Hapag-Lloyd's origins date back to the dawn of modern trade routes, founded on a promise of quality shipping solutions that would help them become “Number One for Quality.” Today, the company is the fifth largest international shipping company, operating in 135 counties. They’re now undertaking a new root-and-branch digital revolution and at the heart of this is intelligent automation (IA) — supported in partnership with SS&C Blue Prism.

Weathering Industry Challenges and Standing Out

It’s no secret that the shipping industry has been confronted with a series of exceptional challenges, including rising shipping costs, the pandemic and the Suez Canal obstruction. Hapag-Lloyd successfully navigated the storms thanks to their recent digital transformation. Now, their ambitions are expanding. In an industry that still handles many of its processes on paper, Hapag-Lloyd is determined to digitize every aspect of its operations: Helping them save time and be more cost-effective while also assisting customers in accessing complex, world-spanning supply chain and logistics services as simply as if they were booking and managing airline tickets.

Helping lead the transformation mission, Javier Verstraete, senior director, global business support, explains, “We strongly believe that better service is the way we can differentiate from competitors. But we want to be very specific in measuring what that means for customers. ... We are laser-focused on quality. Without technology as an enabler, you will not do it.”

IA has been instrumental in helping Hapag-Lloyd reduce costs and achieve these results, whether it’s accurately releasing bills of lading, correctly invoicing customers without human error, timely communications or always being accessible to customers — it’s optimizing shipping and making a daily impact on every process.

Speaking about one of the automated shipping processes, Krystian Malec, RPA technology manager, says, “There were between 40 and 60 colleagues doing this work manually and now they are able to do better things within our Global Capability Center, which provides standardized services across the globe. Our bot is essentially doing most of the export steps, end to end, for the business.”

Shipping Automation In Action Across Hapag-Lloyd

Hapag-Lloyd's success in deploying automation was guided by their use of the SS&C | Blue Prism® Robotic Operating Model 2 (ROM™2), which ultimately led them to win an SS&C Blue Prism Customer Excellence Award.

Mateusz Linda, director – automation & AI, reveals, “ROM2 has been really instrumental in setting up the entire program here. On the vision side, it’s really helped us to get that clarity. On the people side, we have followed the roles and responsibilities as they have been defined in ROM2, and on the governance side, we have also been able to really secure the long-term stable, solid operation of the program.”

Hapag-Lloyd's success didn’t just stem from its exceptional technology and expertise but also from its adept management of change among its people, fostering a culture that embraces automation software. Carolin Arens, director of project management & process and performance support, says, “Our job is to bring automation to the organization and work through any resistance to the unknown. We work through it by analyzing processes, highlighting the potential for automation and show what that means in terms of value-adding work for people.”

From navigating the pandemic and overcoming the Suez incident to managing invoice disputes, handling hazardous cargo and driving sustainability — IA is not just saving money; it’s transforming every aspect of Hapag-Lloyd's processes for the better.

Download the in-depth story to learn more about how Hapag-Lloyd is building up their resilience, driving meaningful customer interactions and solving complex challenges with intelligent automation.

Hapag-Lloyd's Automation Journey

Learn how Hapag-Lloyd strategically used SS&C Blue Prism intelligent automation to create better services and differentiate from their competitors.

Created in partnership with NODE Magazine