November 2021
A Day in the Life - Peter, Procurement & Supply Chain Manager
07:15 Peter’s day starts
with a coffee while he attends to the considerable number of emails that have
come in overnight. While each day is different presenting its own particular challenges,
communication via email (often sending and receiving photographs of individual specimens)
is a constant task.
09:15 Emails dealt with,
Peter and Robin (our transport controller) catch up on logistics operations. While
we grow the vast majority of what we sell, we inevitably need to outsource additional
items of stock. For this we have established a network of selected supply
partners throughout the UK, as well as from Holland and Italy. Scheduling
deliveries is therefore crucial function.
10:30 After another
quick coffee it’s out onto the nursery. Leaving Clare looking after admin
duties, Peter takes a walk around the nursery checking items on forward orders
and making notes on the way round. As well as managing the supply chain, Peter
also maintains long-term working relationships with a group of key accounts in
the ‘new build’ sector, where volumes of orders are high and maintaining
standards for quality and consistency is vital.
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11:45 Peter is back in
the office now, checking stock numbers and preparing for a weekly meeting after
lunch identifying shortages and planning strategies to offer promotions on any overstocked
items.
13:30 After a brief
lunch break it’s time to meet with fellow managers from the finance, production and sales
departments to discuss future growing requirements, stock numbers, logistics,
progress with agreed production targets, along with discussing solutions to any
issues that may have arisen.
14:45 Peter joins colleagues for a walk of the tree fields; this is in
connection with our current ‘Field Grown Trees’ promotion. Among the topics
discussed are ground conditions and the ease with which the tree team will be
able to lift the trees in line with delivery schedules.
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15:45 Time to return to the office to catch up with Clare and sales executive
Adam before attending to pending sales quotations and orders.
16:30 Peter makes a few phone calls to discuss operations for the following
day before spending more time on emails, finally leaving the office just after
17:00.
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