DHL, one of the worlds largest freight providers and 3PLs, just announced its intent to pursue the procurement BPO market by delivering solutions to both public and private sector companies. From the location and direction of the announcement, it appears that much of the new venture’s focus will be on the UK market. According to the press release, DHL is launching “a procurement outsourcing service designed to help public and private sector organizations around the world achieve substantial cost-savings through transformational sourcing of products and services … The new team, which will be based in the UK, will be headed by Roger West, former Procurement Director of NHS Supply Chain (NHSSC), a DHL business procurement unit created in 2006 under contract to the UK Department of Health tasked with delivering £1 billion of savings to the National Health Service.” The unit, “called DHL Procurement Outsourcing, aims to work closely with both the public and private sectors to help drive down costs at a time when the economic background is particularly challenging.”
What’s interesting to me about this is not just that DHL is trying to build from a one-off procurement initiative in the UK market, where it’s been at least moderately successful, but that a logistics provider and 3PL is targeting the BPO market. Ironically, DHL would not have been at the top of my shortlist of 3PLs to pursue this market — Exel, Ryder, CH Robinson, UPS and FedEx would have all ranked higher…
Jason, A small correction – EXEL – if you mean this one: http://www.exel.com/exel/index.jsp
is part of DHL Solutions.