Hannah Testani Featured on Better Supply Chains' FAP Market Insights
In case you missed it, yesterday Bart De Muynck released a new episode of Better Supply Chains FAP Market Insights featuring Hannah Testani (our CEO). They talked about about the state of the market, why some providers win (while others lag behind), how data is the lifeblood for strategic innovation, how AI is changing the landscape, and what shippers should be looking for in their next tech investment.
These two are entertaining, and the information is practical and insightful, so it's definitely worth a watch:
But if you just want to digest the takeaways, we've got you. This article distills that discussion into practical takeaways you can act on today.
TL;DR: 10 takeaways you can use now
- Freight audit & payment (FA&P) is strategic. It’s a direct lever for cost control, cash flow, and risk mitigation; not just an AP checkbox.
- Data is your lifeblood. Bad data poisons predictions; clean data powers sourcing, carrier negotiations, and forward‑looking decisions. This is why partnering with a provider with proprietary technology built on data normalization and insights is imperative.
- Automation ≠ AI. Much of the real ROI today still comes from automation; AI augments it. Treat them as complementary.
- Fix the data first. Use automation and LLMs to structure PDFs/EDI gaps and repair missing fields so analytics aren’t built on sand.
- Machine learning > LLMs for scale. LLMs boost productivity; ML (including AI-Powered Anomaly Detection) handles billions of records and finds fraud or systemic glitches.
- Human‑in‑the‑loop is essential. Tech flags issues fast; experts get carriers to fix root causes and keep problems from recurring.
- Self‑serve modeling is the new expectation. Business users want to test “what‑ifs” (e.g., add a carrier) in seconds without waiting on an analyst. You asked, we answered.
- Exceptions will never disappear. Supply chains will stay volatile; non‑EDI flows and edge cases demand resilient processes.
- The capability gap is widening. “Technology haves” are pulling away; legacy‑only approaches put shippers at real risk.
- What to look for in a partner: proven innovation, true scalability (all modes/geos/complexity), and deep people expertise.
Why FA&P is having a moment
De Muynck frames FA&P as a core discipline for cost control, transparency, and cash‑flow optimization, especially as carrier networks and last‑mile options proliferate and compliance pressures mount. In today’s disruption‑heavy world, “cash flow is king” and freight‑spend visibility enables better carrier negotiations and proactive risk management.
Automation vs. AI: use the right tool for the job
Testani draws a clear line: automation handles high‑volume, repeatable work (think: ingesting invoices, normalizing formats, routing exceptions); AI accelerates and enriches that work. Her “drill vs. screwdriver” analogy: both are tools, but power tools (automation + AI) radically increase throughput and consistency.
A concrete example: invoices still arrive as PDFs from long‑tail carriers. Automation can capture and route them; large-language models (LLMs - think ChatGPT for example) can help fill missing metadata and standardize fields so the entire stream becomes analytics‑ready.
Clean data or bust: ML for anomaly detection (not just LLMs)
Large language models are terrific productivity multipliers, but they’re not designed to learn from billions of rows of shipment data. That’s ML’s lane. Intelligent Audit has deployed ML for years to cluster similar shipments, forecast expected patterns, and flag outliers—a fraud‑detection‑style approach that has surfaced both malicious activity and costly system errors for shippers.
De Muynck’s warning: predictions built on bad data will mislead you. Governance, stewards, and hygiene must precede any AI initiative.
Tech + people: close the loop with carriers
Technology can triage 100,000+ invoices and identify the subset that truly need attention. But closing the loop—telling a carrier, for example, that the cost‑per‑mile is wrong for Plant X and how to fix it—is where seasoned experts shine. That’s how you turn one‑off fixes into systemic improvements and prevent the same exceptions from reappearing month after month.
De Muynck favors a human‑informed posture akin to modern credit‑card controls: flag anomalies quickly, ask for confirmation, and avoid blunt “auto‑block everything” responses that harm operations.
What “good” looks like now: self‑serve, scenario‑driven, real time
Shippers increasingly want to model decisions on their own—e.g., “What happens to cost, time‑in‑transit, and customer experience if we add Carrier Y?”—and see results in seconds. Testani highlights self‑serve modeling embedded in the FA&P platform as a must‑have, paired with experts who translate model outputs into playbooks: who to talk to, what to change, and how to implement without tripping organizational tripwires.
The road ahead: more complexity, more exceptions—bigger upside
Expect non‑EDI data to persist globally and exceptions to multiply as networks diversify (nearshoring, new plants, last‑mile partners). That’s not a reason to delay; it’s the reason to build automation and analytics designed for exceptions. Testani also anticipates consolidation, with tech‑forward players absorbing legacy providers—good news for shippers seeking modern capabilities in one place.
How to choose a FA&P partner (what Bart evaluates; what Hannah emphasizes)
Market Radar lens (Bart): modes covered, industries served, global reach, market experience, technology/innovation, and partnership approach.
Operator lens (Hannah):
- Innovation that’s ahead of the curve (automation + AI + ML applied to real problems).
- Scalability across every mode, geography, and complexity level.
- People with the expertise to translate insights into action and to work carrier issues to closure. Combined at scale (managing billions of shipments), this yields not just reports but actionable intelligence that reduces cost and improves customer experience.
Go deeper
Download the Better Supply Chains Freight Audit & Payment Market Radar for vendor‑by‑vendor analysis and detailed criteria.
