Supply Chain Management refers to products and services that enable the planning, execution, monitoring, and optimization of supply chain activities across sourcing, logistics, and fulfillment. This category includes markets that focus on procurement, transportation, warehouse and inventory management, supplier collaboration, sustainability, and supply chain analytics-empowering organizations to improve operational efficiency, cost-effectiveness, resilience, and customer service across global supply networks.
Gartner defines a third-party logistics (3PL) provider as a logistics service provider that moves, stores and manages the flow and distribution of products and materials on behalf of its customers for a fee without taking ownership. The 3PL will typically provide and manage operations that must include warehousing, transportation or value-added services that can be scaled and customized to the shipper’s needs. 3PL providers solve the challenge of efficiently managing the movement, storage and distribution of goods by enabling companies to outsource complex logistics operations, thereby reducing operational costs, improving supply chain visibility and supporting business scalability.