The 2025 Third-Party Logistics Study, spearheaded by Dr. C. John Langley of Penn State University and developed in collaboration with NTT DATA and Penske Logistics, has officially been published at the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP) EDGE.
According to certain reports, the stated study is designed to examine the evolving dynamics of supply chain under the theme “Navigating Change,” something which hints at current challenges within the industry. More on the same would reveal how this particular research highlights three pivotal areas i.e. change required in management of shipper (companies that manufacture goods or provide services) and 3PL (Third-Party Logistics providers) relationships; artificial intelligence; and the importance of the direct-to-consumer experience. Providing a deeper lowdown on the current state of the 3PL market, the study further touches on contemporary issues like nearshoring and trends in commercial real estate and supply chain labor.
Talk about the findings, they revealed how changing management would be essential to keeping pace withthe marketplace. We get to say so because shippers (61%) and 3PLs (73%) both agree that supply chain change management is vital. Out of all the surveyed participants, 58% of shippers and 76% of 3PLs are currently employing a change in management framework.
“While users and providers of 3PL services continue to report successful relationships, they find themselves having to deal with an increasingly wide range of challenges,” said Dr. C. John Langley, Professor, Supply Chain & Information Systems at Penn State University. “While examples include economic concerns, geopolitical unrest, and changing markets for supply chain services, they also are taking advantage of change management processes to benefit from new and improved capabilities such as AI and direct-to-customer proficiencies.”
Next up, the report in question deems artificial intelligence as a supply chain competitive advantage, considering both shippers and 3PLs are in agreement that AI can be pivotal in automating data analysis, identifying patterns, solving problems, and automating repetitive tasks. To put it in a more concrete sense, the findings revealed that 33% of shippers are seeking implementations related to supply planning and demand forecasting, while on the other hand, 19% of 3PLs reported planning implementation in this area. Not just that, 27% of shippers expressed an interest in transportation and route optimization technologies, whereas 22% of 3PLs noted they are planning to install these capabilities.
“This year’s study once again achieves success with providing readers with a nuanced understanding of the key issues facing our supply chains today,” said Ramu Pannala, Vice President of Supply Chain Technology atPenske Logistics. “Technology will drive the industry forward in many exciting ways.”
Apart from it, the report also claimed that continued e-commerce effect is shaping the direct-to-consumer experience. Here, 48% of shippers and 53% of 3PLs reported that customers routinely expect deliveries in less than two days. Alongside that, 27% of shippers and 26% of 3PLs noted that there are three-day or less delivery expectations. In case this wasn’t enough, the report also revealed that shippers (44%) and 3PLs (38%) are willing to absorb a small percentage of the costs related to shipping speeds. Furthermore, both shippers and 3PLs were found to view delivery speed and delivery visibility as strong areas of differentiation.
“This reinforces what we see in the market regarding businesses trying to manage through the volatility of day-to-day operations, relying on new capabilities like AI, and deeper partner relationships,” said Shanton Wilcox, Senior Vice President, Supply Chain Consulting at NTT DATA. “All of these efforts and investments rely on change management to increase the likelihood of success.”
