ASAP Kerala organizes an industry conclave in association with Logistics Sector Skill Council (LSC)

Additional Skill Acquisition Programme (ASAP) in association with the Logistics Sector Skill Council (LSC) organised an Industry Conclave with professionals and academicians for a brainstorming session on repositioning the sector in ASAP on 16^th June 2017 at the Mascot Hotel, Thiruvananthapuram. The LSC played a key role in the programme by bringing in leading industry experts from different sub-sectors and through the active involvement of the CEO, Capt. T.S. Ramanujam and Head, Training, Shri. Ravikanth Yamarthi. Representatives from top companies including FedEx, DHL, Blue Dart, GATI, DTDC, DHL, EICI, OM Logistics, CII Institute of Logistics, Parekh Integrated Services Pvt Ltd and ARAMEX were also present.

The agenda for discussions included offering industry relevant skill courses for new job roles, identification of Training Service Providers for the proposed skill courses, facilitating internships in On the Job Training (OJT) mode, placement support and positioning the sector in the upcoming ASAP Community Skill Parks. Introductory remarks by Dr. Reju M.T. IAS, CEO, ASAP and also a presentation on ‘Trends in the Logistics Sector’ by Capt. Ramanujam, was followed by parallel round table discussions on four identified themes by professionals from the industry, academia and government organizations.

Click here to download the complete report on the ASAP Logistics sector industry conclave.

The suggestions that came out of the round table discussions held in parallel are as follows:

Round table 1 – Demanding Job Roles in the Logistics Sector

• Students do not have clarity on job roles and availability of opportunities in the shipping sector so clear job roles have been identified for graduates and higher secondary students.
• The panel suggested reducing the length of skill training to less than four months and providing career counseling to the students who wish to take the courses.

Round Table 2 -Internship and Placement

• Industry players need to be involved through the entire life cycle of Interns.
• Providing Interaction opportunities to students with industry experts to gain exposure in work environments and creating awareness about career paths would ensure vertical immersion of the student into the sector.

Round Table 3- Positioning Logistics Sector in Community Skill Park

• Identifying the right courses to right CSPs having easy access to highways, ports, inland water ways and air corridors.
• Warehouse Supervisor course that uses a prototype of fully automated warehouse was put forth as an ideal option for certain locations. Logistics Analyst was also suggested for engineering graduates as a preferred course.

Round Table 4 – Addressing the Training Challenges in Logistics Sector

• Branding the sector should be done via sharing videos, showcasing career and academic progress, real stories of student placements and motivational talks by experts from the industry.
• That ASAP should track the performance of the students after their placement was suggested.
• Employer feedback needs to be sought for effective curricular changes.

Leads from each table presented the salient findings and action points that were discussed and debated by everyone. Three important decisions were arrived at for follow up and these are:

1. Mapping of suitable colleges by ASAP for offering Level 5 courses as part of the Regular ASAP and University Integration modes. Sector skill council would facilitate proper training and the industry will be involved in training and placement.
2. Screening the students based on their interest so that the right ones get trained. Industry would prefer the ‘Recruit and Train’ plan if the right students are made available. Internships can be more specialized based on student interest in industry sub-sectors.
3. The Perumbavoor CSP would be considered as a pilot for establishing a sector specific centre of excellence in training. The Sector Skill Council will take a lead role in this exercise.

Mr. Barttanu Das, Senior Vice President, Blue Dart Express Ltd summed up the deliberations and put forth industry perspectives in the closing session and Mr. Anil Kumar, Head, Training ASAP formally closed the session with a vote of thanks.

Participants of the Logistics Sector Industry conclave held at Thiruvananthapuram on 16^th June 2017

Heads of ASAP and a team of Programme Managers led by Smt. Preetha A, SPM, Smt. Chitralekha, SPM and Smt. Shari J, Sector PM coordinated the programme along with Dr.K.P. Jaikiran, Head, Logistics Sector, ASAP.