Dabbling in outsourcing may save a few dollars in the short term, but to make transformational improvements to a supply chain, companies need to make a long-term commitment to weaving outsourcing into the fabric of the business.

Each year Armstrong & Associates Inc. analyzes its research database of relationships between third-party logistics providers and their customers to gain insight into outsourcing trends and overall market dynamics. This report, prepared by Evan Armstrong, president of A&A, is based on a study of 3,334 such partnerships.