Руководитель логистики Nestlé в Великобритании рассказал о карьерном пути и внедрении искусственного интеллекта

When you go into the supermarket for your favourite Nestlé products, you probably don’t give much thought as to how those items got there. But the same can’t be said for Richard Hastings. As the head of logistics for Nestlé UK and Ireland, it’s the responsibility of Richard and his team to make sure that shop shelves across the UK are stocked with all the Nestlé essentials – from Shreddies and KitKat to Nescafé Gold Blend and Dolce Gusto pods. Richard’s Nestlé career began in 1990, with a work placement as part of his degree in supply chain and logistics. “It was meant to be just 12 months, but I think I did nearly 16 in the end,” he says, explaining that he was immediately thrown in at the deep end. “And within two weeks of joining, I was sent to work in Scotland for six months!” After graduation, Richard worked for his dad for a bit before setting off to see the world – but it wasn’t long before Nestlé came calling with an offer he couldn’t refuse. “I was in Penang when I got a fax from my parents saying I’d received a letter from Nestlé,” he explains. “They asked me to go back for six months to do a temporary project, which I did, and then I was supposed to then carry on travelling. “Well, that six month project became three years, and then, of course, I've been here ever since… and I still haven't finished the project,” he jokes. Over the course of his 30-plus years at Nestlé, Richard says he has done “pretty much every job” in logistics. “I've done all the warehouse jobs, from walking around picking boxes to forklift driving. I’ve done pretty much every job in transport, from driving trucks to vehicle scheduling, driver management, and running the entire transport team. “On the other side, I've done systems, pretty much all of the project management kind of roles, and then in the last 10-15 years, I’ve been involved in looking at new technology and sustainability.” In his role each day, Richard plays a crucial part in making sure Nestlé's suite of products get where they need to be. Made in factories across Britain, they are collated, packed and sent to the Nestlé centre at East Midlands Gateway to be distributed swiftly and easily. And Nestlé has a full sustainable fleet of trucks at its disposal to help - something which Richard is proud of: “I love the sustainability side of it.” The company is also currently the decarbonisation champions for Logistics UK, further illustrating its commitment to eco-friendly practices. Nowadays, Richard says his job is “more about looking further ahead” than the day-to-day side of things. “I’m looking at the strategy for the future – where is Nestlé going to be in 10 years' time? How is the logistics operation going to be ready for that?” As part of this, technology is an area of increasing interest and excitement for Richard and his team. “When I first started in logistics, the most exciting technology was a cassette player in your truck,” he jokes. “Now the technology that we use in logistics is just immense; it’s about AI and robotics.” Richard goes on to explain that these advancements have not only made the industry much safer and more diverse, but “it's actually changed what humans do in logistics - we’re no longer the grunt and the manpower, but the intelligence and the finessing around it.” If there’s one thing Richard wishes more people knew, it’s that logistics is a great career. “It's a big industry, it's really varied, and you can actually make a difference,” he says. “Also, you can really upskill. You can start at the bottom and rapidly work your way up if you show initiative and really engage with it.” If anyone should know, it’s Richard. “I've had a great time,” he says. “Fundamentally, I've been in logistics in Nestlé my whole career - and ended up at the top.”