News and Updates

By Allie Collier

As we settle back into our routines after the holidays, the content flood begins.  

“2026 trends.” 

“Things to watch out for this year.” 

“Ways to make your logistics operation more successful in 2026.” 

And don’t get me wrong, January is a great time for planning and looking ahead. As a content marketer, I love it. I mean, hey, check out our article from last January and see if we were right.  

But sometimes knowing what not to do is just as powerful as knowing what to do.  

So instead of predicting the future or handing out another checklist for success, we asked our peers a different question: 

What mistakes are guaranteed to hold people back this year? 

These six mistakes are more than enough to derail your 2026 plans.  

1.) Not keeping tabs on your contracts 

We’ve all been there, both personally and professionally. Your car breaks down the week after the warranty expires. The washing machine needs repair the month after coverage ends.  

In your personal life, the fix is annoying, but typically manageable. You bum a ride or haul laundry to your mom’s house (at least for this writer).  

In your business, missing an end-of-service date can shut down operations, blow up budgets, or leave you scrambling for support when you need it most.  

Letting service contracts lapse means: 

• Paying emergency rates instead of negotiated pricing 

• Losing priority service or response times 

• Running equipment longer than it should without preventative maintenance 

What to do instead: 

Keep a centralized record of all service and maintenance contracts. Assign ownership. Set reminders well before expiration dates, not the week of. Review contracts annually to make sure they still match how the equipment is being used.  

If you provide service contracts: 

Don’t let renewals feel like a surprise bill. Proactive communication, usage insights, and early renewal conversations go a long way toward building trust and long-term relationships.  

2.) Running on outdated or incomplete data 

Decisions are only as good as the information behind them. And too many teams are still relying on spreadsheets that haven’t been updated, reports pulled manually, or data that lives in five different systems.  

That leads to missed trends, poor forecasting, and reactive decision-making instead of proactive planning.  

What to do instead: 

Audit where your data comes from and how often it’s reviewed. If you don’t trust it, fix that first. Consistent accurate data beats “perfect” data every time.  

3.) Ignoring small inefficiencies because “that’s how it’s always been” 

It’s easy to live with minor issues when they don’t cause immediate pain. A slow process here. A workaround there. A step everyone hates but still follows.  

Over time, those small inefficiencies compound. They drain productivity, frustrate teams, and quietly increase costs.  

What to do instead: 

Pay attention to friction. If employees are creating workarounds, there’s a reason. Ask where time is being wasted and fix the boring stuff before it becomes expensive.  

4.) Treating technology as a one-time purchase 

Buying new tools is easy. Using them well is harder.  

Too many companies invest in systems, roll them out once, and never revisit training, adoption, or optimization. Features go unused. Processes don’t evolve. The tech becomes shelfware.  

What to do instead: 

Revisit your tools regularly. Are teams using them as intended? Do new employees know how to use them? Technology should grow with your operation, not stay frozen in launch mode.  

A quick note on technology that actually grows with you.  

This is exactly why we built the Chameleon parcel sorting solution the way we did. Operations change. Volumes increase. Processes evolve. What works on day one shouldn’t limit you two years later. Chameleon SLAM is designed to be highly configurable from the start and flexible enough to adapt as your operation grows.  

See if it’s a good fit for you here.  

5.) Failing to plan for turnover 

People leave. Roles change. Retirements happen. None of that is new, but many operations still behave as if their most critical knowledge will always live in the same place.  

When key processes exist only in someone’s head, turnover becomes more than an HR issue. Suddenly tasks take longer, mistakes increase, and teams are forced to relearn things the hard way while trying to keep up with daily demands.  

This often shows up when a “go-to” person is out sick, on vacation, or gone altogether and no one is quite sure how certain reports are run, why a process exists, or how to troubleshoot an issue.  

What to do instead: 

Document processes while they’re working, not during a crisis. Crosstrain teams so knowledge is shared versus siloed. Build systems and workflows that are intuitive enough that new hires can ramp up quickly without relying on tribal knowledge.  

6.) Waiting for “later” to make improvements

“Later” is an easy place to send uncomfortable decisions. There’s always a busy season coming, another priority to handle, or a reason to wait until things slow down.  

The problem is things rarely slow down. And small issues that are tolerable today often become expensive tomorrow. Delayed improvements tend to show up as rushed decisions, emergency fixes, or costly overhauls that could have been avoided.  

Organizations that fall behind usually don’t do so overnight. It happens slowly; by postponing upgrades, ignoring inefficiencies, and telling themselves they’ll deal with it next quarter.  

What to do instead: 

Focus on progress, not perfection. Pick one improvement that removes friction or reduces risk and start there. Small, intentional changes made consistently are far easier to manage than large, reactive changes made under pressure.  

2026 doesn’t require a complete overhaul to be a successful year. It requires avoiding missteps that quietly derail progress and being intentional about where you invest your time and attention.  

If you’re not sure whether your operation is set up to scale, or you want a second set of eyes on your automation strategy, our team is here to help. Our automation experts work with operations every day to identify gaps, reduce risk, and make sure your systems are supporting the work instead of slowing it down.  

Reach out to connect with our team and make sure your year is on track before small issues turn into big ones.