We believe that the logistics and freight forwarding industry is a highly diverse sector that suffers from poor definition of what constitutes competitive advantage. Too often executives and investors alike categorize competitors in broad terms (such as asset-lite) which do not properly reflect competitive position and return on capital potential. MergeGlobal has developed a highly disciplined analytical framework to understand the key drivers of value in this sector. We have used this framework to advise buyers on two of the largest freight forwarding transactions in 2005. To further enhance the development of the framework, we established the International Logistics Quality Institute to expand our knowledge of how end-users value and use logistics services.