Overcoming technological challenges: How Porter is empowering driver partners in last mile logistics

Porter, popular logistics aggregator platform, is dedicated to empowering driver partners in last mile logistics by addressing technological challenges head-on. Recognizing the diverse characteristics of driver partners, including varying tech-savviness and language barriers, Porter has prioritized user-friendly design and language localization. By integrating vernacular language support, voice-to-text translation, and video-based training, the platform ensures a seamless and efficient experience for its driver partners. Shruti Ranjan Satapathy, chief product and technology officer, Porter recently spoke to Dataquest to shed more light on this initiative.

DQ: Could you start by providing us an overview of the architecture of the Porter app in terms of some of the key components and technologies used in its development?

Shruti Ranjan Satapathy: To understand Porter's architecture, it is essential to grasp its role as a logistics aggregator platform. The platform focuses on addressing intercity logistics movement needs, spanning from small shipments weighing 500 grams to hefty ones weighing up to 4000 kilos. Its primary goal is to facilitate a matchmaking process between customers who want to move goods and driver-partners who provide delivery services.

Porter offers two main user-facing products: the customer application and the partner application. The customer application enables users to book various shipment categories, ranging from two-wheeler shipments to heavy truck shipments. On the other hand, the partner application allows drivers to log in and accept delivery requests, thereby earning a livelihood from their services.

Within this ecosystem, Porter supports eight business verticals and lines, leading to the existence of over 40 products. These products cater to various use cases, such as registration, discovery of shipment options, booking experiences, and payment processing for both customers and partners.

The architecture of Porter's applications can be divided into the front-end and back-end components. The front-end is the user-facing part of the application, accessible through Android, iOS, or a website. However, certain functionalities, like data handling and heavy computations, are managed on the back-end side. This back-end infrastructure runs on cloud providers, allowing greater control and reliability.

Aside from the core architecture, Porter relies on additional crucial components to support its product offerings. The data pipeline plays a key role in making data-informed decisions, while the quality assurance domain ensures product reliability and consistency.

Overall, Porter's architecture comprises a complex but efficient system, enabling the platform to successfully connect customers and partners in the logistics domain.

DQ: What are some common technological challenges faced by driver partners while making deliveries?

Shruti Ranjan Satapathy: That's a valid question, and solving this problem has been a fascinating challenge for us at Porter. Since the early days, we have been conscious of designing the driver partner product experience to be user-friendly. Let me outline some characteristics of the driver partner ecosystem, which has evolved over time. Initially focused on the truck segment, later came the two-wheeler segment, which brought with it two-wheeler gig workers with slightly different characteristics.

In the truck segment, partners tend to be less tech-savvy, though digitization in India has improved. Language is a significant barrier, and localization is crucial to facilitate transactions. Moreover, these partners have recurring, rhythmic motions in their business operations, valuing time efficiency. Muscle memory plays a key role in how they interact with the product, and any significant changes can disrupt their workflow and require additional training.

Considering these factors, the product was built with intelligence and muscle memory in mind. Localization efforts include support for multiple Indian languages, enabling partners to navigate the app in their preferred language. To preserve rhythmic motions, the product aims to limit the number of app interactions and introduce changes in smaller increments.

Overall, understanding the unique characteristics of driver partners has shaped the design and evolution of the product, ensuring a localized and user-friendly experience for these essential contributors to the Porter platform.

DQ: Could you explain the vernacularisation feature and its significance within the Porter driver-partner app? And What motivated the introduction of this feature?

Shruti Ranjan Satapathy: It's a valid point to consider how many driver partners can be targeted with our product. Initially, we started with an English-only app, which limited our reach to specific user segments, mainly in metropolitan areas like Bombay to Delhi. However, as we aimed for a broader presence across India, especially in the South, language constraints became apparent. Vernacular language support became crucial for us to expand our business in these regions. Consequently, we integrated vernacular language support into our app, a system that continues to evolve today. This integration allows us to easily support new languages, reducing the cycle time when introducing them in different states. Ensuring driver partners' comfort and usability with our application is vital to maximize our outreach and business growth.

DQ: What are the future plans for enhancing the Porter customer app? Are there any plans for expanding its functionality or introducing new features?

Shruti Ranjan Satapathy: Let's explore some selective directions we are focusing on to enhance the comfort and usability of our product for customers and partners. Language localization at a textual level is just the beginning; we also emphasize voice, video, and vernacular. Vernacular language support has been integrated for both partners and customers, with plans to expand to more languages. Voice plays a crucial role, as many users prefer speaking over texting. The accuracy of voice-to-text translation facilitates understanding user needs.

Video is a powerful tool for training and educating users about our platform. It proves especially valuable for driver partners, reducing the expense of training. Improving matchmaking efficiency is another key aspect. Efficient matchmaking enhances the low-cost benefits for customers and partners. We aim to make data-driven decisions to optimize fulfillment and utilization. Additionally, advanced tracking intelligence contributes to better matchmaking outcomes.

The vision for our organization extends beyond being a transaction platform. We strive to become a comprehensive ecosystem that adds value beyond transactions. Recognizing the fragmented nature of the last mile logistics market in India, our aggregator platform aims to increase efficiency by aggregating individual driver owners and small fleets. The long-term goal is to offer value-added services for both customers and driver partners. By addressing their broader needs, such as vehicle support or additional utility services, we aim to enrich the logistics experience and create a robust ecosystem.

The investments made align with this broader direction, focused on delivering enhanced comfort and added value to all stakeholders within our logistics ecosystem.