Same-day delivery used to be impressive. Today, it is the baseline. In a recent Logistics Management podcast, Group Editorial Director Michael Levans sat down with Andy Tryba, CEO of CXT Software, to talk about what is really changing in the last mile and why technology alone will not solve it.
What’s Related
The discussion centered on one problem. Delivery volume keeps rising, yet many courier operations still use spreadsheets, phone calls, and sticky notes to run their routes. That may have worked in the past. It will not support what is coming next.
Here are three lessons from the conversation.
1. Customer expectations are rising fast
What used to arrive next week now needs to come today. Tryba said package volume has tripled in the past decade and could climb just as quickly again.
That shift started in consumer delivery and has now spread to B2B shipping. The pressure to speed up is rising while margins stay tight. That is pushing carriers toward smarter tools and faster decisions.
2. Manual dispatching is holding teams back
The conversation compared many courier operations to the taxi industry before rideshare apps. Some dispatchers still rely on phone calls, paper processes, and workarounds to manage routes.
Tryba said the issue is not effort but visibility. Too much time is spent reacting to problems instead of preventing them. Route optimization and real-time insights can reduce the daily scramble and enable drivers to complete jobs more smoothly.
3. Technology should help people scale their work
The last mile is still a people business. The podcast made that clear. The most effective delivery models use technology to extend, rather than replace, human judgment.
Tools such as computer vision, more intelligent routing, and predictive alerts can help drivers finish shifts with less stress. They can also help dispatchers manage more deliveries without losing control of operations.
As volume grows, the human side of logistics may matter even more.
