Logistics consulting in supply chain — Guido Solari (Integration Consulting) on building an efficient, human‑centric logistics chain
Logistics represents up to 15% of the income statement in many industrial, pharma and consumer goods companies, yet in numerous Swiss and European firms it is still managed through fragmented projects and short term actions. When cost reduction, service improvement and resilience are required simultaneously, the core question is whether logistics decisions reflect the corporate strategy and product portfolio. Guido Solari and Integration Consulting view logistics as a strategic discipline, where networks, portfolios and initiative roadmaps are aligned with business goals. At Logistics Concepts, we translate these principles into steps that help directors concentrate on decisions that generate measurable impact for both financial results and teams.
Strategic alignment: linking logistics, portfolio decisions and prioritization
Logistics has become a primary lever of competitive advantage. Solari’s interview for Consultancy.lat reinforces this position: when logistics accounts for 10 to 15% of the income statement, improving even a fraction of that cost base can create a significant financial impact. To achieve this, decisions must align with corporate strategy, revenue plans, cash discipline and risk posture.
Research shows that linking logistics to corporate goals, ensuring portfolio clarity and prioritizing initiatives are essential for effective supply chain management. A coherent plan anticipates demand, allocates resources across the chain and connects operational choices to the company’s direction. Well managed supply chains use structured design and execution to respond to volatility instead of treating it only as a constraint.
Solari’s experience in Argentina illustrates challenges when alignment is missing. Infrastructure gaps, high fuel and labor costs, fragmented transport networks and bureaucratic hurdles increase logistics costs. Long periods of short term decision making weakened planning capabilities and pushed many firms toward isolated, tactical choices.
The same pattern appears in Europe and Switzerland. Siloed decisions between commercial, finance and operations often lead to oversized networks, inconsistent service and high working capital tied up in inventories misaligned with the real portfolio and customer expectations.
Clarifying the product and service portfolio is a key pillar. Solari emphasizes the need to define the value proposition and the portfolio offered to the market. This must translate into logistics rules: which SKUs require fast lead times, which can follow slower flows and where differentiated service levels are acceptable.
Portfolio clarity requires cross functional governance. Without a shared view of which product, channel and geography combinations create value, networks grow organically, with duplicated facilities and complex transport routes. In many projects, rationalizing the active portfolio immediately reduces variability and simplifies planning.
Solari also stresses the importance of choosing what not to do. Many companies accumulate numerous logistics initiatives, leading to diluted focus and partial implementation. Effective prioritization begins with stopping low value projects.
Initiatives should be evaluated on strategic contribution, financial impact, risk reduction and organizational readiness. Leading supply chains connect their initiative roadmap to revenue and cash goals, rather than reacting to technology trends or internal agendas.
Context shapes priorities. In Argentina, the focus may be on network redesign and transport consolidation. In Europe, priorities often relate to service differentiation, nearshoring, digital visibility and resilience to geopolitical or demand shifts.
Across contexts, operational decisions must support strategic intent. Poor coordination between commercial, finance and logistics leads to trade offs that either inflate costs or weaken service. Aligning decisions reduces these contradictions.
Customer expectations also require an external view. While consumers in some markets accept longer lead times for free delivery, B2B customers in Europe often prioritize reliability, transparency and flexible delivery windows. These expectations should guide network and service design.
Technology should follow strategy. Solari cautions against adopting tools without a clear purpose. Digital investments should support defined priorities, such as improving demand planning or visibility to manage working capital and service.
Sectors differ, but the principles apply broadly. Consumer goods and agriculture often present large efficiency potential due to portfolio breadth and seasonality. In industrial or healthcare sectors, regulatory and value density constraints shape logistics decisions.
- Clarify corporate goals and risk posture before redesigning networks.
- Translate the value proposition and portfolio into explicit service and network rules.
- Establish cross functional governance to avoid siloed decisions.
- Prioritize a limited number of high impact initiatives.
- Align logistics choices with customer expectations.
- Use technology selectively to support strategic priorities.
Implementation roadmap: five year vision, technology selection and pilots for Swiss and European firms
For Swiss and European mid sized companies, a five year logistics roadmap begins with the strategic clarity highlighted by Solari. Recent disruptions pushed many organizations into short term mode, weakening long term planning. Renewed stability offers an opportunity to rebuild scenario planning, capacity plans and investment roadmaps linked to financial results.
A structured visioning exercise sets how logistics should support growth, service and margin. With logistics representing up to 15% of the income statement in some sectors, boards should treat transformation as a strategic program.
Prioritization follows. Solari notes that overloaded initiative pipelines reduce execution quality. Mapping all initiatives, scoring them on value and feasibility, and defining a stop list helps free capacity for initiatives that matter.
Portfolio and network design should come next. This includes reviewing SKUs, service promises and channels, then translating them into warehouse footprints, transport modes and inventory policies that balance speed and agility.
Technology selection should only follow after defining target processes. Evaluating options such as TMS, WMS, control towers or planning tools becomes more effective when anchored in the roadmap.
Pilots and quick wins reduce risk. Limited scope tests validate processes and technologies, generate measurable savings and build internal momentum.
- Year 1: define strategic direction, map initiatives, launch pilots
- Year 2: scale pilots, refine portfolio and network design
- Year 3: roll out core systems, standardize processes
- Year 4: add analytics and AI supported decisions
- Year 5: optimize and prepare the next cycle
Throughout implementation, cross functional governance aligns operations with corporate strategy. Leaders from supply chain, commercial, finance and IT review KPIs, investment cases and customer feedback to ensure that logistics investments support market positioning and profitability.
The human dimension remains essential. Even with automation and visibility tools, people ensure adoption and continuity. Change management, training and role redesign must be embedded throughout the roadmap.
Human centric change and outcomes: workforce engagement, KPIs and when to partner with Integration Consulting
In many logistics transformations, technology receives most of the attention, while people and measurable outcomes are secondary. Yet workforce engagement directly affects on time delivery, inventory accuracy and cost efficiency. When teams understand why processes change and how performance is measured, decision making improves at every point in the supply chain.
Solari notes that logistics has shifted from a back office activity to a central part of competitiveness, and that efficiency and people management must progress together. Roles and capabilities need to be clearly defined before network redesign or digital programs begin.
International cases illustrate this. A grocery chain in Brazil improved service and reduced logistics costs by aligning processes, technology and workforce behaviour. A UK public transport operator shortened invoice processing lead times and removed backlogs by combining a modern platform with redesigned roles and staff adoption.
Aligning workforce capabilities with strategic objectives is a performance lever. We typically link engagement to a focused KPI set covering service, cost, quality and resilience, then translate these metrics into expectations for planners, warehouse staff, drivers and support functions.
Define a lean KPI cockpit, connect each role to the metrics it influences, use regular performance huddles, provide targeted training, reward behaviours aligned with the strategy, embed feedback loops and ensure managers apply data driven decisions.
Solari’s remarks on Argentina show how misalignment between strategy, operations and people leads to pressure on teams and unclear priorities. When companies clarify their value proposition and portfolio, then translate this into logistics rules, workforce engagement improves.
In Europe, many firms invest in warehouse automation or planning tools without first defining how roles will change. This often increases complexity and cost. Solari’s warning that technology must follow a clear vision is relevant for these situations.
Specialised consulting partners can support this journey by providing change frameworks, KPI benchmarks and experience in sectors with significant improvement potential. They also act as neutral facilitators between strategy, commercial teams and frontline operations.
External support is particularly useful when logistics costs represent a large share of the income statement, when initiative pipelines require prioritization, when new technologies are planned without a clear operating model or when previous transformation attempts stalled.
Joint teams can map capability gaps, define training paths, redesign performance dialogues and align incentives with logistics KPIs. Over time, this turns strategies into daily routines that support service quality, inventory accuracy and structurally lower costs.