Making bookings easier for external partners

A few weeks ago we explained on our blog that ‘external carriers are part of the team too’. In that post we set out how our yard management system handles supplier access, with its customisation options and the ability to share booking information. Along those lines, Slot’s Eyes also has other features intended for one-off external suppliers. The need to use it

Getting a tool adopted across an organisation depends on two fundamental things. First, that its use is encouraged from management. Second, the benefits it brings to the daily work of the people who are going to use it.

The companies that have implemented Slot’s Eyes to organise operations at their docks have developed a specific procedure for it. This new way of working includes external suppliers: since the yard management system was implemented, carriers have to make their bookings through Slot’s Eyes.

Managing resistance to change with Slot’s Eyes is very straightforward. Within a few days, both internal staff and external suppliers see that their operations are far simpler and that they have real-time information on a single platform. This makes organising their work easier and increases their efficiency.

Sharing bookings through a link

It sometimes happens that, because of workload, we need to bring in new carriers on a one-off basis. To guarantee that we all work with the same platform and follow the same standards, Slot’s Eyes lets you share a link with the new carrier so they can book that specific slot.

This does not involve having to register the carrier on the platform. Since they will be a one-off supplier, the link will only allow them to book the shipment assigned to them: it can also be shared between subcontracted carriers, as a kind of delegated access. Even so, it is a way of starting to familiarise a potential regular supplier with our procedures and of recording their details on the platform.

For the supplier, the link arrives automatically by email and, to manage the booking, they follow very intuitive, simple steps. For everything else —for instance, a change to that booking made by the warehouse— it works as though they were a carrier registered on the platform. This guarantees that the process is exactly the same as for the rest of the carriers on our team and that, in this way, we keep all the information properly controlled and traceable.