Election of the logistics specialist of the year.

I see the announcements and video messages racing by again. The logistics manager of the year election starts again.

I prefer to see a completely different election. One that draws attention to what is really important now. Specialists. Obviously I wish the logistics manager or the upcoming, their success and their moment of fame. But such an election should be about more than just the best boy in the class. It is an excellent time to draw more attention to professions / specializations that are needed. In order to make the profession more attractive and to challenge more young people to start a career in logistics.

Because however much the sector is attracting. It remains a sector of doers. Not from thinkers. And we also really need those doers. The logistics sector is an extremely competitive market, where margins have been under severe pressure for years. On the one hand this has led to a lot of innovation, but on the other hand it continues to make do with the attractiveness of the sector. Smart young people are more likely to opt for Financials than for Logistics.

We do need smart youth as a logistics sector. The increasing integration of the supply chain makes things much more complex. Then you need good planners, engineers who can do good research and specialists at the intersection of IT and Logistics to optimally set up automated systems.

The next big step for logistics is the emergence of Big Data. Now a hype but it will undeniably change the market. That requires more than just strategy. It mainly requires smart people who can handle such data, divide it into smaller pieces and analyze it. They think along with new Apps that provide insight into the information in the Cloud. These specialists ensure that managers and directors are provided with the correct information. The organizations that arrange this best have the best chance of winning the competition.

So best organization of ‘Logistics manager of the year’. Organize the Logistics Engineer or Logistics Specialist of the year. Reveal the challenges that lie behind a complex supply chain. Which is hardly inferior to Financials in complexity. Because we have enough managers. There is a crying need for specialists now and in the future.