Aleksander Borkowski
It must be a great feeling when you feel you’re well-prepared for your career before you’ve even graduated. For Aleksander Borkowski, Logistics Management student, it’s the practical approach that really makes the difference. Working with real brands, applying analytical skills to logistics problems, working with others, and leaning to be proactive and keep trying new things. It all means studying logistics has been a confidence-building experience.
“I’ve really changed over the past four years. I was super shy and insecure about myself back home in Poland, and I'm honestly proud of myself now and how far I’ve come. I really like to try new things to keep on improving and the fact that I’m able to do that now is incredible. I think it’s the same for a lot of people here. It's not that we’re forced to be more outgoing or anything, it’s just certain things are expected, like presenting in a group. And the more I did new things, the easier it became. There was no blockage in my head telling me not to do it. I know now that I need to be proactive, get out there and try new things, keep going forward to improve.”
Making a system work
“That’s how it worked on my internship too. For our internships, we not only work as normal in a company but we also do a project. And though you start your internship knowing you have a project to do, you don’t know what the subject is going to be. You have to talk to people, get to know the company, find out where your project can make a difference. In my case, I was working in the supply chain team for FonQ, the online home and lifestyle store, I saw a situation in the warehouse. Whenever returns came in, they were entered manually into a spreadsheet on a screen. The system wasn’t efficient and the users didn’t like it – but it was a great subject for my project. Could I come up with a better system?”
“My approach was to start by going to every department and talking to them to see how they could potentially help me. The Data Analysis team seemed to be the missing link. They tracked everything that came back but weren’t really linked with the warehouse. With my project, I brought things together and now they have a system that is 40% more efficient.”
“I was so happy they were open to my ideas. I thought that as an intern, I’d just be in the back, kind of overlooking the activity they do, but they were so open to my ideas. That fact that I was able to be independent and work for myself was so nice. I think my internship is what I’m most proud of these past three years.”
Moving on
“Our careers can go in so many different directions. It’s a huge misconception that logistics is just about trucks. I've got friends wanting to work in events, managing the supplies, or wanting to work in a port, and personally, I want to find out more about food chain logistics. The fact that during our studies we work with companies on projects that fix issues, and that there are so many problems to be solved, shows just how dynamic logistics is.”
More information about Logistics Management can be found on the programme page.