BIFA Awards
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of his colleagues competed in various challenges. “We had to wear goggles that made us see double and then kick a football around a course, or describe a picture to a blindfolded colleague who had to draw what we described,” he said, laughing. “It was about team bonding and communication skills – and we are entering again this year.” These are fun examples of cross-departmental relationship building that can improve service levels. Equally important is ensuring that employees are supported. In this regard, the GEODIS Employee Council aims to increase employee satisfaction, well-being and productivity; here again Thomas takes an active role. “The aim is to make GEODIS a better place to work than it already is,” he outlined. “We propose ideas to the board, such as healthcare, gym memberships, or even webinars to raise awareness of topics like cancer or the menopause.” Once a month, 14 employees – including apprentices, supervisors and managers – come together to “debate, decide, align”, Thomas explained. One of the committee’s proposals in 2022 was to give each employee a shopping voucher instead of throwing a summer party, in order to ease financial stress as the cost of living increased. Thomas also continues to contribute to initiatives aimed at improving productivity and results. For instance, he said: “We have collected data from last year and we are analysing it to understand which opportunities were successful,
A bright star who loves to push boundaries
Thomas Frost was one of the first apprentices taken on at GEODIS FF UK and won BIFA’s Apprentice of the Year Award in 2019. This year, he was named Young Freight Forwarder of the Year – and his ambition remains unabated
where to target our business and to find improvements to increase our success.”
Aspirations “Becoming a managing director has always been in the back of my mind,” Thomas declared. “From the start of my career as an apprentice, out-of-office learning set the foundation; moving on from that, I have learnt about imports, exports and different transport modes. Now I have moved into sales and next I hope to supervise other individuals.” Thomas wants to learn more about what motivates people too, alongside his growing understanding of the practical side of freight forwarding. “I want to gather all of these aspects and then put them together and use them in the role of managing director,” he said. • Matt Pisano, GEODIS communications and marketing director, added: “We are empowering Thomas to share his success and mentor his peers and some of the younger people we are bringing in as apprentices. His star is very bright indeed.”
YOUNG FREIGHT FORWARDER OF THE YEAR
Virgin Atlantic Cargo is proud to
Thomas Frost has always pushed the boundaries of his comfort zone. “I have never settled for what I am in the moment,” he said. “I have always wanted to go on and do something new, different and challenging; I always look at the next step and think about what I need to do to get there.” Back in 2020, Thomas had already identified sales as an area of the business that he wanted to master, and he has successfully moved into that department after several years in operations. He explained: “My goal is to progress and understand all aspects of the business. My role now covers both sales and marketing. I have also helped organise events such as our prostate and breast cancer fundraising days.”
sponsor BIFA’s Young Freight Forwarder Award to recognise and
Thomas has always seen the value in non- work-related activities, such as the Big Logistics Diversity Challenge last year, in which he and nine encourage the next generation of industry leaders. As well as rewarding the progress of the best young people, this award helps to highlight the vital role freight forwarders play in the growth and development of the industry. VAC recognise the importance of developing and retaining talented young people and is confident this award will help to attract more recruits that want to build a future career in a sector that is so important to the economy and international trade.
March 2023
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