A quick operational snapshot

• How many active SKUs does your primary distribution operation handle today? Options: Under 500, 500 to 2,000, 2,001 to 10,000, 10,001 to 50,000, 50,000+
• On average, what is your monthly outbound order volume across all channels? Options: Under 5,000, 5,000 to 25,000, 25,001 to 100,000, 100,001 to 500,000, 500,000+
• Which channels generate most of those orders for your team? Options: Ecommerce storefronts, Marketplaces, Retail replenishment, Wholesale / B2B, Direct-to-consumer subscriptions, Other
• Who owns day to day warehouse operations and decision making in your org chart? Options: Director of Logistics, VP of Supply Chain, Operations Manager, Shared responsibility across functions, Other
• Tell me about your current warehouse footprint, number of facilities, and the primary role of each (for example regional DC, e-commerce pick pack, cross-dock).

Where the operation is leaking value

• Which single recent operational failure would make you consider outsourcing immediately?
• Describe the last peak season where service degraded, including order delay rates, inventory accuracy, and overtime spend.
• How many percentage points did inventory accuracy fall compared with your target during that event? Options: Less than 2 points, 2 to 5 points, 6 to 10 points, More than 10 points, Don't have the data
• Who was accountable for root cause analysis, and what were the corrective actions you tried?
• If you had to prioritize the causes by cost to your business, which two would you put at the top? Options: Labor shortages / overtime, WMS or integration errors, Carrier capacity and delays, Forecast inaccuracy, SKU labeling / receiving errors, Other

The hidden cost and reporting blind spots

• To what extent does your current cost to serve capture accessorials, storage overages, and minimums? Options: Fully captured, Mostly captured with manual reconciliations, Partially captured, Not captured or unknown
• Estimate your last 12 months total cost to serve per order, including labor, rent, systems, and out of system fees. Options: Under $2, $2 to $5, $5 to $10, $10 to $20, Over $20
• What internal reports or data exports do you rely on to reconcile carrier billed charges against quoted rates? Options: Carrier invoice reports, TMS reconciliations, Accounts payable ledgers, Custom reconciliation exports, None of the above
• On average, how much does monthly unbilled freight or accessorials deviate from your forecast? Options: Under 2%, 2 to 5%, 6 to 10%, More than 10%, Unknown
• When invoices are disputed, how many days to resolution is typical and which function owns resolution? Options: Under 7 days - Logistics owns, 7 to 30 days - Finance owns, 30 to 90 days - Shared owners, Over 90 days or unresolved, No standard process
• If you could not produce three months of reconciled carrier invoices within 10 business days, would that rule out pursuing an outsource pilot? Options: Yes, it would rule it out, No, it would delay the timeline, We could produce them with assistance, Unsure

What visibility and control you cannot afford to lose

• Name the visibility metric that, if not available in near real time after transition, would force you to pause a go live. Options: Inventory accuracy by SKU, On time fulfillment rate, Order to ship cycle time, Backorder rate, Carrier exceptions
• List the systems that must integrate before go live, for example your order management, ERP, and carrier portal. Options: Order Management System, ERP / Financial system, Existing WMS, TMS / Carrier connections, Marketplace feeds, Custom systems
• Confirm the role or team that will own integration testing from your side and the estimated weekly hours they can commit for two months. Options: Internal integration team, IT / Platform engineering, Operations with IT support, External consultant, No one currently assigned
• To what extent are your product labeling, barcode scheme, and SKU mapping standardized across channels? Options: Fully standardized, Mostly standardized with exceptions, Fragmented by channel, Not standardized
• Can your security team provide API access controls and SOC2 evidence within 30 days? Options: Yes, Yes with additional paperwork, No, needs longer, Unsure
• Give an example of the single integration gap that, if it occurred during pilot, would force you to delay go live.

Transition risks the organization is most nervous about

• Identify the internal stakeholder who would block or slow a transition unless specific protections were included. Options: Head of Operations, CFO, General Counsel, Head of Customer Experience, Head of IT, No single blocker
• Estimate the number of full time equivalents your in house operation would effectively free up if you outsourced this scope. Options: None, 1 to 5 FTEs, 6 to 15 FTEs, 16 to 50 FTEs, 50+ FTEs
• List the contractual protections that would make leadership comfortable, for example liability caps, minimum service levels, or transition back rights. Options: Service level guarantees, Transition assistance period, Termination for convenience, Price protection clauses, Liability limits, Other
• When thinking about the first 90 days after handoff, what single operational metric would you watch daily to feel the transition is safe? Options: Order accuracy, On time to ship, Inventory reconciliation variance, Fulfillment cycle time, Customer complaints / returns
• Would a staged ramp with defined stop points and go no go checks reduce internal resistance enough to accelerate commitment? Options: Yes, Maybe with adjustments, No
• State whether any single stakeholder's refusal to sign off would stop the project, and if so which role that is. Options: Yes - Head of Operations, Yes - CFO, Yes - General Counsel, No single approver can stop, Other

The other options on your table

• Provide the alternatives you are actively evaluating, including internal fixes, incumbent providers, or other 3PLs.
• For each alternative, what would have to be true about their performance, cost, or contract terms for you to stick with them instead of switching?
• Specify the threshold improvement in order accuracy, on time rate, or cost that would keep you internal rather than outsource. Options: Order accuracy +2%, On time +5%, Cost savings >5%, No change would keep us internal, Other
• Has anyone on your team proposed solving this with temporary labor, a WMS fix, or another internal option rather than a 3PL? Options: Yes - temporary labor, Yes - WMS / automation fix, Yes - process change, No one has proposed internal only, Under discussion
• Would a modest price reduction from the incumbent without measurable inventory or accuracy improvements be enough to stop your search? Options: Yes, No, Only temporarily, Unsure

What would make you sign this week

• Assuming a pilot proves the model numbers, what single remaining barrier would stop you from signing within 14 days?
• Name the KPI and target that would secure executive sign off for you after a pilot. Options: Order accuracy target, On time to ship target, Inventory reconciliation variance, Total cost to serve target, Other
• How long a binding minimum commitment would your finance team accept to achieve the modeled savings? Options: No minimum, 3 months, 6 months, 12 months, 24 months+
• What contract terms are non negotiable for your team, for example liability cap, transition assistance, or an out clause? Options: Liability cap, Transition assistance period, Termination rights, Price change limits, Audit rights, Other
• Identify the ultimate signatory and the expected review timeline once commercial terms are agreed. Options: VP Supply Chain - 1 week, CFO - 2 weeks, CEO - 2 to 4 weeks, Legal review required - timeline varies, Other

Operational readiness and hard constraints

• Confirm the single missing readiness item that would prevent a 60 day inventory transfer. Options: Named ship from facility, Inventory accuracy baseline, Integration endpoints, Access windows and dock appointments, No missing items
• Estimate the number of named owners you can commit across inventory, systems, and carriers for the deployment period. Options: None currently, 1 to 2 named owners, 3 to 5 named owners, 6 or more named owners
• Provide the systems where you can deliver API keys or EDI endpoints within the next 14 days. Options: Order Management System, ERP / Financial system, Inventory feed, Carrier portal / TMS, None available
• Can you commit to inventory transfer windows and site access that fit a defined staged ramp, or will multiple fragmented windows be required? Options: Single transfer window per region, Multiple windows required, Depends on SKU family, Unsure
• State whether lack of a confirmed ship from facility and access window within 30 days would pause the project. Options: Yes, pause the project, No, continue with adjusted timeline, We need assistance to confirm windows, Unsure

Seller commitments and acceptance tests that reduce your risk

• Outline the single seller commitment that would make your CFO comfortable signing within 30 days. Options: Performance based pricing, Strong SLA credits, Short term pilot with exit rights, Detailed transition plan with named resources, Other
• Detail the acceptance tests, sample sizes, and target thresholds you would require in a pilot (for example 500 orders at X% accuracy over Y days).
• Specify the roles that should receive daily operations reports during ramp and the KPIs they must see. Options: Operations Manager - order accuracy & throughput, Supply Chain Director - inventory variance & cycle time, Finance - cost to serve reconciliation, Customer Experience - returns and complaints
• Indicate the number of consecutive days of meeting SLA targets you would require before formal acceptance of an outsourced facility. Options: 3 days, 7 days, 14 days, 30 days, Other
• Assess whether shared dashboards and API access to inventory visibility would reduce your need for weekly operational alignment calls. Options: Yes, significantly, Somewhat, No, we would still require regular calls
• Given the pilot meets targets but marginal cost to serve is slightly higher for a season, would you accept that outcome in exchange for sustained reliability gains? Options: Yes, if reliability improves, Only temporarily, No, cost must be lower, Unsure

• Solution Experience Session

• Confirm the current state and quantify the cost
• You confirm the demonstrated workflow eliminates the service degradation you described during peak season.
• Run a total cost-to-serve model using the buyer's last peak season orders and deliver a comparative report showing per-order cost and identified accessorials within five business days.
• You confirm the proposed integration and reconciliation approach prevents the inventory discrepancies that caused order errors.
• Map your end-to-end workflow and integration points
• Provide the last peak season order file, SKU list with cube/weight, and weekly volume profile for the previous two peaks.
• You agree on the remaining evidence and pilot criteria needed to make a decision.
• Proof: run your scenario through the proposed outsourced workflow
• Share sample integration endpoint details or test credentials and the current field mapping spec for orders and inventory.
• Show reconciliation and exception handling for integrations
• Draft proposed pilot success criteria including inventory accuracy targets, on-time rate thresholds, and ramp schedule for review.
• Validate this matches your requirement

• Solution Experience Session
• Solution Experience Deck
• Solution Brief

• meeting
• slides
• document

• Receive and Process Transferred Inventory
• Putaway and Bin Location Setup
• Barcode Labeling and SKU Tagging
• Cycle Counting and Inventory Reconciliation
• Pick-Pack-Ship Order Fulfillment
• Kitting, Assembly, and Value-Added Packaging
• Returns Processing and Refurbishment
• Cross-Dock and Flow-Through Fulfillment
• Transportation Management and Carrier Coordination
• Carrier Rate Shopping and Parcel Manifesting
• WMS-to-Order-Management API Integration
• Carrier Invoice Audit and Freight Pay
• Seasonal Labor Scaling and Peak Fulfillment Support

Receive and Process Transferred Inventory

• How many pallet positions and loose-piece cartons will be transferred in the initial inventory move? Options: Less than 50 pallets, 50-200 pallets, 201-1,000 pallets, More than 1,000 pallets
• Which advance shipping notices (ASN) or manifest formats will you provide for inbound shipments (for example EDI 856, CSV ASN, or carrier manifest)? Options: EDI 856, CSV ASN, Carrier manifest (CSV/PDF), Other / custom file
• Describe the receiving inspection criteria for transferred inventory including acceptable damage tolerances and quarantine process for exceptions.
• Do you require the provider to perform cycle counting at receipt (first-receipt validation) versus deferred cycle counts? Options: First-receipt validation required, Deferred cycle counting acceptable, Hybrid (sample-based)
• Provide the typical paperwork and electronic files that will accompany transfers (pick ticket, packing list, ASN, certificate of conformance), and indicate which must be machine-readable.

Putaway and Bin Location Setup

• Specify the bin naming convention you expect in the warehouse management system (for example Aisle-Shelf-Position or Zone-BinNumber) and any constraints on character length.
• Indicate the average cubic feet per SKU and whether certain SKUs require pallet positions, shelf positions, or bulk lanes. Options: Pallet positions required, Shelf positions, Bulk/flow lanes, Mixed
• Confirm your preferred putaway rules for fast-moving SKUs (for example forward pick locations within X pick faces or proximity to packing stations). Options: Forward pick within 2 pick faces, Proximity-based within receiving zone, Velocity-tiered putaway (ABC), No preference
• List any SKUs or product families that require special handling for putaway (hazmat, temperature control, high-value or odd-dimension items).
• Where will bulk replenishment thresholds come from—your forecast file, daily sales history, or WMS-calculated velocity—and how frequently should replenishment run? Options: Forecast file (daily), Daily sales history (nightly), WMS velocity-based (real-time), Other

Barcode Labeling and SKU Tagging

• Are GS1-compliant barcodes required on cartons and pallets or do you accept vendor part barcodes (for example GTIN versus internal SKU codes)? Options: GS1 required, Vendor part barcodes acceptable, Both required
• Which label template fields must appear on inbound carton and pallet labels (for example SKU, lot number, expiration date, serial number, PO number)? Options: SKU, Lot number, Expiration date, Serial number, PO number, Other
• Provide the label placement rules and minimum label size for each package type (pallet, case, inner pack).
• Who will supply barcode printers, printers drivers, and label stock for new-tagging tasks, and do you require approval of print samples before bulk tagging? Options: You supply printers/stock, We supply printers/stock, Hybrid (we supply stock), Approval of print samples required
• How will serial-numbered or lot-tracked items be recorded at tagging time (single-scan capture, CSV upload of serial list, or API upload)? Options: Single-scan capture, CSV upload, API upload, Manual entry

Cycle Counting and Inventory Reconciliation

• What inventory accuracy percentage will validate inventory reconciliation for transferred SKUs (for example 95% measured by unit-count variance)? Options: >= 98%, >= 95%, >= 90%, Custom threshold
• Identify the required cycle count cadence by SKU velocity class (for example daily for A SKUs, weekly for B SKUs, monthly for C SKUs). Options: Daily/Weekly/Monthly, Weekly/Monthly/Quarterly, Custom cadence
• Confirm the variance threshold that should trigger a full investigation and recount (for example variance > 2% or > 10 units). Options: Variance > 2%, Variance > 5%, Variance > 10 units, Custom rule
• Estimate the acceptable time-to-reconcile after a discrepancy is detected (for example 48 hours to root cause and adjustment). Options: 24 hours, 48 hours, 72 hours, Custom SLA
• When do you require inventory adjustments to be reflected in your order management system—immediately via API, nightly batch, or only after manual approval? Options: Immediate via API, Nightly batch, After manual approval, Hybrid

Pick-Pack-Ship Order Fulfillment

• Which order types will you send for fulfillment (for example B2C parcel, B2B pallet, drop-ship to retail stores) and which require different workflows? Options: B2C parcel, B2B pallet, Retail store drop-ship, Marketplace orders, Other
• For which SKUs or order profiles do you require special packing materials or instructions (fragile, temperature-controlled, kitted bundles)?
• Select the expected average and peak orders per day during launch and peak season (used to size pick lines and pack stations). Options: Under 500/day, 500-2,000/day, 2,001-10,000/day, Over 10,000/day
• Provide the required order accuracy and on-time shipping thresholds that will be used as acceptance criteria for fulfillment (for example 99% order accuracy, 95% on-time shipment). Options: 99% accuracy / 98% on-time, 98% accuracy / 95% on-time, 95% accuracy / 90% on-time, Custom targets
• Confirm your pick method preference for high-volume SKUs (for example batch pick by wave, zone pick, or piece pick) and whether scan-verification is mandatory. Options: Batch/wave pick, Zone pick, Piece pick, Scan-verification mandatory

Kitting, Assembly, and Value-Added Packaging

• Do you plan to deliver bills of materials (BOMs) for kits and assemblies as structured files (CSV/JSON) or as production work orders in the WMS? Options: Structured files (CSV/JSON), Production work orders in WMS, Manual kit instructions
• Specify the average build time per kit or assembly and any maximum allowable build-time SLA.
• List quality checkpoints required during kitting, including visual inspection, part-count verification, and torque or electrical tests if applicable.
• Identify whether kit components will be stocked as dedicated kit SKUs or consumed from parent SKUs at pack-time. Options: Dedicated kit SKUs, Consumed from parent SKUs, Hybrid
• Attach or describe any special packaging artwork, serialization, or regulatory labeling required for value-added packaging.

Returns Processing and Refurbishment

• Describe your RMA workflow from buyer return initiation through disposition (for example return-to-stock, refurbish, scrap, or return-to-vendor).
• Which disposition codes and disposition-first routing must be supported in the WMS for returned items?
• State the refurbishment steps and tests required to return a unit to sellable condition (for example cleaning, inspection, component replacement, test cycle).
• Who owns decision authority for disposition exceptions and what escalation path should be used for high-value returns? Options: You own decisions, We own decisions per SLA, Escalation to joint review
• Indicate the target turnaround time for returns-to-ready-for-resale and required reporting fields for dispositioned returns. Options: 48 hours, 5 business days, 10 business days, Custom SLA

Cross-Dock and Flow-Through Fulfillment

• When do you require same-day flow-through for inbound-to-outbound (for example same-day or next-day ship windows)? Options: Same-day, Next-day, Within 48 hours, Other
• Where will inbound items destined for cross-dock be identified—by ASN flag, PO line instruction, or carton-level scan? Options: ASN flag, PO line instruction, Carton-level scan, Other
• Do you require consolidation rules for flow-through (for example combining multiple supplier cartons into a single customer shipment)? Options: Yes, No, Conditional
• Provide expected same-day move volumes for cross-dock and any maximum staging time per inbound pallet or carton.
• How often should cross-dock activity be reconciled against the order stream and what fields must match (SKU, quantity, ASN ID)? Options: Real-time match, Hourly reconciliation, Daily reconciliation

Transportation Management and Carrier Coordination

• Which carrier account model applies to this engagement—use your carrier accounts, use provider accounts, or hybrid? Options: You provide carrier accounts, Provider provides accounts, Hybrid
• Which lanes and service levels must be supported initially (for example TL regional, LTL nationwide, parcel ground 2-day)?
• Specify tendering rules and automated hold conditions (for example auto-tender under X weight, hold for manual approval over Y value).
• Who owns carrier onboarding (contract terms, SCAC registration, EDI/FTP credentials) and who will coordinate carrier test files? Options: You own onboarding, We own onboarding, Joint responsibility
• Are there required carrier KPIs to track such as on-time pickup, tender acceptance rate, and claims frequency, and which KPI thresholds apply? Options: Track all standard KPIs, Track selected KPIs only, Custom KPI thresholds

Carrier Rate Shopping and Parcel Manifesting

• Select the parcel carrier selection logic you require—lowest landed cost, fastest transit, or prioritized carrier list by lane. Options: Lowest landed cost, Fastest transit, Prioritized list by lane, Customer preference per order
• How many parcel and freight rate tiers must the rate-shopping engine support (for example account-level negotiated rates, retail rates, volumetric tiers)? Options: 1 tier, 2-3 tiers, 4+ tiers
• Will you provide dimensional and weight validation equipment data (for example cubing station outputs) to the manifesting engine? Options: Yes, real-time cubing data, No, we provide declared dims, Other
• Indicate whether consolidated manifesting for multiple orders into one pallet or parcel shipment is required and which carrier protocols support it. Options: Consolidated manifesting required, Not required, Conditional
• Provide the required manifest file formats and any account-level billing codes that must appear on shipment records.

WMS-to-Order-Management API Integration

• Which API endpoint patterns and environments will you provide for order push and order-status callbacks (for example /api/orders, sandbox and production URLs)?
• Which EDI or message types must be supported in addition to APIs (for example EDI 850 for orders, EDI 856 for ASN)? Options: EDI 850, EDI 856, Flat-file CSV, None
• Provide the required field mappings for SKU, quantity, order type, and fulfillment node and indicate any transformation rules (for example SKU prefix removal).
• Specify authentication method for the integration endpoints (for example API key, OAuth2 client credentials, or mutual TLS). Options: API key, OAuth2 client credentials, Mutual TLS, Other
• Confirm the acceptance test for integration readiness, for example end-to-end test orders with X sample SKUs and zero reconciliation variance over Y test orders. Options: End-to-end test orders (sample set), Full-mock load test, Both

Carrier Invoice Audit and Freight Pay

• Who will supply carrier invoices—carrier EDI 210, carrier PDF invoices, or provider-aggregated statements? Options: Carrier EDI 210, Carrier PDF, Provider-aggregated
• What three-way match rules do you require for invoice audit (shipment record vs. manifest vs. invoice) and what variance tolerance is allowed? Options: Strict 0% tolerance, Up to 2% variance, Up to 5% variance, Custom tolerance
• Provide GL coding structure and cost-center mapping rules that must be applied during invoice posting and AP export.
• Indicate the dispute resolution SLA for disputed freight charges and whether chargebacks should be attempted with carriers automatically. Options: 48-hour dispute SLA, 5 business days, Auto chargeback enabled, Manual only
• How will freight pay be remitted—direct pay by you, pay-on-behalf with invoicing, or net settlement with periodic reconciliation? Options: Direct pay by you, Provider pays and invoices you, Net settlement

• Master Services Agreement (MSA)
• Statement of Work (SOW)
• Rate Schedule & Accessorial Fee Schedule
• Minimum Volume & Minimum Billing Commitment
• Service Level Agreement (SLA)
• Transition & Migration Addendum
• Acceptance Certificate & Go‑Live Criteria
• Liability, Insurance & Indemnity Addendum
• Change Order & Scope Amendment Form
• Carrier Authorization & Integration Confirmation
• Site Access, Security & Facility Rules Addendum
• Data Processing Agreement (DPA) — conditional

• Go-live Health Check (weeks 1-4)
• First Measurement Review (weeks 4-10)
• Acceptance Gate Review (around day 90)
• Ongoing Quarterly Success Review

• Provide scope and rough effort estimates for the top three enhancement requests within 30 days.
• Restate acceptance criteria
• Produce a definitive pass or conditional-pass outcome for each acceptance criterion recorded in Operational Scope.
• Confirm incumbent system wind-down is complete or a documented read-only retention plan is in place.
• Agree and time-box any remaining remediation with explicit verification steps and dates.
• Publish the acceptance decision document with criterion-level results and any conditional remediation items.
• Deliver evidence of incumbent system decommissioning or completed data migration and archive logs.
• Create a short verification checklist and schedule for each conditional remediation item with target close dates.
• Trend review for key metrics
• Ensure inventory allocation accuracy and integration uptime remain within the tolerances recorded in Operational Scope.
• Close or reassign all root-cause tickets older than 30 days with clear resolution deadlines.
• Agree a prioritized list of enhancement requests for the seller to estimate and return with impact and timing.
• Publish the quarterly performance packet including metric trend lines, integration uptime logs, and open-ticket status.
• Resolve or reprioritize root-cause tickets older than 30 days and update the shared channel with next steps.
• Re-confirm success criteria and owners
• Confirm the deployment completed to a state where operations can produce meaningful first-measurement data.
• List and time-box all critical blockers with a closure date for each.
• Ensure all operational owners know how to escalate urgent order fulfillment issues.
• Produce and circulate a short incident log capturing every high-severity issue, current status, and expected resolution date.
• Run and share a day-one reconciliation report comparing inventory received versus expected for all SKUs at the primary site.
• Confirm and publish primary escalation contacts and the escalation path for order-failure events.
• Present first measurement data
• Establish whether inventory allocation accuracy and order throughput are on a trajectory to meet targets recorded in Operational Scope.
• Document root causes for each missed target and a time-bound remediation plan.
• Set a clear verification date for each remediation item ahead of the acceptance gate.
• Deliver a corrective action plan that lists each remediation task, expected metric impact, and target completion date.
• Provide an updated integration error log and reconciliation summary covering the measurement window.
• Schedule automated daily reports for inventory allocation variance until stability is demonstrated.
• Deployment and migration validation
• Open issue and root-cause ticket burn-down
• Root-cause diagnosis for gaps
• Present outcome data per criterion
• Agree corrective action plan
• Document pass or conditional pass per criterion
• Enhancement request triage
• Early adoption signals and usage patterns
• Confirm timeline to acceptance gate
• Open issues and blockers
• Incumbent decommissioning and data archival
• Operational housekeeping
• Formal acceptance decision and next steps
• Immediate remediation actions