Leaders in Tech and Ecommerce

#19: Stefan Reidy CEO of Arviem AG

April 07, 2020 Alcott Global Season 1 Episode 19
Leaders in Tech and Ecommerce
#19: Stefan Reidy CEO of Arviem AG
Show Notes Transcript

Stefan Reidy is the founder and the CEO of the Swiss Arviem AG, helping manufacturers, exporters and importers to reveal inefficiencies in their supply chains by enabling transparent global trade via supply chain visibility solutions and real-time cargo monitoring services. Stefan has over 20 years of experience with innovative technologies and business models in the supply chain which he gathered both by working for corporations and in the startup environment.
 
Arviem answers the need of organizations for more transparency and visibility in their supply chains.  They reveal the flow of goods and finances in the supply chain by providing an independent, real-time, end-to-end cargo monitoring and supply chain visibility service. Arviem is offering a full, carefree service to customers that allows them to track all their global shipments, regardless of the transportation mode or the logistics service provider, on one single platform.  Arviem offers services around working capital optimization, inventory financing, supply chain risk management and carbon footprint monitoring of logistics.

Discover more details here.

Some of the highlights of the episode:

  • How is Arviem helping their clients during this time of crisis
  • The importance of visibility and reliable data to the industry
  • Arviem’s working capital financing solutions
  • Managing carbon footprint with the help of technology
  • Trusting the “gut feeling” in hiring talent

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Andrei Palamariu:   0:00
Hello and welcome to the leader intact. Any commas podcast? I'm your host and Repola Mario. I'm the APEC director for Erica Global Executive Search. Our mission is to connect attack in the supply chain in e commerce ecosystem in Asia and globally by bringing forward some of the most interesting stories about success and failure from leaders in the industry I'm happy to have with us today. Stephan Reedy. He is the founder and the CEO of Sweets, R V M a G. Helping manufacturers exporter dream importers three real inefficiencies in their supply chains by enabling transparent global trade buy supplies. Invisibility solutions in real time cargo monitoring service is Stefan has over 20 years of experience with innovative technologies, and the business model is in supply chain, which together both by working for corporations and in the startup environment are Veum answers the need of organizations for more transparency and visibility in their supply chains. They reveal the flow of goods and finances in surprising by providing an independent really time and 20 carver monitoring and supplies. Invisibility service RV, um, is offering a full care free service to customers that allows them to track all their global cheap ones, regardless of the transportation mode or the logistics provider on one single platform. Great to have you with us today. We're going through a crisis, both economic and humanitarian. We're expecting a global recession this year, and we already see huge disruption inspirations across the globe and quite a lot of stress on shipping and logistic companies worldwide. Our aim today with this discussion is to bring some light into the picture and sure good case studies and examples of companies who are already doing a good job. But facing the current changes and making the best use of technologies like coyote big data machine learning. Now back to you, Chris, tell us in a few words. How did you end up creating R V M more than 12 years ago? And how does he did very to your clients?

Stefan Reidy :   1:59
I'm ready. Thio. Pleasure to be here on your pope cost and talking to you. You just mentioned the crisis that we have right now and actually the start. The initial start of what our Veum is doing goes also back to one of the's crisis. And that was in 9 11 in the 2001 and a TTE that time the U. S government was afraid That's probably a next attack is going to happen. Why? Ah, dirty containers. So a container with a bomb inside coming in tow, Long beach exploding there and the whole infrastructure would be down. And with that, the whole supply chain into us would also be down. So the U. S government started to impose new regulations and some off the audience probably knows better than me about a ll These regulations and requirements. And many companies like IBM at that time G locket, Martin and many others joined thes initiatives and try to come up with solutions. So 100% screen carbon monitoring, et cetera, et sector. And at that time I was still with IBM and I was running that That's a product. That initiative we called it the IBM Secure Trade ling. And in 2007 for different reasons I've been stopped. The initiative I left IBM and in 2008 with a few friends we didn't found. It's the company army. Um, so that's also the d start off the company are Veum goes back to also one of the's crisis which happened now, roughly 20 years ago. Interesting and R.

Andrei Palamariu:   3:38
V M. 12 years is definitely a long time of learning and long time of building a climb port for your learning, adjusting. How would you say, What are the main challenges that you are trying to solve for your clients?

Stefan Reidy :   3:51
Well, let me try If, if I may, I hope we have two time for that. Let me try to give you an explanation based on an example. So I'm from Switzerland, were famous for chocolates and you were in Singapore, and I like, I guess you like chocolate so we somehow should produce now chocolates in Switzerland and sentenced to Singapore. But in order to get these chocolates produced, we need different ingredients and make it a little bit shorter and not as complex. We reduce it down to two ingredients. Let's say we bring in milk powder from the U. S. And we bring in Cacau beans from somewhere in South America. We send them to Switzerland to get the chocolates produced. Now milk powder coming from, let's say, the East coast off us as a long trip for hats. So a lot of things could happen. Milk powder is sent in backs. And if Shaq is happening while the containers in transit, the backs could rip. And then they're attracting insects. And probably if milk powder is infiltrated with insects, you cannot use it for the production in Switzerland. On the other hand, you have thescore cow beings coming from South America. They can be exposed to temperature and humidity variations. Condensation is happening in the container that is spoiling the cow beans, and also there. You cannot use them for production unless you go through an expensive extra drying process, etcetera. So you see, already based on this, if you don't have the visibility, if you don't know where things are happening, where the product quality could be impacted while cargo is in transit, it can have a major impact on the production of your product in our case, on the production off chocolates. So if you knew where these things are happening, you could start addressing the product quality. You can optimize logistics costs. You probably could optimize warehousing costs, but also again, the production planning insurance costs can be addressed and the inventor carrying costs just as a simple example. Now, once you have produced these chocolates in Switzerland. I want to send them to you to Singapore, and I have to be able to control the talk to the chocolate or a temperature in the container between somewhere like 10 to 22 degrees, because if it goes below or above again, it has an impact on chocolates. So again, there, I need to look into controlling the environment off my carbo to make sure that you received chocolates in the perfect quality. Now let's assume that somewhere something happens in transit you Suez Canal, close because of terroristic attack because off whatever catastrophe et cetera. And again, I have an issue. If I got in these news in real time, I could still eventually take some different actions. I can now fly in instead, some off the chocolates to satisfy immediate need in the market of Cigna. Paul Aiken Send the next container immediately. Wire the trans Siberian roads, so the same crow to make sure that you get quickly new chocolates into Singapore. So also here, if you knew where things are happening and if you knew where your cargo actually is, you can start optimizing your virtual warehouse and optimized the overall supply, J But it all comes down to having visibility reliable trustee data so that you can better manage your complex global supply chain. So these are, they say, in simple words on a simple example the challenges we would like to address with our service that army miss providing.

Andrei Palamariu:   7:55
Now that's an excellent example. And thank you for saying how can we bring this topic? Maybe you can share on a specific example of how visibility and reliable data is helping companies during this time. Because we here left and right, Sir Plagens disruption Manufacturers are trying to stay afloat or they need to close down some facilities. How does this information help? Maybe you have ah, good example where we can have some learning out of it.

Stefan Reidy :   8:30
You mean now, during the Corona crisis Specific? Well, to be very honest with you, I don't think if you don't use our service at the moment, we cannot on short term help a company because either either you have to service in place already and you start used. You started to use it already. You cannot just implement our service from I mean, theoretically, we can, of course, but you need to have data. You need to have data over time to optimize your supply jets on short term. I don't think you can start optimizing or improving something. But some of our clients who have this place day off course they see now where they have the cargo floating around the whole world. So without giving because I'm not really allowed to give way. Helen of Cross Lines and let's let's try to simplify again. The story here respect Lis off Corona crisis or not, but one of our clients, they were shipping olives from Morocco to us Morocco. Add olives are not really temperature sensitive. They're not really shock sensitive. They don't get stolen. But why would declined monitor olives going from Morocco to us? The problem is, he has, and here's again, the correlation to the Corona crisis. He has a knob ligation to deliver always to let's say, subway or Pizza hut in real time, so they conserve their clients in order to do so. He needs to know where his cargo is, but he has no clue. He simply doesn't have any clue. One of the carrier tells him. Yes, we have loaded the container, but in in real time, we see this has not happened. So he's expecting his cargo at a certain date so he can deliver toe Pizza Hut, for example. But because this has not happened, he can't and then he's faced with penalty fees and in order to prevent penalty fees in the future. He was ramping up warehousing on the West in the east coast of the US and that's the tremendous cost. So if you knew now where your cargo is, so if you we told this guy know you're continent has not been loaded, and it will not arrive on time in Baltimore. But you have another container in Houston, and you don't need that container in Houston immediately so you could actually truck it to Baltimore. Let's say and serve your client there, and by the time it has finally arrived in Baltimore, you can then truck it up to the next destination where you need it. So also here again, and that's the exactly the same case in the Corona crisis right now, if you knew where your cargo is and if you knew aboutthe status off your carpal, and if you see where you have options? I trained by truck. It's extra. If you bring all these information together, you can now start optimizing your virtual warehouse in transit. And that's what is in my thinking, but where at least we can contribute something. That's what's needed right now in the Corona crisis is well, I mean again, we cannot. We cannot help out. Actually, off a car manufacturer is closed down because of Corona crisis there. We cannot help there. We come to anything, but there are still cars somewhere out there, and you might be able to optimize these cars. There's work to warehouse, which is out there goaded.

Andrei Palamariu:   12:15
I am sure you have clients with operations globally, and there are some shifts that that are happening both in the mindset and both in operations, and that there are some trans global Liam, maybe you can share. But what you are seeing from from your side is as the service provider in the text based, um, are what are the industry that are most effected? What are the markets that did you see have, ah have taken quite a big hit? A lot of people are complaining that there is not enough toilet paper or panic buying. And, um, are we expected to see any shortages when it comes to the food supply chain?

Stefan Reidy :   12:59
Um, I don't know. Honestly, I don't know. I can only say we try to help some of our kinds which are in the food industry toe optimize again their supply chain by bringing invisibility by showing them where cargo is. That eventually gets spoiled, where it's staying longer than expected, where they should take actions that's all around, optimizing the supply. As such, we we don't have any impact there.

Andrei Palamariu:   13:32
Godek men Optimization is is everything. And I think the companies that already had a good plan off of improving their their processes are are in a good place now in a better place, and the others haven't focused so much on technology and optimization.

Stefan Reidy :   13:50
I think we also have to differentiate, I mean, at least from again from our perspective. As arguments service provided for International Monitoring Supply chain Organization center, I think we have to differentiate between two levels. One is an operational level, more tactics s O. If you look at the Detroit, it's paper example. I think the warehouses are full of toilet paper. It's just about the question. How do I quickly bring the turret paid from the warehouse to the store? So the last mile basically optimization and management. That's not where we as our D'Amore reading this is only a tactical level and that my old blue are optimizing or managing. Now the warehouses on short notice, all the truck drives it. Victor. I mean, they're doing a tremendous job at the moment, but that's only on the tactical level, huh? Where we are, we're providing visibility on the global level, and that's more on a strategic level. So again, how to optimize the work to a warehouse? How to finance carbo, how to improve insurance costs, how to optimize your routes, it sector. That's more on a strategic level and not on a daily tactical operational level. Correct.

Andrei Palamariu:   15:11
That's an interesting topic that you brought us. Defend the financing part. I know R V. M. Has, um, rvn working capital financing solutions. Maybe you can tell, Tell us about it. And how does this help clients in general specifically in this current times? Well,

Stefan Reidy :   15:31
I think again here also, the difference between current situation and other situations is at the moment you have a crisis and everybody needs cash so you can meet everywhere. Governments are pumping money into the market so that companies can survive because they're missing cash, so they need cash. In other situations, probably you want to have cash because you want to grow. You don't have enough money. You see a great market insulted you, but you don't have to cash to grow. And if you have that cash for growing, that, of course, would be optimal. And I don't know, really, if that figure is true. But I recently read that in global trade financing, there is roughly $1.9 trillion annually missing to finance cargo in transition. So if you had that, let's say let's simplify it again. Let's say you had this $2 trillion annually cash available to now either address crisis or address growth. If if that money was available to companies, that would boosted the economy tremendously, and that's what we play like to address. So if you are an exporter of China s Lacey and you're sending cargo to Wal Marts in us, your card basically is on your balance sheet for 23 months in transit and then for another 23 months because of the payment terms and conditions. So you have six months off, cash blocked and somewhere on your balance sheet you cannot work with. And if that money was available to you at the moment that you start sending the cargo or at the moment that you start producing, that would give cash to these companies to actually again grow or in today's situation, address the crisis situation. And that's where we want to

Andrei Palamariu:   17:35
help. Definitely two trillion is a huge, huge number, and I can imagine that this particular product from your portfolio, the on the financing solution, is only going to grow even even more in this period. I'm sure quite a few of the clients and you have so to be on a constant connection in contact with your clients are asking different. The question are facing different challenges. What are some of the advice or some of the priorities that you advise your your clients to focus on during this period? Look, the

Stefan Reidy :   18:08
what we realize again with our service with our overall service, there is not one specific question or challenge these companies are facing. It really depends on whom you're talking to. So is it now the logistics manager you're talking to? Is it quality manager you're talking to? Is security guys that despite being manager, is it finance guys at the Operation Sky? All off them have separate challenges, and I really hope that somewhere in the future supply chain management, if we can summarize it on the dystopic, will become a board topic in the future. So to make it a little bit black invite, I think supply chain management is still somewhere, either reporting to I t or reporting to logistics. But actually supply chain management is that function that is combining all these different aspects in a company and should actually be positioned on the board land because it helps your company to survive growth. So it's a supply teaching manager or whatever the title then is going to be who is looking at the impact between cost warehousing, performance financing, et cetera, And that guy needs to have no a silo thinking skill, but a more broad and to end point, a few thinking skill. That's that's probably something we have to bring into the market so challenges we here at the moment is like if you talk to the logistics manager only, how can it deeply bring cargo from one place to the other? There you have frayed marketplaces, ejector popping up, which compared different costs. And then you can book quickly it sector. But that's what just one aspect way. We had declined where we initially talked to the logistics manager and again his job was to send cargo continent from A to B for the cheapest price possible. And he did a great job. So what? He did this. He had cargo coming from Hungary, going to reporting hungry. From there, it went to Alexandria. Inject. From there, it went to Spain from Spain and went to Hamburg from Hamburg, went to Toronto and then to the final destination for, let's say, $700 cheap. Excellent job. His measurement addressed. What he didn't know is that the lifetime off the product was somewhere around 90 days, and because he took that route that cheapest route, the time in transit was already somewhere around 70 days. So if you have a product lifetime of 90 days and your transit time is already 70 days. You will miss the other target off having a product in the shells off roughly 80% off the lifetime, but he didn't know he was no measure based on that. So again, if you have a supply chain marriage overall, who could look at all these different parameters but is now really needed? Where could I optimize? Doesn't have an impact on the product quality? Does it have an impact on logistics costs so they have an impact on warehousing costs, Doesn't have an impact on financing. And why do we? What about to the carbon footprint greenhouse impact? If we had an overall few on your supply chain, you could start optimizing in the benefit off the company. I think that's that's what's needed in the future. So that Z challenge we have to dress

Andrei Palamariu:   21:51
correct. I think if there is a silver lining in this situation in end in our context is that supply chain is a function and separating leaders and managers will come at the forefront and will become even more important in the long term for for organizations across the globe. And, um now he touched upon another interesting topic, which is the carbon footprint. We might. We might say that because of the economic slowdown, the carbon footprint globally has has been reducing. And now we even see some examples of city clearing their skies and its own. But I know from from your company's perspective, you tackle this topic quite a lot. I think you have some interesting examples of how technology I d. Ah, they can help organizations lower or better manage their their carbon footprint. Can Can you share a bit more here?

Stefan Reidy :   22:44
Yes. So, first of all, I think it still does not have the importance in managing supply chins as it should have. The carbon footprint is still a topic that most companies just use for marketing purposes to say. Okay, I'm green. Yes, we take care about cargo about carbon footprint, but I haven't really seen yet a business model out there which says I can save so much co two. That means I can also save that cost, or I can do so much more revenue. I haven't seen that yet, but that doesn't mean that we don't have to still look at it and start working on it. That was our intention because what we said is you can go today, too. I don't know. I again. I don't want to name any names cos you could go to logistics company or carry or whatever. They have some simple carbon footprint calculations, and what they do is they take between two points, they take the average distance and then they kill calculate based on average weight wth E average CEO, too. That's what they do. And what we said is we can probably do that better, because because of our real time monitoring, we know the position off the container at any time or a truck or they release sir or a trade. So we know the position at any time and therefore we can also calculate calculate the real distance the cargo is taking promote at any time. So I know exactly from the factory to the rail terminal. It went by truck and the truck was striving for half an hour and it took him 10 kilometers for exact. Then we know the train from the train station to the court was 250 kilometres. We know the exact distance and so on, and based on the mode of transport, because based on the real distance and based on the real weight, we can now calculate the CEO too. Of course, we're also doing assumptions because, I mean, if the contented and was loaded on a vessel and the rest is a 20,000 t u S o. I mean, we we don't know if the really 20,000 to you on that vessel or only one. If it was only one container, then of course, to see your two emission. For that one specific content would be much higher than if it was fully booked. So also there there are, of course, assumptions. But we're getting closer to the real calculation off the order d that the real CEO to a mission. And now we're giving that. We're calculating that per route for our clients. And they can now see if I go again. Simple example. From Switzerland to Singapore, I have two different routes. One route is producing that much. Go to the other out is producing that much Seo too. I can I I can make a decision. Now. Which one do I want to take?

Andrei Palamariu:   26:00
Correct? I I think there is a lack of accuracy and and data on this topic. And, like you said, companies didn't and don't pay enough attention to it. And I think we will. Sooner or later we'll be forced to do it either. Bye bye policies and governments, either by the circumstances of the environment and so on. But I wanted to bring the discussion of focused of it internally on RV. Emma's the companies. What are the priorities for the company for the next three years? 3 to 6 months? What are you really wanted to achieve or what I really thinking? That is important.

Stefan Reidy :   26:43
Well, I think like for any other company for us is well, the Corona crisis is the first thing that we have to address in survive and properly manage, because I mean also here we're seeing clients of ours who stop shipping if you take again car manufacturers and they don't have using or off course, they don't shape anymore, and therefore we're missing revenue because we do not monitor their their cargo. So also, of course, we are affected by the Corona crisis, and we have to dress that and to manage our own situation. But then again, I think that especially I think Churchill once said, Never waste a good crisis. So we should. We should take now the leads and communicates our findings and our wish in even more to all these companies out there because again, if you go back, will be discussed. Initially, I think today's supply chain they're managed at the edge of what is actually possible. So you cannot. You cannot tweak more off, off off the situation or your capabilities. Today, the process is our sometimes 300 years ago old managing global supply chains with all the bill of lading z tech critic, and this situation becomes in the crisis becomes clear again. So now you see how difficult is going to be if something is happening at the moment. People are spoiled. They they think everything works like in the past, and they think every every global supply chain is managed. Like I'm a Sona. I order now in the two hours postman is ringing on the door and delivers too good. But again, that's more on the last mile. That's on the on the the tactical level globally. We're not in that situation, and  What are the priorities for the company for the next three years? 3 to 6 months? What are you really wanted to achieve or what I really thinking? So use the situation splitting managers or operations guys have realized. Oh, here we have really a challenging ourselves managing our supply chick, and we could change it now. And we as Army and we could help and get back in control. So that's definitely something we would like to work on in the next six months.

Andrei Palamariu:   29:25
Burn it. And on the on the long term, before this whole situation happened, I'm sure that that you had and you still have quite the ambitious goals and a vicious monsters with the company. Do you still define RV? Emma's a start up. I mean, I know it. It has been a long time coming, and they're being a way spoke more than a decade. The company's evil evolution. But what are the objectives in the next five years is, so to speak.

Stefan Reidy :   29:56
Um, if you if you take the definition of a startup, then we probably know the start of anymore. We have too many employees for being a startup, and way are already too old for being a startup. Correct? I would like to people. It's the spirit off a startup company inside our company. And I think that will also stay with the case for the next 5 to 10 years goes all the things that we need want to achieve to accomplish our our vision requires continuous sleep, the startup spirit and the start of behavior. So what we do right now is just again the start off a long journey. So we're now bringing invisibility by monitoring cargo in real time. That's just like what we call our core service. But if you want to do other things on top, other service is some talk. You need to have trusted reliable data from the edge off the network. So I need to know where the cargo is, and I need to be 100% sure that this is correct. Reliable data and I need to know about the status off the cargo itself. And only if I have that trusted, reliable data, I can start offering order supply. Jing optimization service is on top like what we mentioned before. Working capital service is so fine, Nancy. I mean, there would be no no bank, no financial institution giving money to you if you're not. If you couldn't say with 100% reliability here, the cargo is and the status is okay. If you if you wanted to offer such a service that you're depending on the Net, all the data provided who is depending on another day, the provider and who is depending again on another day. The provider that's not reliable data. You would never trust the data and therefore you will never finance it. So we need to make sure that we collect our own data that we're trusting. And then we can start offering the other service is on top value adding service, and that's what we're doing right now. So let's say this kind of first startup company is doing that now. Working Capital Service's Risk Management Service is together with insurance on demand, that sector, or even more the service is on top. That's every time, like a new start up. Then you start trading within your own company, so I think we will stay a start up for the next 5 to 10 years.

Andrei Palamariu:   32:44
Excellent. It's a great perspective on it and wanted to take the topic further on hiring. So you've been in a leadership position for for question some time now. And like you mentioned before, having the culture or dispute of a startup is important for you. We are in the hiring business, right? So I was curious from a leadership perspective. How do you select or what are the important elements that you look at when you're considering hiring for the company or even for your direct reporting team?

Stefan Reidy :   33:19
That's a real challenge, to be honest. So whenever, whenever I'm talking to splitting managers and say, Look, I have a solution for you, a service for you, I can help you it Citra, I think here. I also sometimes would like to have some help in support. But I mean, if you for if you, for example, look at developer software developers, it's just a dried out market. We can hardly find software development eso. Sometimes you have to challenge that. Did the experienced and skilled people are not there? So that's one of the things the other thing is. Then let's say we would hire somebody for our operations team. I'm off course fully depending on our CEO, because he has no who he has to hire. But at the end, I still want to have to final interview. I want to. I I got to learn that I have to trust my gut feeling. So you talk to somebody and within, I don't know, a minute or even within seconds. You realize this person fits into our team or doesn't fit into our tea. And I think that's I don't know if this is wise to do or not. But from from my personal experience over the last years, that's probably the best way to go. And we are. If if if, I if at the end, if I look at somebody and I have the first conversation doesn't have to be about the skills themselves about where they specialized in, because I I will never be able to challenge him there. And it's not my expertise through the conversation. If I realize this person fixing to our culture, my God feeding says yes. Then we're on the right track.

Andrei Palamariu:   35:19
Uh, it's interesting, but when you think about God feeling, I'm sure it's Ah, it's already have bean. It has been up tested and it's an educated gut feeling, so to speak. I think you have quite a few elements that indicate a person's character or values that would feed in the culture. What are those important elements? Cause everybody has their own priorities when it comes to the companies culture and then the values What are yours?

Stefan Reidy :   35:53
Honestly, I don't know, I think. And But I think this is something. As you said, it's an educated gut feeling. So over the years you met so many people and you have hired people and you worked with other people, and through that you gain experience, and somehow maybe you can scientifically analyze that. But somehow in your brain, in your guts, it sector, you're saved those all these experience you made and impressions you got, and based on those, you can make this experience gut feeling. If you ask me to write down. What are the criteria is I probably wouldn't know. What about a leader is, Yeah, what? The correct Ristic is off a leader, so he has that experience. He feels it, and that's why that's why he can build a good team around himself.

Andrei Palamariu:   36:49
I agree. Wanted to take again the discussion within the company. Everybody's impacted and work remotely or working from home is a big topic. How do you tackle this? What are some some tips that that you can give any our audience around how to do it? Efficiency efficiently.

Stefan Reidy :   37:11
So, first of all, I think we're in the locking situation that we're old used already to work remotely from home while traveling etcetera. So our company is, with a few exceptions, is built on such a virtual cold operation already. So I was sometimes wondering now that you're asking this question again, how all the companies do that who are not experienced, who simply do not have todo, for example, networks at home or a street at home or whatever, where people are not used to that, and now suddenly they have to. I think that's a big challenge. Also, if you don't simply, if you don't have a desk at home where you can put your laptop on your screen or nowadays, with the kids at home because you don't have your separate room or separate office, that's a big challenge. I agree. That's a huge challenge. So luckily, we we are already used to that. So our our employees there they are used to work from home. We're supporting that. Of course, they have mobile phones, they're equipped. They have Internet connection, everything there. But in our situation, what I see more challenging is now that everybody is not in the office anymore. And it's coming back to the start of feeling in such an environment where you have to be in a way, this I still believe in new ideas and good ideas are our start up when you talk to each other and when you listen to each other. So in our office, in the physical office, it's an open space office. And even if our CEO talks or when I talk to somebody, holders can hear it, and even if you're not actively listening it, you will pick up what the others are talking about. And suddenly, either you remember two days later about Oh, this conversation went on, or while they're talking somebody, an idea pops up in your mind and you go to that guy or to that person and you start talking. So that's how innovation starts in a company and hat. That's how you're making from the idea to a service to a product. And if you don't have that anymore, if you don't have that situation anymore, where people can talk to each other, then we will face a challenge. And hopefully we only have that challenge in the next 23 months and not any longer, but that would that would have a terrible impact on on the innovation, the power situation in our company.

Andrei Palamariu:   39:55
I agree. But do you think they're there are companies that are fully remote, like Wordpress Day day. They artfully distributed around the globe, and they came up with some ideas of having different blog's or forms. Or people can communicate to each other in a in an open space, sort of with mutually. I don't know if there is a possibility to do it. Ah, in other companies cases, but taking the discussion, tow the advice part of it. So you've been entrepreneur for a long time, and we have quite a big chunk of our audience who are either thinking or thinking of becoming or already have their own ventures. They're entrepreneurs or enterprise inside Cos. What are What is the best piece of advice that you have received throughout your entrepreneurial career? Did

Stefan Reidy :   40:52
you Did you hear that interview with the The trainer off? I think it's Liverpool in the neck Jurgen Club, you know? Exactly. And he was asked a similar kind of question, and he said, I mean, I'm a simple guy with the cap home and you are asking advice. I mean, sorry, I can't do that. They I think it's the same, same with me. I mean, I'm running our company, it's my baby and I grew up with it and I try to manage in the best way. I think I have to do giving advice to others out there. I would never dare to do so. I will never dare to do so. I think it's again based on the experience I made working with many different people and people I admired. And that's also been part of the experience you make and said you probably want to reuse its stay humble Listen and I would never say that I'm the big innovator that I'm like Steve Jobs, and I'm the greatest and best in sector. It's my team and maybe a funny experience. Amounts. Once made, we had we had declined visiting us S O C level people coming to our office. I have my team sitting in the in the team room there, and I was serving coffee, so I went to the kitchen. I picked up the coffee, I searched mineral water, et cetera, and the guys, the CEO of that company member. Talking to who? I was really surprised. And he said, What? The CEO is serving coffin? Listen, yes. I mean, I have to make my team feel comfortable. It's not about me. It's about my team. My team is working with you. So if my team feels comfortable and if my team spends the time with you, then we reached the best out of it. It's not about me. And I think that's something I experienced from people I admired in the past, and I'm still admiring. These people are humble there, a 100% honest, and they tried to serve others than making benefit out off them. And if that isn't advised and you take, it doesn't

Andrei Palamariu:   43:15
advise. Excellent. It's an excellent story of serving the team of being humbled, doing with the caution Lotta

Stefan Reidy :   43:23
actually would turn around the organization. You should turn around there. So it's not always on the top two CEO or the board. It's actually why. I swear so on the top you have your team and the team is a skilled and experienced. And if they feel comfortable, then uh, then you get the best out of food. And I have to say, Marty,

Andrei Palamariu:   43:47
yes, as the leader and that's it. It's the first priority and taking the discussion. Tow the final question Stefan you were writing in now in your LinkedIn, I I was I was reading it in any crisis. Don't panic. And don't bow your heads in the sand. Yeah, look up. So the challenges ahead and focus as much as possible on the things within your control. What is your message? And then maybe what should supply chain professional expecting the new next few months? And how is disconnected? Tow the watch you rode there in drinking?

Stefan Reidy :   44:23
Well, it's It's something that I have to take serious myself every day. If I'm really buried in daily operations and activities, I don't have the time to step back and get an overview sometimes, and that's what you actually should do. So, for example, I'm going for for a run every every morning early in the morning on I go for around, and during that time I don't know why, but your brain is freeing up and you see everything from distance. Even if I get up and I'm frustrated and I think, Oh, shit, another bad day in front of me. As soon I've done my run, I come back and I'm freed up and I see everything in a little bit of distance and in a different point, the few and I think that's what you should achieve. So the Corona crisis. Of course it's prices, and of course it has an impact. And, of course, it is challenging for many, many people. But if you step back, then you probably see these thieves. Opportunity says again, as I mentioned before, quickly about jerk, too. Never waste a good crisis. So what are we actually doing outfit now? It's the time. I mean all these. If this again go back to our specific situation at our beom, and as I mentioned, we arm or working on the on the strategic level. Now it's the time to go and talk to the CEO or to the supply chain. Vice president, Detective ust start guys. At the moment they come to anything again. It's a truck driver. It's the warehousing managed. They have to work right now, and they do an excellent chuck. But the top guys at the moment they come to anything. They have to time now to sit back. Or they should at the moment, sit back a little bit and rethink how to manage supply chains in the future. That's what I mean. Don't put your having send look up at the moment and try to take the the actions for improving your supply chain now in the future and we can help there. We can bring in that visibility and through the visibility to control the Working Capital Service's risk management. That sector

Andrei Palamariu:   46:40
Thank you very much stuff on me. It was it was a pleasure to listen to your perspective, and, uh, I hope it is. There is a good silver lining nowadays, and this crisis will be over soon and out of it. More more power to disaffection, people in more apology, Oh, floor managers and their leaders in this space, you can change organization. Thank you again. Well, thanks to you, it was a big pleasure. We went to a quick thank you for listening to our podcast for all the show notes. Information discussed in the episode please follow elka global dot com slash podcast. Also, if you found this interesting, please subscribe on iTunes. Spotify. It's teacher or wherever you get your podcasts from.

Stefan Reidy :   47:32
Oh.