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trailer world issue Two 2011

Issue Two 2011 Oith a fleet of more than 3,000 trailers that are primarily used for high volume transport, Ewals, which predominantly han- dles charter jobs, is an important player in the European logistics industry. One-third of the company’s 1,500 employees work as lorry drivers; Ewals’ own fleet also includes about 350 trucks: “Our expe- rience has shown that this gives us maximum flexibility,” says Bart van Rens, Fleet Control Manager at Ewals. van Rens works close- ly together with Michaël Verbeek, head of Corporate Human Re- sources. Verbeek has a lot of experience in personnel recruiting, or rather in “finding the right person for the right position in the right conditions”. And that includes both drivers as well as the planning and scheduling staff: “Because it is those colleagues who ultimately decide how efficiently a trailer will be used.” Verbeek is convinced that the public and social image of the com- pany is the key factor when it comes to finding good employees. “We are not as large as the big players in the European logistics indus- try, and yet we are still important. And our customers treat us the same way: as important partners.” That’s why it is also essential to implement fair social policies. For example: The current situation is that drivers from Eastern Europe are reportedly underpaid by western European transport and logistics companies. “We do not assign these drivers to lorries that are registered in and scheduled for destinations in the Netherlands,” van Rens clarifies. “But we do have employees from Eastern European countries who are also registered there and drive to destinations in western Europe. We have representatives all throughout Europe, so that is part of our ordinary business operations.” LjYafaf_hjg_jYee]k$h]j^gjeYf[]j]na]okYf\ ]ehdgq]]e]]laf_k The second factor in effective human resources management is the question of putting the right employee in the right position. Training programmes are an effective tool in this regard. For ex- ample, Ewals is strongly committed to training employees fur- ther in the area of scheduling, since the company uses its own internal software and own planning system specially tailored to jobs that are performed for key accounts, such as those from the automotive industry. Furthermore, every employee in the company has to attend an annual review meeting in which his or her performance is assessed, and in a second meeting, is given the opportunity to discuss his or her level of satisfaction with the position. “During the meetings – insofar as possible – new goals and tar- gets are set and challenges are agreed upon,” the human resources manager explains. “No matter what is said about the baby boom, retirement age or personnel recruitment, the greatest challenge for me is keeping the current, right employee in the right position in the company.” L`]]ehdgq]]keYc]l`]\a^^]j]f[] Sometimes, however, employees develop much faster and ac- quire new skills very quickly, and therefore “outgrow” the tools mentioned above. That is when the third factor of human resources management comes into play: The aim here is to identify what skills are already available in the company and then advance them. “From my perspective, an employee’s performance in a company is always more important than its material assets. The staff determines the strengths and versatility of an organisation, they make the differ- ence,” Verbeek says. The logistic service provider’s own in-house academy offers a “Young Potential Programme”: a group of 15 to 20 young men and women from all departments meet together four to six times a year to discuss questions and issues and develop inde- pendent projects and initiatives. They are guided and supported by experienced colleagues. Verbeek emphasises that this programme is not comparable to traineeships offered by multinational 9^ajklkl]haf[geZYlaf_l`]k`gjlY_]g^kcadd]\Yf\imYda^a]\ogjc% ]jk2j]lYafaf_l`][gehYfqÌkgof]ehdgq]]k& H`glgk2Lae\]Bgf_ 3RUWUDLW

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