51 PM

So it’s not the 2008 financial crisis, but in the FXG Contracted Service Provider world, it could ultimately prove to be worse.

A combination of events has spawned a crisis that we foreshadowed back in August of 2021 in our post:  the Dark Side Of Density.

What we described in that post has ultimately proven to be true, and is now exacerbated by the quickly deteriorating economic conditions.

As business owners, solving problems is a daily occurance. This one however is going to need full attention, for an extended period of time.

Let's begin our look at what to do about all this by analyzing the root causes of why the issues now exist...

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Topics: Business Results, ISP Negotiation, Payroll, Business, Contract, Profit, consulting, Money, Inflation, Costs, Holiday Season

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