Ask questions on culture advises UKWA CEO

The lack of HGV drivers is in sharp focus at the moment, but a key priority for the logistics industry will be to tackle staff shortages across the board, by attracting and nurturing talent.

So, how do companies start this journey?

UKWA CEO Clare Bottle explains: “A great place to start would be to examine the culture of the business. This sounds easy but is much harder than it sounds, but you need to be able to do it and be ready to act on it.

“We see examples in the wider world – the NFL recently fining the Washington Football Team $10 million for a toxic, sexist workplace culture – that illustrate the importance of this. We often hear about diversity and inclusion. You have to look at inclusion first, tackling diversity without already having an inclusive culture will lead to a revolving door.

“For small organisations, leaders can ask people directly about what they would like to see, for larger organisations use surveys to find out. Logisticians tend to have a bias towards action, so don’t just do the survey, be open to acting on the findings. Once you have a more inclusive culture, then look at diversity.”

This is important in both attracting and retaining the talent that can make a difference to your business.

It is an issue that is close to Clare’s heart. She was the first single parent to receive graduate training in the organisation she worked for in the 1990s. In 1995, she took a role managing a warehouse process in Widnes and was immediately hooked, switching to supply chain from a secretarial background. 

She also won a case at an employment tribunal early in her career, when a male colleague doing the same role, with the same experience was paid more. She has been involved with Women in Logistics from its establishment in the mid-2000s.

Clare continues: “It is an exciting role. There are problems to fix, and it is also an exciting community to get involved in. There are sector wide challenges and I will try to effect changes. Public recognition of the status of logistics workers is at all time high, so we must build on that.

“Training and development can be part of an engine of social mobility but we can also do more to create structured career paths, backed up with training.”

For more information, visit www.ukwa.org.uk