In profile: David Wells, Chief Executive, Logistics UK

Following a career in engineering and management accountancy, David Wells has now worked in the logistics sector for more than a decade, spending the last five years at the helm of Logistics UK, one of Britain’s largest sectoral business groups.

DECADE OF CHANGE

While he says the ten years have flown by, Wells is struck by the accelerating pace of change in the logistics industry over the last decade, not least the tightening regulatory framework it has to operate within. He does not believe, however, that increasing complexity has led to greater efficiency.

“I think the regulatory environment in which members operate has got increasingly complex. I would cite local mayors, local transport policies, local regulations, local rules. That is added complexity and arguably inefficiency in their operations.”

Decarbonisation is also a massive challenge, particularly for the logistics sector. This is true across all modes – road and rail, but also air cargo and deep-sea shipping. “There will have to be some really deep and radical changes and technological advances in order to meet those challenges. Business is about responding to change, but I think the rate of change has just got faster and faster.”

MOVING LOGISTICS UP THE AGENDA

Change is not just happening in the operating environment; the industry is changing the way it communicates too. “Social media creates an environment where people make instant responses,” Wells said. “Something may go wrong, and social media is on it instantly, that doesn’t give you much opportunity to respond and put it right you’ve got to react very quickly.”

Wells believes that Brexit will cause a huge disruption to supply chains, but one positive by-product is that it will make people think about the resilience in their supply chain. “I think that on the back of Brexit and now COVID-19, we have made significant progress on educating policy makers, government officials and government ministers and the wider public in the importance of our sector. That is only a good thing.”

LEADING BY EXAMPLE

In his five years as Chief Executive, Wells has much to be proud of, but when asked about his achievements, he prefers to cite the contribution of his team first.

“Logistics UK is a people business,” he said. “I am proud of the levels of engagement that our employees have in the organisation and the passion with which they continue to serve members.”

He is also proud of building a strong and strategic senior leadership team. “We have a very clear, well-defined strategy that’s well understood by them, by our board and by our employees. I’ve got a first-class team, able to deliver.”

Another achievement of which Wells is particularly proud is his policy team’s response to Brexit. “Brexit is a hugely complicated, technical challenge for the industry and I think our policy team has done exceptionally well to get their head around it. They are recognised in government as being both constructive in debate as well as challenging when necessary.”

While admitting that logistics is often perceived to be an industry which is traditional and suffers from inertia when it comes to change, Wells believes that the next generation going into senior roles will have new expectations around the way it communicates.

“I’m proud of what we’ve achieved in terms of our social media and communication strategy over the last five years,” he said, “Why is that important? Because Logistics UK has been in existence since 1889 and I want it to be in existence in 2089. To do that it’s got to change, not for change’s sake, it’s got to engage with the next generation, and they communicate in a very different way. They live in a virtual world and we’ve got to engage with a generation that sees value in the information and the services that we provide.”

NAME OF THE GAME

While it has its origins in the Mansion House Association founded in the Victorian era, most people in the industry will have come to know the business group Wells heads as the Freight Transport Association. So why did he decide to change its trading name after more than 50 years as FTA, earlier this summer?

“The name change has been a long time in discussion,” he said. “I would say it’s down to a number of factors. The first is I believe the sector has to have a powerful voice that speaks to government for the whole sector.”

Wells cites the example of the former Engineering Employers’ Federation, which is now called Make UK. “Now there are many trade associations in the manufacturing sector,” he said, “But there is one that speaks for the whole sector and has worked hard to persuade the government to back its Year of Engineering campaign. And what’s that campaign all about? It’s about attracting young people into what has traditionally been seen as an unattractive career proposition.”

Wells argues that Logistics UK will need to punch above its weight in battles with government to persuade them to back its policies and initiatives. As a multimodal business group Logistics UK is by far the largest in the sector and is therefore able to give the industry a larger voice with government.

“The industry needs that voice to get into the higher echelons of government and be powerful and effective there,” Wells said. “That’s why the government recognising the importance of logistics and the supply chain is welcome news for our sector, because it helps the discussions we need to have to promote this industry. And the government needs to be helping us to promote this sector, because it’s vital to UK plc.“

SUPPORTING THE SECTOR

Logistics UK has made it its mission to help support and steer its members through the uncertainties of the pandemic. In the early days of COVID-19, the group’s policy team was issuing a daily eNews update on the government’s thinking.

“Elizabeth [de Jong], the Policy Director, and I divided our attention so that Elizabeth dealt with the regulatory environment for operators across all modes. But I spent my time engaged with the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, looking at various support packages like CBILS [Coronavirus Business Interruption Scheme] loans, Bounce Back Loans and the furloughing scheme and speaking for the industry to get those schemes suitably modified to be useable by the industry.”

For those unfamiliar with the government’s loan schemes, the Bounce Back Loan is suitable for smaller operators, the CBILS loan is suitable for SMEs and there is a larger CBILS loan more suited to the big operators. The extension to the furlough scheme was as a result of lobbying by Logistics UK and other large sectoral business groups, who argued the case for extension.

Logistics UK also got involved in discussing wider schemes to stimulate the economy with government, schemes which at first glance do not appear to be connected to logistics, including Eat Out to Help Out and the reduction in Stamp Duty for property transactions.

“Ultimately it’s about stimulating demand,” Wells said. “When you stimulate demand then raw materials and product need to be moved and our industry will benefit.”

Another achievement that Wells has chalked up during the pandemic is changing the status of logistics workers. “One of the things that I’m really proud of during the pandemic is the success that we had in persuading the government, after intense lobbying, that logistics workers could be categorised as key workers. That was not the government’s plan at the kick off. As a result of them beginning to understand the vulnerability of supply chains through the Brexit process, coupled with intensive lobbying from ourselves I think that helped to get that across the line. I think the industry should be delighted with that.”

DIGITAL EVOLUTION

Having suspended publication of Logistics Magazine during COVID-19, Logistics UK has now evolved from a monthly printed magazine into a weekly digital format.

When asked the reasons behind this transition, Wells said that it was partly about a shift in the way people consume news: “People are consuming news and information in very different ways these days. I never thought five years ago I’d be sitting there reading a news feed on Google. I read my newspaper online.”

The pandemic has also accelerated existing plans to move the magazine online: “When lockdown occurred, we didn’t print the magazine for practical reasons and this has given us the opportunity to say OK let’s accelerate, let’s think about what we’re doing.

“Hopefully it will get a wider audience, it will enable people to be selective about what they read and also because it is weekly it will be more timely. The danger with a monthly magazine is that the news articles can be out of date by the time it has hit people’s desks.”

There is another practical reason for the printed magazine not being published – there may be no one present at the business address to which it is sent. “With people working at home, what’s the point of sending it to their office? It’s just going to sit in the in-tray, and when they rock up, maybe periodically, they’re unlikely to read it, as many of the stories will be out of date.

“Moving Logistics Magazine to a digital format sits nicely with our organisation’s modernising programme, reflecting our rebrand and fresher image. We’re moving forward.”

LOOKING AHEAD

The immediate outlook for the logistics sector and the wider UK economy is far from clear at the present time. What does Wells think the next six months will bring for the sector?

“I think my view has changed a little bit in the last few days and I would say we have to prepare for a new norm. Am I optimistic for the sector generally? Yes, I think the sector will come through this.”

His faith in the resilience of the sector is tempered, however, by his belief that there will be a shake out, as there always is during periods of economic turmoil.

“Troubled times will bring difficulties for organisations that prior to COVID were in difficulty,” he said, “But the sector is extremely resilient. A bit like ourselves with the magazine, it will force people to adopt new technologies, look at their processes and their models, and that can only be good because it will strengthen those organisations, it will provide opportunities for people to advance, people to do well, young people to shine, grab new technologies and apply them.”

His final message is one of optimism and the importance of seizing opportunities when they present themselves: “Recession is bad for some, but it brings opportunities for others. Grab them, go for them. Take the change and run with it. The magazine is a change, let’s grab it and run with it.”

Published On: 24/09/2020 14:23:30

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