Digitalization and Sustainability
76% increase in digital transactions in Q1 2022 compared to 2021
Promoted to CEO of Redspher in the midst of the pandemic crisis, Jean-François Collenot has had to face many other challenges, be they economic, geopolitical or environmental. In this portrait, he emphasizes that Redspher’s resilience lies in its proactivity. Indeed, since 2015, the company has been able to focus on digitalization while integrating ecological issues. An adaptability that makes it today the most fluid time-sensitive delivery platform in Europe.
A logistics specialist at the helm of the executive
The appointment of Jean-François Collenot to the position of CEO of Redspher in November 2020 came as a high point in the career of this logistics expert. Indeed, Jean-François Collenot has always worked in the transport sector with an experience of more than twenty years in the field.
He started at the end of the 1990s as a Manager at Taxicolis, then a leader in personalized urgent transport. For this group, he was in charge of the Chronopost entity as Regional Manager for the South of France.
In 2008, when Taxicolis was acquired by Flash (renamed Redspher in 2018) in the midst of the global economic recession, Philippe Higelin, President and Founder of Redspher, appointed him Operational Manager of Taxicolis to manage the integration of the entity into the group and to manage the transition.
For thirteen years, Jean-François Collenot was successively within the Redspher group as Country Manager France, then Managing Director of the Automotive and Industry sector for Europe and finally Managing Director of Flash for all sectors.
His appointment in November 2020 as CEO of Redspher splits the group’s decisions into two parts: on the one hand, Philippe Higelin focuses on the strategic aspect; on the other hand, Jean-François Collenot takes care of the executive part.
A proactive vision of the logistics market trend
Jean-François Collenot has been confronted with many crises during his first years in office in addition to the Covid-19 crisis, such as the shortage of electronic components and cables, the Russian-Ukrainian conflict and the increase in fuel prices. However, Redspher did not wait for the crises to anticipate developments in the sector. As early as 2015, Redspher was already setting up a platform because the company was aware of the importance of digital technology for its international development ambitions. Today, 80% of orders are placed via the platform, and 50% of shipments put the shipper directly in contact with the carrier without any intervention from Redspher teams.
Redspher’s main ambition is to become a leading company in the “time sensitive” ecosystem, i.e. to succeed in managing emergencies upstream and downstream of production, in complete confidence and transparency. This ambition is made possible by constant investment: 6% of Redspher’s net income is reinvested in Research & Development each year.
“My extensive experience in the logistics sector and my gradual evolution within the Redspher group have enabled me to deal effectively with the various crises the group has faced. However, we always keep in mind the importance of anticipating the evolutions of the sector, to lead our colleagues towards solutions more adapted to the new expectations of the carriers and shippers while having a high level of requirement of respect of the environment”Jean-François Collenot, CEO of Redspher
Environment and digitalization at the heart of the group’s strategy
In the face of today’s global supply chain challenges, the increasing digitalization of the logistics and transportation industry is giving shippers more transparency and visibility into their processes, costs and enabling them to become more resilient. This digital push is resulting in a sharp increase in digital requests and bookings for spot market shipments.
On its digital platform, Redspher is seeing strong growth in traffic with:
- A 76% increase in transactions in Q1 2022 compared to Q1 last year
- A 21% increase in activity compared to the 4th quarter of 2021 with customers using its platform, despite the difficult economic context.
Accessible at any time, Redspher’s Shipper Portal allows shippers to indicate their shipping needs in a few minutes and receive solutions from carriers all over Europe in a very short time. In addition, they have real-time access to their transport data and the status of their shipments. At the same time, the platform on the carrier side allows carriers to offer their fleet to shipment requests matching their location and vehicles. This allows carriers and drivers to optimize their fleet capacity and avoid empty miles.
To guarantee and secure digital transactions on its platform, Redspher offers its customers and carriers:
- Real-time access to the largest transport capacity in Europe.
- Fast, efficient and transparent overview of shipping options.
- Real-time tracking and tracing of shipments
In addition to the digitalization of the sector, sustainability is a major strategic pillar for the group. With multiple certifications (ISO 14001:2015, 3rd star in the Lean & Green program and Ecovadis gold medal) the company has launched a wide range of initiatives to reduce the carbon footprint of its teams but also to engage carriers on the path of ecological transition. This strategy at various levels has enabled it to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions of its activity by more than 25% between 2017 and 2019. Very focused on reducing the impact of last mile delivery, Redspher intends to continue its efforts by obtaining the 4th Lean & Green star, with the objective of achieving a 55% reduction in carbon footprint by 2030.
