women in logistics

Source: Safety Girl

For most people, the first impression of logistics is sweaty men in safety shoes. Suffering from an overly masculine image, the industry doesn’t exactly appear on the top of a little girl’s wish list of “what I want to be when I grow up”. On one hand, the industry still needs sweaty men for some of the heavy lifting especially in places where machines haven’t yet replaced human labour. But on the other, technology and the maturing of the industry has allowed for a wider variety of jobs in which women perform better, due to innate qualities like attention to details, a different approach to project management and in some cases, mothering– i.e. supply chain planning & management, marketing and IT solutions to name a few.

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60%
of both men and women in the logistics industry think that women have a different style to men in the way they manage supply chains and these differences are viewed as an advantage for companies

​Realising that women actually do a fantastic job in logistics, the CiLT (Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport) has spawned a women’s chapter called WiLAT (Women in Logistics and Transport) to encourage and mentor women in the industry and create global networking opportunities.  It’s still a long road ahead before logistics is associated with women in the way of nursing and fashion but it’s a small, determined step in the right direction.

​In celebration of International Women’s Day on March 8, we salute the outstanding women in logistics for showing that having female team players is an advantage and let’s press for progress today and every day.