UK Logistics Industry must ‘sex up’
The UK logistics sector faces a personnel crisis. According to a leading industry academic, the middle-aged, male-dominated industry must ‘sex up’ in order to attract the brightest candidates and overcome a looming shortage of fresh new talent.
At a recent recruitment and training seminar, hosted by the Shippers’ Voice at Multimodal 2012, Professor David Grant of the University of Hull Logistics Institute said that educating the public was key to tackling the fact that 76% of the logistics workforce is male and 44% are over the age of 45.
David Grant said,
“It’s up to us as educators and practitioners to make people aware of the importance of logistics,” he said.
“Three-quarters of the public don’t understand this sector, so we need to educate everybody across the board – governments, schools, neighbours, friends – that we are important; that we generate £75 billion to GDP.”
“We also need to be honest. We need to sell the benefits, but also the pathway – that you might need to slog it out in the warehouse or in fleet planning before you get to the big jobs. My first job as a junior draughtsman, for example, involved running blueprints and fetching ice cream, but you need to do those kinds of things.”
In addition, Larry Woelk, Seminar chairman of supply chain recruiter Bis Henderson, said,
“When I talk with candidates and clients I ask how they got into this business and 95% say they got in by accident. It’s no wonder that the supply chain is suffering from a lack of good managers and talent.”
Other guests at Multimodal 2012 also highlighted the commercial benefits of investing in fresh recruits.
OSE took on 3 graduates in September to work in the sales department. Each graduate sold in their first month and have seen month-on-month increases in sales since then.
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