How Decision Automation Software is Revolutionizing the Dispatcher’s Role
Technology is revolutionizing all aspects of the trucking business, from GPS in navigation to regenerative braking’s impact on vehicle efficiency. Technology’s role is evident in both the field and in the back office, where dispatch automation software is transforming enterprise trucking companies.
At Optimal Dynamics, we offer dispatch automation software powered by our Decision Automation platform. With our platform in place, dispatchers can increase efficiency, make better decisions, and boost profit margins.
Continue reading to learn more about dispatch automation software and how it empowers modern-day dispatchers. Schedule a demo to discover what our platform can do for your trucking company.
The Complexities of the Dispatcher’s Role
What makes the modern dispatcher’s role so challenging? The list of to-dos and demands is lengthy, including:
- Managing load assignments
- Keeping track of drivers’ preferences
- Creating schedules that balance competing priorities
- Ensuring profitability
Dispatchers are doing all of this (plus more) under tight time constraints. They’re asked to make decisions on the fly while adapting to real-time information like load cancellations and traffic delays.
There are limits to what humans can do under these circumstances. Dispatchers cannot possibly calculate every variable or simulate future outcomes for every decision. Even the most experienced dispatchers are also limited by the manual, region-focused approach that’s so common in the space. As things get busy and dispatchers are asked to conduct manual tasks and make mental calculations, decision-making fatigue inevitably sets in.
Dispatchers need help.
That’s where Optimal Dynamics steps in.
How Decision Automation Acts as the Dispatcher’s New Assistant
Decision Automation helps replace the manual tasks and mental calculations that have traditionally made the dispatcher’s role so challenging. The job will always be fast-paced, but by automating optimized decisions, the pace becomes manageable, handling some of the complex tasks so that dispatchers can focus on other high-value aspects of their work.
Optimal Dynamics can analyze thousands of data points, plan for the unknowns in future scenarios, understand the holistic impact of today’s decisions on tomorrow’s network, and automate optimized load and route decision-making. Our platform provides dispatchers with:
- Ranked order dispatch options
- Multiple load dispatch options for drivers
- Consideration for all hours of service (HOS) and driver preferences
- Predicted ETAs
The results for enterprise trucking companies are remarkable.
“Optimal Dynamics is automating decisions that take more information into account,” said Deen Albert, VP of operations at Grand Island Express. “Through automation, we can handle more volume with the same amount of office staff and drivers. We’ve been able to move 80% of our fleet managers away from routine planning tasks and are focused on increasing the value of human decisions in the organization. Optimal Dynamics enables Grand Island Express fleet managers to focus on managing driver relationships, handling exceptions and addressing issues, decisions that truly make them invaluable to their customers and drivers.”
Access the full Grand Island Express case study.
Revolutionizing Dispatch Through TMS Integration
Decision Automation for freight planning is made possible through integrations with many of the leading platforms that power enterprise trucking companies. For example, we offer a two-way integration with McLeod’s TMS, meaning you can augment existing dispatcher workflows. Our platform pulls real-time data from the TMS to generate optimized load assignments. It then pushes decisions back to the TMS to ensure everyone across the operation stays informed and aligned.
Integrations with TMSs, ELDs, and other platforms mean fewer manual errors, greater data accuracy, and real-time insights that allow dispatchers to make faster decisions and easily account for all driver preferences, commitments and HOS. Dispatchers get to work in a modern, connected user interface while enjoying all the benefits of Decision Automation.
Expanding Beyond Regional Constraints with AI
One of the most significant challenges in the dispatcher’s role is the regional barriers that limit decision-making (as noted above). Traditionally, dispatchers are limited to regional assignments and handle only a small portion of the overall network. Optimal Dynamics removes these regional barriers, allowing dispatchers to optimize and automate decisions across the entire network.
Imagine a dispatcher in the Midwest can now optimize operations across the entire United States. For example, the dispatcher could send a Chicago-based driver to the Northeast for a high-priority load when it makes sense for all stakeholders, looking beyond existing regional limitations to do what’s best for the business and its people. The results are higher profitability for the carrier and the driver.
Optimal Dynamics: The Future of Dispatching is Powered by Artificial Decision Intelligence
Optimal Dynamics empowers trucking companies to move away from short-term, geographically limited decision-making to a more holistic, long-term strategy. It allows for deeper optimization that factors in profitability, driver preferences, availability, and real-time changes across the entire network.
Enterprise trucking companies are embracing the Optimal Dynamics platform because Decision Automation empowers them to build a competitive advantage and stay ahead of industry trends. The time to build this competitive advantage is now — customers are seeing increases in productivity, efficiency, and profitability by seizing opportunities that traditional methods would have missed.
Ready to discover what Decision Automation by Optimal Dynamics can do for your business? Download our ebook on the benefits of Decision Automation or schedule a demo.
