Planning for the Future: How 2024’s Performance Can Shape 2025 Success
THE OUTLOOK FOR the 2025 freight market is marked by both cautious optimism and ongoing challenges, shaped by mixed economic signals and evolving industry trends. However, despite the uncertainty, early signs of recovery are expected next year, making now the ideal time to begin planning. Freight brokers prepared to scale their operations will be well-positioned to capture new opportunities as demand rebounds. Strategic planning is essential to navigating market fluctuations. It’ll help empower your team to thrive in an inherently cyclical industry and open up exciting possibilities for growth in 2025.
USE YOUR STRENGTHS TO CAPITALIZE ON EMERGING OPPORTUNITIES WHILE ADDRESSING WEAKNESSES TO MITIGATE RISKS.
The Importance of Strategic Planning
Strategic planning lets you anticipate market changes. It helps you manage risks and seize opportunities rather than just reacting to challenges. It provides clear direction, aligns operations with long-term goals and ensures readiness for shifting customer expectations and technological advancements. Brokers who create proactive strategies will be ready to grow. Those who don’t may struggle to keep up.
Year-end planning is critical to understanding your place in the market and helping you set priorities for 2025. This process includes evaluating your 2024 performance to identify strengths, address weaknesses and align business goals with market trends.
Evaluate Your Business Performance in 2024
Before setting 2025 goals, review key performance indicators (KPIs) and conduct a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) analysis for 2024. Together, these tools provide actionable insights into what worked for your company, what didn’t, and where you need to improve.
Review Your KPIs
Start by reflecting on the KPIs that mattered most. They provide a clear roadmap to success and help you track progress toward your goals.
KPIs to Monitor:
- Financial Performance: EBITDA, Gross profit margin, G&A per load, labor cost per load
- Operational Efficiency: Load count, on-time delivery rate, cost per mile
- Customer Satisfaction: Retention rates, satisfaction scores, response times
- Carrier Performance: Acceptance and retention rates, payment timeliness
- Sales and Growth: New customer acquisition, revenue growth, average revenue per broker
- Technology Utilization: Automation rate, tech stack adoption, integration success
Regularly reviewing KPIs shows your current performance and areas where you can grow. You’ll make informed, datadriven decisions directly impacting your company’s success.
KPIs will ensure you build a 2025 strategic plan on a solid foundation of data. But you’re not done with your 2024 review until you complete a SWOT analysis.
Perform a SWOT Analysis
A SWOT analysis complements your KPI review. It checks your business’s strengths and weaknesses and external opportunities and threats.
Strengths
Your strengths are the internal attributes that give your freight brokerage a competitive edge. These are the areas where your business excels. You provide value to customers and stand out from competitors. Evaluate your operations, customer and carrier relationships, workforce, tech stack and financial stability.
Weaknesses
Weaknesses are internal areas where your business may be underperforming or facing challenges. Being honest about your weaknesses is crucial to overcoming them in 2025. For example, poor carrier retention or low acceptance rates may indicate that you must strengthen your partnerships with carriers. Operational inefficiencies can cause payment delays, missed deadlines or high labor costs. Tech gaps may also be causing your team to underperform.
Opportunities
Opportunities are external factors that provide growth or expansion potential for your business. We expect demand to increase in 2025, but we don’t know how or when. Evaluate how your specific market and modes are trending right now. Preparing to meet new needs could open up new revenue streams. Also, until the market changes, carriers will continue to experience overcapacity issues. While overcapacity can pressure rates, it may also give you more leverage when negotiating contracts.
Threats
Threats are external issues or problems that could harm or hinder your business. Brokers will experience intensifying competition, overcapacity issues with carriers, and fuel price volatility.
Double brokering is a significant concern. Other local labor disputes or geopolitical conflicts may threaten your business. Also, ignoring new technologies can make you obsolete very quickly.
Taking Action on Your KPIs and SWOT Analysis
You’ve now successfully looked back to move forward. Your KPI review and SWOT analysis will highlight where you stand and how to move forward.
Use your strengths to capitalize on emerging opportunities while addressing weaknesses to mitigate risks. As you plan, track your KPIs and adjust strategies to stay agile. A proactive, intentional approach can position your brokerage for growth. It’ll prepare you to thrive amid new challenges and opportunities in 2025.
McGillicuddy is the chief revenue officer at Tai Software based in Huntington Beach, Calif. You can reach Sean at sean@tai-software.com.
