Frank Olsen is currently serving as an executive at Inchcape. At the moment, he is in charge of the shipping services within the company. During the period where he has been working at Inchcape, he has managed to focus on the values of a shipping agency.
Since he is in charge of shipping, he managed to cut off the funds being directed towards the Middle East freight forwarding arm since it was “capital intensive.” The main issue was that the freight forwarding arm was leaving the company in debt, especially during this period when the COVID-10 pandemic has disrupted numerous business operations globally.
Olsen is currently focusing on strengthening the “main differentiator” within the company. Currently, Inchcape has a global network that has 240 offices in more than 68 nations. They have also partnered with different agencies around the globe. As a result, they have managed to cover at least 2,500 ports.
Olsen has pointed out that Inchcape is unique compared to other shipping agent groups that usually have a single-minded focus. The corporation is deeply involved in logistics. Although Inchcape is involved in other activities, each of these activities revolves around the ship and port.
The shipping agency market is fragmented since the small players control a large percentage of the market. There is also a lack of trust from one shipping agent to another. As the chief executive officer in charge of the Inchcape Shipping Services shipping department, Olsen is focused on ensuring there is transparency. The initiative was launched last year in a bid to form a meaningful relationship with their clients.
To create a relationship based on trust, the operators and agents need to work together. Just-In-Time arrivals at the port will prove to be valuable in solving the current challenges revolving around decarbonization.
Olsen and his team are working hard to demonstrate that they are transparent, trustworthy, and they are also valuable partners to their clients. The main focus is on integrity. As an executive, Olsen has focused on embedding integrity in the firm’s corporate culture.
Inchcape has also focused more on technology. They have managed to incorporate a digital database that is meant to store the ship and port information for starters. The information can be availed on a subscription basis.
Inchcape Shipping Services has also managed to provide important information about their ports globally during the COVID-19 pandemic. The crew changes and flights usually take place in these ports. Inchcape has also hired full-time staff that usually update the website in different time zones. The staff usually collects essential information from the corporation’s global network. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Inchcape website has received at least 160,000 hits. The site has also proven to be a valuable source since it has also attracted a lot of praise.
The organization has also managed to work closely with ship managers and operators in different international groups while also trying to find a solution to the issue of crew changes. Olsen can relate to these issues since he is in charge of the shipping services.
To solve the issue about crew changes, “full collaboration” is required between different parties, and the competitive factors should not be considered.
