How Ward Turned a Proven Costing Philosophy into a Growth Advantage

Ward Transport & Logistics built its reputation on what the company calls “Ship the Ward Way”—decades of operational discipline, service and consistency that have helped establish the company a widely respected LTL carrier. For nearly 30 years, Ward relied on its own internally developed costing system, an activity-based model that provided an accurate, detailed understanding of costs across the business.

As Ward expanded its network and added new terminals to pursue growth, the demands placed on the system also grew. Supporting and adapting it meant more IT resources, updates and maintenance. Certain analyses had to happen outside the platform, while evaluating new opportunities became increasingly time intensive. Modeling potential operational changes and expansions grew more difficult as the business evolved.

To counter these constraints, Ward sought a solution that could scale its proven methodology while giving the company the analytical framework to evaluate opportunities, model potential outcomes, and support future growth. The team turned to SMC³.

Extending Ward’s costing model with SMC³’s Cost Intelligence System

Ward adopted SMC³’s Cost Intelligence System (CIS®), an activity-based costing solution built to bolster the company’s existing methodology rather than replace it. Five capabilities anchor CIS together, helping Ward transform cost data into actionable intelligence that supports pricing, network planning and growth decisions.

• Individualized activity-based costing: Delivers customer, lane and shipment-level cost data foundational to pricing decisions.
• Network and freight simulation: Helps evaluate opportunities prospectively, simulate changes, and optimize network strategy with more confidence.
• Flexible cost allocation methods: Applies cost data across multiple dimensions to reflect how the business operates.
• Reduced internal maintenance: Cuts the IT burden of supporting a homegrown platform, so teams can focus on core business practices.
• Industry-trusted solution: Draws on decades of industry expertise already trusted by top LTL carriers nationwide.

Choosing CIS gave Ward built-in credibility, letting the company extend its costing philosophy instead of starting over.

“CIS has provided a more accurate, flexible, and easier-to-use platform for pricing decision-making, giving us the agility to meet the needs of both our internal teams and our customers,” said Bill Ward Jr., CEO of Ward Transport & Logistics.

Faster, more confident pricing decisions

With modeling built directly into CIS, Ward has cut its reliance on manual analysis. Work that once required a separate, time-intensive process now runs as part of day-to-day operations, which has sped up how quickly and how consistently the company can respond to market changes.

Ward is putting that same modeling capability to work on bigger decisions too—analyzing cost allocation and profitability across its network and testing changes like opening new service centers, adjusting coverage areas or refining network strategy before committing operational resources.

“We now have a more complete and accessible view of cost and profitability across our network,” Bill Ward Jr. said. That capability lets Ward evaluate growth opportunities earlier in the process and with more confidence behind each decision, instead of discovering the cost implications after a commitment is already made.

Broader alignment across pricing, operations and leadership

Cost data that once lived within one team is now visible everywhere it needs to be. Departments that previously worked from separate assumptions about cost and profitability are now a common understanding, and that shared view is showing up in day-to-day decisions.

“CIS gives us the ability to analyze potential changes before we make them, which is critical for a growing carrier in today’s market,” said Charles Purvis, Ward’s vice president of pricing.

The Ward Way, built for what comes next

By integrating CIS, Ward enhanced its existing approach rather than replacing it, building “The Ward Way” into a foundation designed to support further growth. Today, Ward is better positioned to act on market shifts instead of reacting, with stronger pricing decisions, clearer network visibility and more room to grow into new lanes and terminals.

“The more ingrained CIS becomes in our day-to-day decision-making—at the customer, lane, service center and company level—the more irreplaceable it becomes to our business,” Purvis said.

David Meyer, Ward’s executive vice president, sees the same shift playing out at a higher level. “The deeper understanding we now have of our costs will be critical as we navigate changing market conditions and position ourselves for future growth.”

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