If your operation exceeds 300 shipments per month, manual capture is no longer 'discipline': it is the most expensive product nobody budgeted. This playbook gets you out of capture, chase, and sample in 6-8 weeks.
Fits with complement or replace, the computer use pillar, and the fake freight digitization thesis. Not a day-one CargoWise/Magaya/SAP replacement: it is stopping manual data entry into them.
Who it is for (300+ shipments/month)
Shippers and 3PLs that today look like this:
- Dozens of carriers in the network.
- WhatsApp tracking.
- Sample audit.
- TMS or Excel that only reflects what was captured yesterday.
If you run your own fleet, OCL also covers fleet, workshops, and dynamic last-mile routing — this playbook still applies; the center is the file with agents, not “third-party freight only.”
Week 0: honest baseline
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Hours/week on capture and status
Data 1
Weeks 1-2: one flow only
- Pick one lane (e.g. Querétaro–Laredo) or one customer.
- Freeze scope.
- Define GPS alert rules, audit checklist, and owners.
- Inventory mirror accounts for carriers on the flow.
Supports: GPS 10-min alert, four-source audit.
Weeks 3-6: agents live
Assignment
Agent contacts; your team decides exceptions.
Tracking
GPS mirrors; <10 min alert with owner.
POD
Evidence via dock, app, or WhatsApp.
Audit
Match CFDI, Carta Porte, GPS, and POD.
Do not expand to the whole network mid-pilot. That kills measurement.
Weeks 7-8: scale decision
| Result vs baseline | Decision |
|---|---|
| Capture hours ↓ and audit coverage ↑ | Scale to next lane/customer |
| High alert noise | Tune rules two more weeks |
| No material change | Review input data / carrier adoption |
Typical audit recovery when leaving sampling: 5-7% of spend in the audited universe.
Risks and how not to sabotage the pilot
- Changing scope every week.
- Not granting mirrors.
- Paying outside the file.
- Asking the agent to be a PAC.
- Measuring 'happiness' instead of MXN and hours.
Related reading
Key takeaways5 points
- Goal: stop capture as the main job, not decorate the TMS.
- 6-8 week pilot on one measurable flow.
- Keep the system of record; add computer use to execute.
- Metrics: hours, audit coverage, alerts, MXN, OTIF.
- Natural CTA at 300+ shipments/month.
Frequently asked questions
Traffic/ops/AP teams on the Mexico–US corridor with 300+ shipments/month that today feed CargoWise, Magaya, SAP, Oracle, GM Transport, or Excel by hand.
6-8 weeks: baseline, one pilot flow, live agents, measurement, and scale decision.
No. TMS/Excel can stay as the record. Computer-use agents execute. See computer use.
Capture hours, % invoices audited at 100%, minutes to GPS alert, MXN recovered/avoided (5-7% pattern), pilot-flow OTIF.
The playbook still helps, but headcount ROI is usually clearer above that threshold.
If your team lives in capture and you move 300+ shipments/month, book the 6-8 week pilot and see agents on real shipments.
See agents on real shipments