AS HE assumes the presidency of the Visayas chapter of the Supply Chain Management Association of the Philippines (SCMAP) this year, Cebu-based entrepreneur Rodien Paca has vowed to regularly meet with the industry stakeholders to discuss logistics issues and mount trainings to equip workers with upgraded skills in this new business environment.
“The logistics industry may appear alive and kicking, but it is also facing challenges, especially with the border restrictions,” said Paca in an interview. “We have no manual to navigate this coronavirus pandemic, so meeting regularly with the stakeholders would allow us to discuss issues and craft better solutions to problems.”
Paca aims to meet the players in the supply chain from shipping, trucking and warehousing to delivery, every two months to get an update on each other’s status in this pandemic-stricken environment.
“This is my thrust in the next two years,” said Paca, who owns Paca Training and Management Systems Inc. Asia (PTMS Asia), a Cebu-based consultancy firm for logistics management, supply chain systems, commercial shipping management, port management and trucking management systems.
Paca said the industry right now is experiencing a “delay factor” because of border restrictions and truck bans.
“We want to offer the government efficient and effective solutions since we are the ones who feel the direct impact of these restrictions,” he said.
SCMAP-Visayas Chapter used to have 160 member-companies, but due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on businesses, Paca estimates that around 20 percent of the member-companies went inactive.
“Logistics is a time-based business. The more time we are given to operate, the more earnings we get. We are a thriving industry, but this doesn’t mean we earn so much,” he said.
Shops and restaurants closing earlier than usual are taking a toll on the logistics sector. Border controls also pushed some firms to hire more workers even if the economic conditions aren’t healthy.
“Because of border controls, we needed to hire workers from Bohol, for example, for our deliveries to get through because our workers based here can’t cross the islands,” he explained.
Aside from meeting the stakeholders, Paca plans to conduct a series of technology training for employees.
“We are also an industry that is technologically challenged. Because of this, we plan to conduct training to make sure everybody is digitally connected,” he said. Meetings and conventions of SCMAP- Visayas, according to Paca, will be done virtually.
Since the Covid-19 pandemic entered the Philippine shores, businesses have been compelled to accelerate their digital transformation journey. The industry saw a sudden shift of consumers turning to online or touch-less transactions for learning, working and shopping. (KOC)