Exclusively for Logistics & 3PL Providers ($3M–$50M)

    Fractional Chief Automation Officer for Logistics & 3PLs

    We help logistics and 3PL providers automate order workflows, billing, and reporting so operations scale without hiring in lockstep.

    You're good at moving freight and managing warehouse operations, but your growth is bottlenecked by manual work—re-keying orders, reconciling bills, and pulling reports for each shipper.

    As your Fractional Chief Automation Officer (Fr-CAO), we design and govern the WMS and TMS integration and automation that moves data, orders, and invoices across your CRM, warehouse systems, and billing stack—so every order flows from quote to cash without spreadsheet glue work.

    At a Glance

    • For: Logistics & 3PL providers ($3M–$50M)
    • Focus: Lead-to-cash, order-to-fulfill, billing automation, OTIF reporting
    • Outcome: Faster billing cycles, fewer re-keys, standardized operations

    Operational Debt in Logistics & 3PLs

    Logistics is a game of thin margins and tight SLAs. Yet most 3PLs are held together by manual work: emails, spreadsheets, and one or two ops heroes who "just know how the systems fit together." That's Operational Debt—the compound cost of manual work, rework, and disconnected systems that slow down revenue and scale. Without proper warehouse management system integration and logistics process automation, this debt only grows.

    If you're a logistics provider or 3PL, this might sound familiar:

    Manual order entry everywhere

    Sales closes a deal, someone re-keys it into the WMS, then again into billing.

    WMS/TMS and CRM don't talk

    Status lives in the warehouse, promises live in the CRM, and customers live in your inbox. Without WMS integration services and TMS automation solutions, teams waste hours bridging the gap manually.

    Billing is a monthly fire drill

    Surcharges, storage, accessorials, fuel—calculated by hand in "just one more" spreadsheet. 3PL billing automation could eliminate this entirely, but most providers lack the expertise to implement it.

    OTIF and SLA reporting is painful

    Every big shipper wants a different KPI pack, and your ops team is the BI tool.

    EDI and portal chaos

    Each customer has their own format, portal, or EDI flavor; your team translates by hand.

    The result: good revenue, tired people, and a business that feels "maxed out" long before the P&L says it should be.

    Where a Chief Automation Officer Focuses in Logistics & 3PLs

    A Chief Automation Officer providing 3PL automation consulting and logistics automation strategy looks at your logistics operation as a set of cross-team flows, not isolated systems. For 3PL providers and logistics companies, our 3PL workflow automation typically focuses on four core journeys:

    Flow 1 – Lead-to-Cash for 3PL

    • Standardize quoting so sales can't promise what ops can't deliver.
    • Push accepted quotes straight into your WMS/TMS with the right SKUs, rates, and contract terms.
    • Tie shipments, accessorials, and storage fees back to the original deal, automatically.
    • Generate clean, auditable invoices without a month-end scramble.

    Flow 2 – Order-to-Fulfill

    • Integrate ecommerce platforms (Shopify, Magento, Amazon, etc.) and customer portals into your WMS.
    • Automate pick/pack/ship workflows and exception handling.
    • Keep CRM and customer-facing teams updated with real-time status—without asking ops to "send an update."

    Flow 3 – Billing & Cash Collection

    • Automate rating and billing rules (storage, handling, accessorials, fuel, minimums).
    • Reconcile WMS/TMS activity with billing automatically, instead of spreadsheet VLOOKUPs at 10pm.
    • Shorten the quote → ship → invoice → cash cycle so you're not financing customers by accident.

    Flow 4 – SLA, OTIF & Client Reporting

    • Standardize the data model for OTIF, dwell time, and other shipper KPIs.
    • Generate shipper-specific reports on a schedule, without someone "pulling it all together" each time.
    • Give leadership a simple, reliable view of performance across sites and customers.

    Results from Similar 3PLs Using WMS Integration Services & TMS Automation

    • Uncovered 420+ hours/month of manual work in billing and sales ops
    • Cut invoice cycle time from 17 days to 6 days
    • Reduced billing errors and credits by 30–40%

    Example Wins in Logistics & 3PLs

    B2B 3PL

    ~$18M Revenue, Multi-Site

    Reduced invoice cycle time from 17 days to 6 days

    • Identified 420 hours/month of manual work in billing and sales ops.
    • Built a lead-to-cash flow from CRM → WMS → billing that removed three separate re-key points.
    • Cut invoice cycle time from 17 days to 6 days, improving cash and reducing disputes.
    Ecommerce 3PL

    High Order Volume

    Automated Shopify/WMS order flows and inventory updates

    • Connected Shopify and marketplace orders directly into the WMS with standard exception handling.
    • Automated inventory and tracking updates back to client systems, reducing "where's my order?" tickets.
    • Improved pick/pack productivity and reduced overtime without adding headcount.
    Asset-Light Logistics

    Complex Surcharges

    Reduced billing errors and credits by 30–40%

    • Codified rating rules and accessorials that previously lived in one ops lead's head.
    • Automated surcharge application and invoice generation from TMS data.
    • Reduced billing errors and credits by 30–40%, while making gross margin visible in near real-time.

    How the Fr-CAO Model Works for Logistics & 3PLs

    1

    Step 1 – Process Heatmap for Your Logistics Operation

    We start with a Process Heatmap of your logistics business:

    • Map lead-to-cash, order-to-fulfill, and billing across sales, warehouse, and finance.
    • Quantify where hours, errors, and delays actually cluster.
    • Identify system breaks between CRM, WMS, TMS, and billing.
    • Estimate ROI for each potential automation initiative.

    You get a ranked list of automation opportunities, with hours saved, complexity, and EBITDA impact—translated into numbers your leadership team can use.

    "For one mid-market 3PL, the Process Heatmap uncovered 420 hours/month of manual work in billing and sales ops—enough to cut invoice cycle time from 17 days to 6 days."

    2

    Step 2 – Automation Governance for 3PLs

    Next, we turn one-off ideas into a governed automation portfolio:

    • Create an automation roadmap tied to your throughput, margins, and SLAs.
    • Decide what to tackle now vs later vs never.
    • Align operations, IT, and finance on the same picture of value.
    • Set simple guardrails for changes so you don't create new fragility.

    As your Fractional Chief Automation Officer, we join your leadership cadence and own this portfolio—just like a CFO would own your financial plan.

    "One logistics client scaled from one pilot automation to five workflows in 8 months—reducing billing errors by 30–40% and freeing up operations capacity without adding headcount."

    3

    Step 3 – Execution Pod: WMS/TMS + CRM + Billing

    Lastly, we lead an execution pod that actually ships the work:

    • Engineers and systems builders who know how to work with WMS/TMS, CRM, billing, and data tools.
    • Build integrations, automations, and small internal tools with full code ownership on your side.
    • Document and hand off solutions so they survive staff turnover and vendor changes.
    • Monitor and maintain critical workflows so ops isn't afraid to scale.

    "For a B2B 3PL, we automated their lead-to-cash flow from CRM → WMS → billing in 6 weeks, removing three manual re-key points and accelerating cash flow by 11 days."

    Who Hires a Fractional Chief Automation Officer in Logistics?

    We typically partner with mid-market logistics companies and 3PLs between $3M and $50M in revenue, when leadership knows they're leaving money on the table but doesn't want to build a big internal tech team.

    VP / Head of Operations at 3PL Providers

    When spreadsheets and tribal knowledge can't keep up with new customers, channels, or sites—but a full-time CTO doesn't make sense.

    COOs at Multi-Site Logistics Companies

    When each location has its own way of doing things, and you need standardized processes and reporting without killing local flexibility.

    Founders & PE-Backed Operators

    When you're preparing for sale or refinancing and need cleaner numbers, faster reporting, and a story about scalable operations.

    This page is for you if you're a:

    • VP / Head of Operations at a 3PL provider
    • COO of a multi-site logistics company
    • Founder or PE-backed operator preparing for sale or refinancing

    Want the full overview? Learn more about the Fractional Chief Automation Officer (Fr-CAO) engagement.

    FAQs for Logistics & 3PL Leaders

    Ready to Uncover Your Operational Debt?

    Schedule a free intro consultation to discuss how a Fractional Chief Automation Officer can help your logistics operation scale without adding headcount.

    In our conversation, we'll explore:

    • Where manual work is slowing down your lead-to-cash and order-to-fulfill flows
    • How WMS/TMS integration and billing automation could reduce errors and speed up invoicing
    • What the Fr-CAO engagement model looks like for your 3PL or logistics company

    No pressure, no commitment—just a straightforward conversation about automation opportunities in your operation.