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Dead end or ladder up?
June 30, 2008
I had lunch last week with a distribution manager for a major grocery chain in the Northeast Ohio area. We got to talking about his use of sophisticated technology, and he told me he’s concerned that it’s a mixed bag of blessings for users like him.
On the positive side, it does offer productivity gains. And it does help interest young workers in distribution center jobs—for a while. On the negative side, he’s concerned that employers tend to use technologies like pick to light and pick to voice as a crutch. With these systems telling employees exactly what to do, without any independent thinking on their part, we risk breeding an apathetic workforce, he fears. Their brains could get flabby.
It’s the same argument many make against our culture of passive entertainment—DVDs, iPods, audio books, etc. No thinking required. Just sit back and let the technology take over.
My friend is also worried that the attraction of immediate rewards for little effort will eventually drive people away from jobs in the warehouse and distribution center. Sure, you can achieve a long-term, rewarding career in logistics, but getting to the rewarding part takes a few years and the millennial generation isn’t up for that time investment in picking aisles or on forklifts.
I asked him the logical follow-up question: “Would you want your kids to follow in your footsteps?”
No, he said. Although he’s happy working in the management ranks of his company, the dues he paid to get there were high--too high for him to encourage his kids to follow a career track through the distribution center.
I aim this same loaded question at you: “Would you want your kids to pursue a career in distribution?”
Posted by Tom Andel on June 30, 2008 | Comments (2)
In response to: Dead end or ladder up?
J Stadler commented:
I would only if they did not have a passion elsewhere. Distribution has been good to me and allowed me to move through the ranks to a Manager position but it did take awhile and with many hours above and beyond the call of duty. Also distribution only tends to pay well in larger metros with the possibility of working very odd hours.
In response to: Dead end or ladder up?
Tom Andel commented:
Does anyone see the track to distribution center management getting faster, and does a person fresh out of school with an MBA have a better chance at it than someone like J. Stadler who moved through the ranks over a period of years on the job?