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In the recent edition of #WhatIndustryWants, Jaafar Al Ahmar, Global Head of HR, Technology and Finance, Maersk, shared insights and perspectives on the evolving landscape in the Logistics and Supply Chain Industry and how professionals can get ready to tap into the new emerging opportunities with DeepTech expertise.
Technology is not an extra container but the engine in the ship of any supply-chain enterprise. A world-class, diverse and engaged technology organization would be the most significant competitive advantage in the current landscape. As Gartner has predicted already, by 2023, 50 percent of global product-centric enterprises will have invested in real-time transportation visibility platforms. Also, by 2025, over 50 percent of supply chain organizations will have a technology leadership role. This could report directly to the chief supply chain officer.
A significant shift is being witnessed in the overall capabilities, new investments, people engagement, and talent recruitment at many levels in the Logistics and Supply Chain Industry. This can be seen in the journey of logistics majors like Maersk.
Take a new turn
The company has covered this transformation splendidly and is quite a template for how to embrace disruption. What is behind the technology transformation at Maersk, which we all know as a shipping company?”
It is an enterprise that has been into shipping for 100 years. But it realized that to be relevant for the next 100 years, it has to do something different. It cannot do so without building its technology capabilities. In 2016, to survive and be successful in another century – it needed to look at the industry differently. it needed to be an integrated supplier and simplify things for our customers. Technology had to be a competitive advantage. It went towards an in-sourcing model. It started building new strengths and is now witnessing how the value is being translated in how its customers view it.
All this was unlocked in #WhatIndustryWants, an interactive fireside chat. #WhatIndustryWants is a TalentSprint initiative that brings DeepTech aspirants face to face with industry professionals to answer “What Industry Wants” from the talent pool of this country. The event provides necessary exposure to participants on the emerging tech trends, opportunities prevailing in the tech industry, how to build the right expertise, and much more. The event brings in senior industry professionals to discuss and share their unique perspectives and insights into the evolving tech landscape. In this edition, several aspects were unraveled that explained the role of technology in logistics.
All hands on deck
For instance, in the last year, the company has been investing heavily into technology. People from the central part of the transformation – their competencies matter. It is driving for the whole of Maersk to become a technology organization. There are many areas to it – developing people, offering them development opportunities, industry best practices, agile organization, leadership engagement, and more. Enterprise Platform, Engineering Architecture, Data Engineering, Data Science, Cyber Security are in focus now. The same is true for services and operations. The top transformation team does not expect everyone to tick all boxes. It helps them grow into world-class people it aspires for. It is what they are exposed to, it is what they build, it is what they see the colleagues working on – that drives it all.
Logistics and Supply Chain Industry – #WhatIndustryWants, an interactive fireside chat with Jaafar Al Ahmar, Global Head of HR, Technology and Finance, Maersk.
This company is disrupting an industry, and that is exciting. It is a good cue for aspirants on how to make it big with a suitable kit of skills and attitude. That’s why having focus, patience, a sense of direction, and alignment with the company’s broader goals is crucial for any professional.
Pack your bags well
Those who can keep up today will have exciting jobs in the future. The fundamentals of technology are important. Motion Graphics, Blockchain, and Drone Technology are exciting areas. Become world class in technology and go beyond the normal. You need to understand what is beyond the normal. Curiosity is important here. Having an open mind matters. Be patient. The money will come. The opportunities will come. But they can speed up. When you are working in an industry, that’s growing so fast, and if you are learning fast, you are also growing fast. You can develop your career in the right direction. But movement can also be side-ways and not necessarily in the upward direction. This can be done by specializing in other areas.
The role of technology was best addressed in this episode by answering a question about the state of India in terms of technology adoption in the supply chain. The advice to professionals was pithy. Be patient about what you do and do it best. Work for companies that you can connect to.
Like helping countries transport goods during a pandemic is such a great purpose to be a part of, for a top executive in this company.
Incidentally, Gartner has augured that through 2023, less than 5 percent of control-tower-like deployments will fulfill their end-to-end potential, and this could be because of mindset and cultural obstacles. But we also know that there is a strong chance that through 2024, 50 percent of supply chain organizations will invest in applications that support Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Advanced Analytics capabilities.
There is no room for mindset barriers now. It is a good wind, and it is better to swim in the right direction with these new currents. So if you are working or aiming to work in the exciting logistics space, you know that this industry has become a lot more critical and lucrative after everything the world has seen in the pandemic. So be ready for a new future, with its new role, and yours too.
