Logistics: David McMahon
Name: David McMahon
Job: Regional profiler
Employer: Sainsbury’s Supermarkets Limited
Area of work: Logistics
Qualifictions: MA management with operations management, Heriot-Watt University
While doing my degree (where I specialised in supply chain) I was also working part time for Tesco. This made a career in retail logistics an obvious choice. Before I took up my graduate position I worked as a stock control assistant in a Sainsbury’s store.
My job
I am the regional profiler for Northern Ireland and I’m responsible for the availability of perishable lines, such as fruit and vegetables, dairy and bread. This involves forecasting and controlling the regional perishable lines and ensuring they are fully stocked in all our stores. As a team we carry out store visits to check on process and receive any feedback, as well as making daily contact with our depot in Belfast. Because this is a fairly new team we are very project orientated and we juggle around four or five projects at any one time.
Expect the unexpected
Logistics is essentially moving product from one place to another, but it is important to make sure it gets to the right place, at the right time, with the right amount and as efficiently as possible. It demands quick decision-making, which is normally based on limited information. Anything can go wrong as you’re dependent on many variables – not least the weather which tends to wreak havoc on boat crossings from the mainland to Northern Ireland – and so it’s important to build in contingency plans. The type of people you can encounter can vary greatly, so it helps to be quite thick-skinned.
A typical day
On a typical day I’ll check the perishables supplier service and depot service for the region, and if there are any issues with my suppliers I’ll contact them and hopefully have the problems resolved. We also check forecasts religiously to ensure that all stores are receiving the amount of stock that they anticipate they will sell. Most of the morning is spent troubleshooting any issues in our depots or with our suppliers after the forecasts are in place, so the afternoon can be spent being proactive, whether it be setting up new regional lines, meeting with suppliers, sitting down with the trading team to discuss product performance or doing work on a project.
I start work at around 8.15 am each day and finish at approximately 5.30 pm in the evening. We’re contracted to do 9.00 am–5.00 pm but it’s easier to get in a little earlier before the phone starts ringing and leaving a little later to be able to get the job done. Around Christmas you can add a few hours on either end…
My office
At the moment I’m based in an office directly beneath our flagship store in Northern Ireland, which allows us to see the issues in store as we come into work each day. We visit the depot around twice a week. The office currently accommodates three supply chain personnel and two members of the trading team. Supply chain and trading working in such close proximity with each other can occasionally make for a tense working environment, but we’re all friends when we leave the office at the end of the day.
The best and the worst
The best bit about my job is being given so much responsibility early on in my career: it really makes you feel that you’re making a difference within the company.The worst bit is probably also the responsibility! Suppliers are quickly on the phone if they believe there is an issue with their stock levels, and the depot and the stores will have other issues they want us to address. When the buck stops with you, you have to be on top of your game.
In at the deep end
A career in retail logistics is like being thrown in at the deep end of management. It’s fast paced and you’ll be working with all kinds of people, from supermarket assistants to depot workers, unions and even company directors. It requires good, sharp decision-making, analysis of market trends, a sound temperament when dealing with people and above all a strong work ethic if you are to succeed.