Professionally: My career is rooted in the supply chain and logistics (“SC&L”), specifically within Third Party Logistics (“3PL”) supporting various market verticals; pharmaceutical, grocery retail, apparel, health, paper, technology manufacturing, and general goods. Including very large warehouse management, inventory, shipping and distribution. I have held very senior roles including; commercial, operations, and solution engineering design and account director, for international SC&L operations supporting global brands. 5 years ago I started my own consultancy - the catalyst for change was to help individuals, companies and organisations deal with the dynamic complexity within the SC&L. I have a strong interest in Systems, Process and Communications in SC&L.
I see continuity and change as a ‘constant' feature in SC&L. Where conventional forecasting, planning, and analysing methods struggle to deal with the industry’s increasing complexity, brought about by the advance in today's new media and technology. I have published various trade papers and regularly appears as a speaker for events. I also provides public and in-house certificated training courses for international training companies.
Personally: My infectious enthusiasm sustained by a large engine that drives my desire to constantly improve people, systems, processes and cost to serve in SC&L. Having worked across cultures and countries, I have developed a highly effective operational antenna and communications tool-set. I believe that most people go to work in SC&L want to do well. Often low self-confidence and or lack of employee esteem is more often a result of poor and or inadequate training, knowledge, skills and local leadership. Allied to the preservation of traditional operational orthodox systems and processes, anchored within a rigid silo driven hierarchy. Most people, I believe, who exist in such organisations, see themselves within a business system over which they have little influence. They tend to see their responsibilities as limited to the boundaries of their position or function. In today’s technology advanced SC&L is reeling from the impact of “Disintermediation of Information”, and is having far reaching consequences, within organisational structures and real-time operational processes. I'm now committed to consulting, advising, supporting, training, mentoring, and educating the most treasured of all company assets…Its people.
Nigel’s Mission:Within the SC&L industry all too often, team leaders, supervisors, junior and senior managers including executive boards, seek only to repair or ameliorate the symptoms of operational / commercial failure. This short term reprieve inevitably develops in to a longer term volatile issues. My mission through my on-line training programs is to simply aid the practical knowledge and learning experience for those engaged in the SC&L operations. That meaningfully advances individual and team knowledge in real time on their execution of systems, processes, cost to serve, and operations management wherever people work in the SC&L.
What I believe: My operational strap line is“if you know your numbers, you know your business”. As today's global society’s move increasingly to a transactional economy, this can tend to reinforce individualistic cultures operating within SC&L organisations. Whenever a company or an aspect of the operation fails, people are inclined to point to specific events to explain the “causes” of non-compliance; product problems, inept managers, loss of key people, poor distribution, unexpected unplanned aggressive completion, loss of loan facilities and business downturns etc. I believe the SC&L industry is now more about horizontal growth and interdependent interconnected processes, functions, management and leadership. My courses are expressively designed to explore all these issues.
What will the students glean from Nigel:The constant repetitive commercial and operational issues crystallised my thinking in that I wanted to share, my practical, commercial and operational knowledge for the next generation of SC&L professionals. All my courses are populated with useful practical tips amassed over many years, which will help the students in their modern day workplace. Today’s problems have been created by yesterday’s solutions……. Technology is advancing but the SC&L industry appears to repeat the same mistakes. My advice will help students navigate the pitfalls.
