For the second year in a row, Shipwell has been named as a Niche Player in the Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for TMS. As the youngest company on the list, Shipwell has made incredible strides in its supply chain solutions and technologies since its start in 2016, but what does it really mean to have been placed in the Magic Quadrant, and what sets Shipwell apart? Let’s take a look.
What is the Gartner Magic Quadrant?
For those unfamiliar with the Gartner Magic Quadrant, it is a research methodology and visualization tool for monitoring and evaluating the progress and positions of companies in a specific, technology-based market — in this case transportation management software (TMS) technology. Recognized for providing impartial, high-quality consulting and research, as well as providing valuable information and insights to the entire technology community, Gartner’s reports are some of the most respected and referenced in the industry.
With the Magic Quadrant, rather than simply showing statistics or ranking companies in lists, results are displayed visually across a four-quadrant graph to illustrate the strengths and differences between companies. The display divides competing businesses into distinct sections, based on both completeness of vision and ability to execute it. These research reports can be highly valuable tools for businesses looking to find a company that fits their needs.
Where does Shipwell rank?
Having moved up and to the right more than any other company in the Niche Players quadrant for TMS over the past year, Shipwell is now sitting right on the line for the Challengers quadrant. According to Gartner, high-performing newer businesses like Shipwell typically rank as a Niche Player early on and are often able to provide better capabilities and flexibility for certain use cases than some of the more general vendors that are categorized as a Leader.
Shipwell excels at meeting the needs of shippers who are navigating North America’s current supply chain issues and are looking to bring greater efficiency to this complex task. Some of the key strengths highlighted in the report include:
- Real-time visibility: Shipwell enables end-to-end tracking of shipments through its carrier network, ELD integrations and mobile applications to provide real-time visibility into 96% of driving distance.
- Capacity procurement: Shipwell provides instant capacity booking and management through a broad carrier network with over 30,000 ELD-connected carriers integrated, including refrigerated, FTL, LTL, parcel, ocean, drayage, last-mile and courier fleets.
- Automated workflows: Shipwell’s TMS allows for the automation of workflows across multiple modes of transportation, allowing for greater efficiency in their management.
- Customer experience: Shipwell continues to score in the top half for customer experience across integration, deployment, service and support, with a 100% willingness to recommend.
What changed in 2021?
After growing 32,670% over a three-year period, Shipwell was recognized by Deloitte as one of North America’s fastest-rising and most innovative companies. So it’s no coincidence that we have moved up on the Gartner Magic Quadrant over the past year. Last year was one of the most challenging years in recent memory for supply chains, and Shipwell was hard at work to establish solutions to address the issues that our customers and others in the industry were faced with.
Some of the biggest new additions to our platform during 2021 include:
Performance analytics
Early in the year saw the introduction of new performance analytics capabilities that provides Shipwell users the ability to mine historical carrier and lane-performance data to streamline operations and discover savings. This allows shippers to address poorly performing lanes and carriers, improve customer satisfaction and monitor carrier compliance and insurance status.
Pricing intelligence
Later in the first quarter, Shipwell introduced powerful new pricing intelligence tools. With powerful analytics that aggregate data across hundreds, even thousands of external and internal sources, it provides capabilities like 14-day price forecasts and personalized benchmarks, enabling shippers to price with confidence and maximize efficiencies as their business grows.
Compass Dashboard
The second quarter of 2021 saw the introduction of Shipwell’s advanced exception management tool, Compass Dashboard. In the latest advancement in exception management technology, Compass Dashboard brings new AI-powered capabilities to proactively identify potential issues and provide a method for correcting them — all on one screen.
Responsive ETAs
In the third quarter, Shipwell announced the release of its new Responsive ETAs function that constantly monitors the locations of active shipments to compute accurate estimated arrival times for all upcoming stops. Taking in real-time factors like upcoming traffic and weather conditions, it provides up-to-date tracking and arrival times for shipments while offering advance notice of emerging problems. The net result is a smoother operating supply chain and consistently satisfied customers.
What’s next?
While Shipwell has established itself as a top player in the TMS market, the industry is constantly shifting. Along with Shipwell’s new Shipper Mobile app that was released this week to provide the new generation of remote workforces full access to their TMS from anywhere, we have a wide range of further additions to the product lineup that will introduce new support, functions, capabilities aimed at helping supply chains adapt to this changing environment — and stay ahead of the competition.
To learn more about Shipwell’s placement on the Gartner Magic Quadrant and how our solutions can help shippers successfully navigate even the most complex supply chain challenges, download the full report.
