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Understanding the potential of new technologies to transformlogistics, and the speed at which these changes will come, iscritical as we prepare for the future of work. When looking aheadit’s clear that while adoption is accelerating, the completedigital transformation of logistics is a multi-decade journey thatis essential for improving supply chains to meet emerging customerdemands. Talent management acts as a key enabler, using a holisticapproach to integrate multiple elements, such as technology, healthand safety, sustainability, and diversity – in one workplace.

The next installment of the DHL Trend Report “Future of Work inLogistics”  presents two possible futures – one augmented bytechnology and one automated by it – and the practicalconsiderations for balancing the implementation of each whileleading through change today. DHL envisages a future in which someaspects from both the augmented and automated concepts arerealized, mostly across the following six segments of the supplychain: warehousing operations, long-haul transportation, last-miledelivery, back-office operations, customer service, and supplychain planning.

“We know that the digital transformation of logistics is notgoing to happen overnight, but we are now at a tipping point.Scaling digital transformation is people-led andtechnology-accelerated. From this perspective, we must prepare forthe realities of augmented and automated futures today, and enableemployees to play an active role in shaping the future of workalongside their organization,” says Klaus Dohrmann, Vice PresidentInnovation Europe & Trend Research, DHL Customer Solutions &Innovation.

With augmenting technology, employees such as warehousespecialists and couriers will perform quicker, safer and with lessphysical and mental effort due to new smart technologies. Theworkspace primarily used as office space will also reduce,permitting more real estate to be dedicated to logistics functionslike warehousing, as technology enables office staff to workremotely.

With automated technology, machines and collaborative robotswould perform operational tasks with around-the-clock efficiencyand with little-to-no errors, ensuring the continual upkeep,optimization, and expansion of a fully digitalized logisticsindustry. We will also see a shift in the workforce towards jobsthat keep the supply chain running such as maintenance andoptimization crews.

As augmenting and automated technologies each provide their ownadvantages and challenges when adopting them into a supply chain,DHL does not expect either of these two concepts to whollyintegrate, especially in the course of the next 10 to 20 years.

Like any large-scale change process, the shift to the future ofwork in logistics will require careful planning, active management,open communication, inspirational and pragmatic leadership, andnovel approaches. These can be broken down into three key levers ofsuccess: new leadership and roles, new learning and development,and new work models and environment.

“We are a people business,” says Jana Koch, Partner and ManagingDirector, DHL Consulting. “It’s our people delivering the value ofour services and of our business, so it’s our core interest to takeeverybody along on the digitalization journey. Everyone plays arole.” 

It is important that leaders bring employees along and make theman active participant in change. By doing this they can cultivatean environment of preparation and adaption and provide avenues forworkers to grow through retraining and upskilling. The logisticsindustry therefore needs to communicate and collaborate withgovernment institutions, societal organizations, and otherindustries to ensure that talent does not idle.