The future of the supply chain industry: Diversity and Inclusion

It’s 2022 and ‘diversity’, ‘inclusive hiring’, and ‘women in tech’ are popular terms that constantly pop up in workplace conversations. Yet the glass ceiling stubbornly remains one of the biggest challenges faced by working women today. Despite fervent efforts to promote gender equality, women are still under-represented in certain industries such as logistics and technology. 

But it would be a mistake to dismiss the situation as bleak. The impressive global boom in e-commerce has inspired more young people – especially women – to pursue a career in the above industries. What can businesses do to encourage these very efforts and build a truly inclusive workforce? 

This was an important question that our Founder and CCO, Dana von der Heide, discussed on the Transform Talks podcast. Together with host and supply chain expert Maria Villablanca, Dana shared her opinions on the need for diversity and its potential to build more robust business models for businesses everywhere. 

Listen to the podcast HERE.  

At Perform.AI, we believe that such conversations are essential. As a logistics SaaS company, we sit at the intersection of two male-dominated industries. For us, diversity is not just a trending buzzword. Rather, it is a crucial factor that helps us foster closer customer relationships and drives sustained business growth. 

Read on to find out why diversity needs to be an essential consideration for your business. 

How diversity can help grow your business 

Perform.AI has a clear mission: To revolutionize the logistics industry with the use of data. We aggregate parcel data across nearly 1000 individual tracking events worldwide and streamline that data to provide brands with deep insights into their logistics operations. 

Our focus is on crafting seamless last-mile journeys for end-consumers, which is why we’re always brainstorming new features we can integrate into our platform. 

Recently, we’ve introduced a machine-learning algorithm that can very accurately predict a parcel’s date of arrival. With this data on hand, businesses can boost customer confidence in their ability to fulfill orders on time and increase their checkout conversion rates. 

Conceptualizing these new features requires fresh perspectives and ideas – which naturally comes with a diverse workforce. A study by Deloitte shows that teams with diverse demographics are 6 times more likely to demonstrate innovation and agile thinking. 

With diversity comes tangible business benefits like more productive collaboration and greater creativity. Having a global team – and exposure to various cultures – has also helped us connect better with our customers across key markets in the United States, Europe, and Asia.  

Hiring with diversity in mind can also help drive robust growth. The logistics industry itself is evolving, with new job openings being created in various sectors such as business development, customer service, and marketing. Innovative thinkers – regardless of gender – will be crucial in helping businesses keep pace with the fast-changing demands of the global economy.

Building a diverse workforce today

In the logistics industry, recruitment efforts often face the same problem. The existing gender imbalance discourages women from pursuing open job positions, which only amplifies the gender disparity.  

In light of this, Dana strongly encourages all businesses to make diversity a key priority in their hiring processes. Companies can commit to building a gender-diverse workforce by making it a key performance indicator for their recruitment teams. Dana also believes that more can be done at the leadership level. As the majority, men play an essential role in championing diversity and should actively work to level the playing field. Leaders should hire women they can mentor and mold into visible role models for other female employees to emulate. 

Here at Perform.AI, we are doing our best to embody these principles. As a start-up with both a male and female co-founder, we are proud that our employee gender ratio mirrors that. At present, we have achieved an almost 50-50 ratio of male and female colleagues across our global offices. Our team also includes 16 nationalities and a grand total of 18 spoken languages.

Dana has one piece of advice for businesses who are confused about where to start. Look out for individuals who are truly passionate about your products and services – and things will naturally fall into place. When companies place less emphasis on experience and focus instead on interest and aptitude, they attract individuals who see a clear purpose to their work. And oftentimes, these individuals come from diverse backgrounds and bring fresh perspectives to the table. 

After all, that’s what’s been working for us so far. We’re very clear about the significance of supply chain management in today’s globalized world – and doing so has helped us build a team that’s excited about what they do. To learn more about our growth and story, listen to the podcast HERE.