Supply chain leaders are under constant pressure to make faster, better decisions in an environment shaped by volatility, cost pressure, and rising customer expectations. Yet many organizations still run a disconnected planning and transportation execution processes driven by disparate and often conflicting data. That disconnect slows decisions, hides tradeoff opportunities, and makes it harder to respond when disruptions hit.
John Galt Solutions and Shipwell are closing this gap by connecting supply chain planning with transportation execution. By bringing planning intelligence together with real-time execution data, companies gain shared visibility, faster alignment, and a more resilient end-to-end supply chain.
In this Q&A, Kyle Norg, Principal Pre-Sales Engineer at Shipwell, shares his perspective on why this gap still exists, how the partnership with John Galt Solutions helps solve it, and what supply chain teams can expect as planning and execution become more connected.
Q1: Why do many organizations still struggle when it comes to connecting supply chain planning with transportation execution?
K. Norg: Planning and transportation were built for different purposes, so they’ve grown up in their own silos. Planning makes decisions based on forecasts and scenarios, and then transportation is asked to execute once the plan is already set.
When demand shifts, capacity tightens, or costs change, there isn’t a shared view to adjust quickly, so teams end up reacting and filling the gaps with manual work and side conversations. It’s not just a technology issue. It’s a process and organizational problem caused by planning and execution living in disconnected systems.
Q2: How does connecting Shipwell’s end-to-end TMS with John Galt Solutions’ Atlas Planning Platform help close that gap and change the way decisions get made?
K. Norg: The combined solution thatShipwell and John Galt Solutions provide puts planning and execution into the same decision loop. The Atlas Planning Platform brings the planning intelligence, and Shipwell brings what’s actually happening in transportation. Instead of plans getting thrown over the wall and reworked later, both teams are working from the same data. Transportation realities feed back into planning, and planned volumes and priorities flow straight into execution. That shortens decision cycles, cuts down on friction, and helps teams move from firefighting to making proactive decisions.
Q3: What are the key benefits companies see when planning and transportation operate from the same, connected data?
K. Norg: The biggest benefit is agility. When planning and transportation are working from the same data, teams can respond faster and act with confidence when things change, since information is reflected automatically. Upfront, teams have fewer last-minute surprises, more reliable execution, and a lot less manual coordination.
Instead of juggling spreadsheets and emails, workflows are automated and teams have a clear view of how planning decisions actually play out downstream. Then over time, that alignment leads to better service, tighter cost control, and clearer accountability across the supply chain.
Q4: Real-time visibility is often discussed, but how does combining planning intelligence with live transportation data actually improve day-to-day execution?
K. Norg: Real-time visibility only really helps when it’s paired with context. Transportation data tells you what’s happening, but planning intelligence explains why it matters, and what to do about it. When you bring those together, teams can see how delays affect downstream demand, adjust plans before issues snowball, and make smarter decisions around inventory or capacity.
For example, take a shipper bringing in a shipment of automobile parts on behalf of a manufacturer. The manufacturer already planned how their production lines will run next week using these parts – however, a storm hits and the shipment gets delayed. Rather than informing the customer they’ll need to delay assembly, when planning & visibility data are combined, the shipper can find another source for those parts and ultimately secure them in time to meet the original delivery time and keep production schedules intact.
Things like predictive ETAs, lane performance insights, and real-time re-planning help teams stay ahead of problems instead of reacting after service levels have already taken a hit.
Q5: We’re hearing a lot about AI in supply chain, and Shipwell has been focused on practical, agentic use cases. How do these new AI capabilities help supply chain teams take action faster?
K. Norg: A lot of what the market refers to as ‘AI’ today is still analytics. It flags and explains, but it stops short of taking action.
Where we’re focused at Shipwell is on practical, agentic use cases that go one step further by reducing the effort required to respond. Instead of just telling a supply chain planner or transportation manager that something is at risk, agentic capabilities can pre-assemble the decision. For example, identifying a late inbound shipment, understanding which outbound orders are impacted, evaluating alternative carriers or modes, and presenting a recommended course of action that the user can approve or adjust.
The value lies in eliminating the manual steps between insight and execution, not to replace the people doing the work. The system does the analysis, gathers the context, and sets up the action, so teams can move faster with fewer clicks and less cognitive load.
Over time, as trust builds, those same agents can handle increasingly routine decisions within defined guardrails, allowing teams to focus on exceptions and strategy instead of constant triage.
Q6: Looking ahead, what industry trends are making this type of planning and execution integration an essential capability, and why is now the right time for companies to invest?
K. Norg: Supply chain management used to be about how quickly you could react. Now, it's about making better decisions earlier, and executing them without friction. Some trends we’re seeing are:
- Scenario planning will become a daily operational practice. The next advantage will come from testing and acting on scenarios continuously, instead of a one-off exercise. Planning creates value when it can be executed immediately without rework or delays.
- Future best-in-class supply chain operations will be measured by how early they are able to intervene. Integrating planning context with live transportation data allows teams to act before service, inventory or cost issues materialize.
- There will be an increased focus on how transportation decisions have an impact on margin in addition to costs. Margin pressure will increase and companies will need to understand profitability in near real-time. By connecting planning and execution functions, companies are able to evaluate and understand the impact of decisions on margin before freight ever moves.
About Kyle Norg
Kyle Norg is Shipwell's technical translator and Principal Pre-Sales Engineer. Using his extensive knowledge of supply chain technology, he helps connect the dots between tech with business strategy with his consultative approach. Kyle excels at dismantling complex problems and building clear, impact-focused solutions that resonate across IT and the C-suite. By asking better questions, he's able to deliver demos that don’t just inform—but resonate with businesses to improve supply chain efficiency, lower costs, and make operations more straightforward. Outside of work, Kyle is a devoted dad, husband, AYSO soccer coach, and community volunteer.
