Here we are again with our “interviews with a graduate”. After Marco Marini’s story, this time we met Camilla, Supply Chain Assistant. Camilla Dell’Adami De Tarczal is a young engineer from Trentino Alto Adige, a region in the north of Italy. She moved to Milan when she was 18 to study at Politecnico di Milano. She completed a Bachelor of Science in Management and Production Engineering (major in Production and Logistics)and a Master of Science in Management, Economics and Industrial Engineering (major in Business), started in Italy and competed in Nebraska, US. Straight after, she came back to Italy and she joined RB for a 6 months internship in the Supply Chain function, before becoming Supply Chain Assistant.

We asked Camilla to share her experience with us and what is Team Spirit means for her.

Camilla, it’s been a year since you’ve joined RB. You have started you experience straight after university: can you explain us how your colleagues supported you during this year?

It has been a really good balance of collaboration, coordination and share of responsibilities. The “learning on the job” process was particularly intensive at the beginning of my experience in September 2009 but it didn’t stop afterwards: my colleagues still manage to help me whenever I need some kind of explanations and, even if I am still considered the “small creature” to look growing up, they can also rely on me. As a matter of fact, I consider “being supportive” part of my tasks.
They gave me a good picture of what is the organizational structure of RB and helped me understanding both the requirements of my role and the different programs that can make your life easier if you learn how to use them properly. They didn’t play an important role only from a professional point of view: they also gave me the kind of support that I needed in order to be more confident in my capabilities. It sounds like I couldn’t make a move alone! But actually the  “art of asking help” implies that you have first to try your best to come up with a solution and then, if you are stuck, to ask for collaboration.

Can you give us an overview of your position and explain us how important is knowledge sharing and team work for the role you’ve been covering?

I am part of the CRP team in the Supply Chain department. Because of the adoption of  the “Just in Time” philosophy, we are held responsible for the warehouses of  some RB’s clients. They share stock information on a daily basis: we manage their orders and attempt to maximize the service level and minimize the  “stock in days”. In addition to that, we are able to optimize in terms of distribution costs, size and frequency of the orders. I am also responsible for monitoring some performances and producing reports on a monthly basis. This implies coordination with my bosses in order to develop action-plans. Personally and as a team we are involved in projects aimed at reducing distribution and transport costs and we are constantly asked to deepen our perception of the business in order to find which hidden costs can be reduced.
Knowledge sharing and team work, in my case, is not only important but fundamental. As time is the first critical resource, we have to be overlapped in order to reduce the time to get a solution for the problems we are facing everyday. We have our specific tasks, but  there is a bunch of information that, developed by one, can be used by everyone in the team. So, we identify the one of us with  that specific know-how or right disposition to solve a particular task, as “specialization” brings to a less waste of energy of the group itself. Confronting a new problem we ask for opinion and we come to design together a strategy in case a similar situation arises again. Most of the times,  the strategy definition starts with “Hi, are you fine? What are you up to? Do you need some help?” and it ends with “Ok, well done!”

You’ve been working closely with colleagues from other functions, which broaden the scope of the Team, going beyond your department.

Yes, CRP team is working closely with other departments and we are sometimes under a lot of pressure: different targets across functions impact the Supply Chain department and our work is to deliver a result that is a good trade-off between our personal targets, the ones of other functions and of the clients. For instance, distribution is asking us to increase the order size, sales to increase the stock level in order to sell more and CRP team, representing the client’s need, is asked to minimize stock in days and be more “just in time” as possible. Is it difficult? Yes. That’s the reason why communication and tight collaboration across all functions is a “must”.

What was the impression you had of RB after the interviews and what can you say after one year?

Young and dynamic: these are the adjectives that best describe the first impression I had of RB. Days have been slipping away fast and, after one year, I would add something more: challenging and  willing to get more and more from people inside the organization and from the market. It’s a context where you can express your potential and get also a lot from the company. It’s full of chances and it’s up to you to recognize them and harvest that ones that best suits you.

Imagine you attend a career fair at your University, representing RB’s Supply function: how would you describe a work experinece in Supply to young engineers?

Confronting recent graduates, always struggling to find what makes them feel alive, I would suggest RB: this work experience, as a Supply Chain Assistant, broadens my views and my skills in the everyday life of a challenging area of work. As a matter of fact, you are constantly facing high targets and you are involved in projects aiming at reducing cost inefficiencies and increasing customer satisfaction. You have to be fast, to understand the background and go beyond it in order to come up with new solutions.Do you want to touch it with your bare hands?Welcome on board! Here it is: RB supporting you in your first steps and asking you constantly to give your best and think “new” from the beginning.
First of all, entering RB as a recent graduate, I learned and I am still learning what it means working and, despite someone’s work expectations, it’s amusing starting Your day at a workplace. Don’t underestimate a good context!
Second, You will be able to use the tools You acquired during the academic years such as the capability of strong analysis, assessments and valuations of alternatives in an overwhelming number of different scenarios.Thanks to both Your strong willingness and the high demanding profile of this company, I can assure that You will learn more and more..day by day!

We haven’t posted a lot of blogs about supply so far therefore I will explain a little bit more about supply operations and the challenges within the organization:
Supply Chain is a system of organizations, people, technology, activities, information and resources involved in moving a product or service from supplier to customer. Basically, it’s a complex structure of activities that should be organized and synchronized to deliver the finished goods.

Considering the FMCG (Fast Moving Consumer Goods) industries, like Reckitt Benckiser, things are even more complex. It’s necessary to have a network of suppliers who provide thousands of items that will generate hundreds of different finished goods. And after manufacturing, their delivery is also laborious: customer’s networks are huge. To give you some numbers: a FMCG company who wants to cover all Brazilian territory must have something like a thousand delivery points.

And it is becoming even more complex: today the big challenge is to reduce costs and improving service level simultaneously. As an example: it’s mandatory to work with lower inventory levels, but obviously this reduces margins for mistakes and delays; it’s very important to be accurate on raw material suppliers delivery schedules and also have a well balanced inventory of finished goods to raise the fill rate level.

So, how to work in an environment like this?

Operations must be clockwork, and problems must be identified and solved quickly. It’s important to have consolidated and trustable information, and also automated and integrated processes to reach this level of accuracy in supply operations.

But organized processes do not solve all the issues on its’s own. It’s fundamental to have people as dynamic as the processes to enable the FMCG supply chain work perfectly.

The ideal Supply Chain worker must have good analytical capacity to be able to understand where the issues are. He/she needs to think fast, to quickly solve any problems. And the most important: must have high communication skills to interact with all the people of the chain, it doesn’t matter if they are suppliers, colleagues or customers.

For comparison, working in the Supply Chain area is similar to play timed-chess (the one you need to press the button every time you play). You have to analyze the situation, decide what to do and actually do it. But you do not have all day to think about it: time is running fast.

So, for the ones who like to be challenged, Supply Chain is a great opportunity to work with dynamic processes and not facing the same routine everyday. Once you enter, I bet you won’t leave. At least, I’m sure I won’t.

You find more information about RB’s Supply Chain Graduate Programme on http://www.reckittbenckiser.jobs/graduates/programmes

Earlier this year, I spent some time working with a summer placement graduate from Leeds University.
I wanted to share some thoughts on his experience, as hopefully it may motivate more aspiring managers to seek out an exciting opportunity with Reckitt Benckiser!

We are always on the look out for top tier students interested in the supply chain business, with a primary focus on the engineering faculties, or students with an operations or business degree bias.
If you think you have what it takes to work in a results-driven environment which provides challenging experiences, high levels of responsibility and, of course, pressure on a daily basis, then investigate further at RB’s career pages!

The following is an account of Elliot’s experience with the company during his placement at the UK’s Nottingham site.

“My summer working with Reckitt Benckiser contained different interconnected aspects of the supply chain, working from the Nottingham site on the three main brands within the factory; Nurofen, Optrex and Strepsils.

I was asked to develop a charging model based on variations within the production process, linking this to our current factory capabilities and the definition of standard product offerings.
I had to apply general engineering principles to a unique situation, making my own decisions on how to draw out and account for process variations. This would then have an impact on a global scale, affecting prices to markets and our production portfolio.

The most startling aspect of the RB environment is the responsibility given to me during a relatively brief spell; I was free to address my project from whatever angle I thought best and produce the work I thought was relevant.
It was an amazing confidence boost that the management has faith in the quality of work the individual is capable of.

The entire team here is friendly and helpful, appreciating the value that students can offer and providing the support to help you produce excellent work and gain a wide knowledge base across the company.
I took the opportunity to visit our Household factories, taking in a work environment based on completely differing principles of manufacture than Healthcare. RB is in a unique position to provide cross-industry exposure.

Working within the FMCG environment, there is always the focus on how my work could be applied to developing situations; what the future holds and how we can manage and lead changes to the benefit of the company. If you thrive on dynamic situations and thinking of different possibilities, being prepared for the changes that will occur, then an experience with Reckitt Benckiser is for you.”

Our hope is that once Elliott finishes his studies, Reckitt Benckiser will be his employer of choice and we see him return on the RB Graduate Programme.

All the best for now Elliot!

Firstly I must apologise, it’s been some time since my last post here on My RB Opportunity.
The supply chain organisation is incredibly fast moving, and it has been especially hectic over the past two months to say the least. Let me explain…

In September I completed my second RB graduate scheme placement  in technical projects on the UK Hull site. The placement went very well, while teaching me how to successfully manage numerous projects at once; ultimately giving me a great deal of confidence in my own ability.

I then transferred to Nottingham to begin my final graduate placement as an ATL (Area Team Leader), managing a production team in the Strepsils department. This meant learning a lot of new skills in a very short period of time; as with the right fundamental knowledge most situations can be approached in the correct way.
I was also taking on management of a team, which proved very rewarding.
It’s a fantastic feeling to be working and know that other work is simultaneously taking place under your direction. In summary the assignment was going very well, however around 1 month ago I was asked to come back to Hull to support work on a priority project.

The culture at RB inspires commitment, and supporting the business has become my priority. As a result I came back to Hull and drove the project, meaning once other departmental work is complete it can be taken live.

I was due to return back to Nottingham upon completion of the work; however I have recently been asked to take up a position in Hull as an ATL, and will be starting in the liquids department in the next few days.
The production facility I will be managing produces Gaviscon, Nurofen for Children and E45, along with others such as Lemsip and Senokot.

The Hull department is currently undergoing structural changes to support the recent volume increase and hence improve efficiency. Fortunately with so many factories globally, it’s easy to see there is always resource available for support.

 
I am greatly looking forward to making a difference at the Hull factory.

To support my development in the role, I recently completed numerous training courses in management excellence. In addition I also attended an influencing skills course which was especially good.
The trainer was very knowledgeable, and I would liken it to being taught by Derren Brown  (an English “magician” who is best known for his power of suggestion).
The courses covered everything from body language and questioning styles to written influencing. It piqued my curiosity in the subject and is something I will continue to research (fortunately we were provided with a comprehensive training guide upon completion which makes for interesting reading!).

Two key learning’s I now use on a daily basis are:
1. To ask myself when approaching a situation: “what do I want to achieve”. This gives me a clear objective to work towards in a presentation/meeting/conversation.

2. If there is ever a problem, to focus my energy on turning it into a positive. Fortunately I have now begun to do this naturally, making situations much easier to deal with in a controlled manner.

I will hopefully be able to post another update on my experiences in the new role soon, as I’m positive it will be a highlight of the scheme.

I’m involved with a project which aims to form bonds with a select few key universities throughout the UK, in an effort to raise RB’s profile with graduates and early careers.

This will hopefully mean that we attract even more top tier students into the supply chain business. We are targeting primarily the engineering faculties, and students with an operations or business degree bias.

The project is going smoothly and I travelled to a certain university last week, discussing several points with key stakeholders.
I believe we have identified a common goal and hopefully the talented workforce at RB will only grow in the future. If you think you have what it takes to work in a results-driven environment which provides challenging experiences, high levels of responsibility and, of course, pressure on a daily basis, then investigate further at RB’s career pages!
I’ve learned first hand that the opportunities here really are very valuable.