Jong Logistiek Nederland organised its seventh annual conference on 7 October with the theme 'Stepping out of the Logistics Box'. The presence of more than a hundred visitors, shows the maturity of the organisation. As Johan Kerver of evofenedex pointed out, "JLN is now an organisation you don't talk about, but talk with".
At the Drijvend Paviljoen in Rotterdam, Bart Lammers gave a lecture tour about his novel, which deals with logistics, management and life. A novel might be a striking choice, but in story form you can say more, according to Lammers. The book is about Lodewijk, who wants to become a rock-solid logistics manager. The novel highlights multiple perspectives. There is no one-size-fits-all solution, but instead there are a lot of possible answers, Lammers makes clear in his book.
'Don't be afraid to bump your nose'
Hans Dijkhuis, co-founder of Value Sourcing, was the first speaker at the annual conference. He explained the success factors of projects. Or rather: the risks that can stand in the way of success. His main advice: don't be afraid to 'bump your nose', but turn this into experience and lessons for the future.
Return logistics as core business
Jan Minnee, co-founder of Retourplaza and Jong Logistiek Talent 2017 showed during the second lecture that money can be made by thinking 'out of the box'. Most e-commerce companies focus on outbound volume, but return flows are a weak link. Retourplaza, on the other hand, buys up returns and sells them as 'second chance' products. Jan Minnee's message was that money really is there for the taking by thinking smart, out of the box.
Air freight, out of gauge
Transport world also requires creative thinking. Tony de Wolf, key account manager at National Air Cargo explained how special loads, called 'out of gauge' in trade terms, are transported through the skies. Goods such as elephants to components for oil rigs cannot simply be loaded into a cargo hold, but require specific solutions.
Supermarket 2.0
Out-of-the-box is not only visible in the background in logistics. It is also visible to consumers. A great example of this is Albert Heijn Online. Coen Schlüter, senior manager delivery & Pick Up Points at AH Online, explained the logistics apparatus behind the webshop. Creative solutions are needed not only for efficient delivery, but also to add value and quality for the customer. In addition, Albert Heijn is innovating on city distribution, including with electric vehicles and the re-emergence of the old-fashioned cargo bike.
Out of the box is all about small details
Led by Via Academy's Inge van Els and Angelique Reiniers, participants creatively tackled the theme of 'out of the box' communication. Your brain tends to replenish information automatically. As a result, you tend to fall back on the familiar. The trick of out-of-the-box is to let go of this very thing. In doing so, you don't even have to come up with completely different ideas. In many cases, it is precisely the details that matter.
JLN Awards
The high attendance was a milestone for JLN. What was new was the presentation of the first JLN Awards. In this election, JLN people could vote to highlight an inspiring logistics guru, a great teacher, an innovative company and a motivated JLN person. The following people won the first edition of the JLN Awards:
- Logistics guru: Hessel Visser
- Logistics lecturer: Eva Kapteijn
- Logistics company: Coolblue
- JLN'er: Sanse Bomhoff
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