‘Industry must be marketed at school level’

Too few job-seekers and
graduates really understand
what the freight industry is
about, with the result that
few choose it as a career
option, says Juliette Fourie,
managing director of Metro
Minds.
“They are not being
exposed to freight
forwarding. There is little
exposure at schools and
tertiary institutions.”
She believes it is
important to market the
industry more at school level
as well as at universities and
colleges across the country.
“The other challenge that
we face,” says Fourie, “is
that once people have been
working in the industry and
acquiring skills, they are
not necessarily exposed to
the entire trade cycle but
only to a small portion of
it. This means they can for
instance frame a customs
entry or do an estimate very
well, but that is all they
know. They do not know or
always understand the effect
it has when it has been done
incorrectly and why it needs
to be done."
Fourie believes the
answer to these challenges
lies in ensuring that
everyone entering the
industry has gone through a
proper introduction in terms
of business and technical
skill.
“We understand that a
lot of companies do not
have the luxury of training
people for months and that
is why we at Metro Minds
have a mission to provide
the industry with a type
of school or college where
recruitment can take place
from a pool of talent which
we would have identified
through our programmes.”
Fourie also believes that
the fact that South African
students can now again
obtain the Fiata Diploma
should be a very good
motivator for employees
and employers to get their
staff through the level 3
& 4 Freight Forwarding
& Customs qualifications,
enabling them to apply for
the Diploma.