Twelve awarded for keeping the supply chain running
They are the ones who kept the organisations humming and brought in products during the pandemic-led movement restrictions
Twelve organisations and individuals have received the prestigious Bangladesh Supply Chain Excellence Awards for navigating businesses by innovation and invention through the pandemic-led crises.
Another three persons were honoured with the special mentions at a ceremony held on Tuesday night in Dhaka virtually.
In 2018, the award was jointly initiated by the IPDC Finance Limited and the Bangladesh Supply Chain Management Society (BSCMS) to recognise innovative methods and strategies adopted by businesses and individuals.
This year, the award recognised nine organisations and three individuals in 11 categories for their excellence in supply chain management.
The organisations that won this year's award are Apex Footwear Limited, Marico Bangladesh Limited (in three categories), Reckitt Benckiser (Bangladesh) Limited, British American Tobacco Bangladesh, Unilever Bangladesh Limited, Supply Chain Alliance, and Berger Paints Bangladesh Limited.
Asma Akhter from Unilever Bangladesh, Zeba Samiha from Berger Paints and Hasnain Ishtiaq from British American Tobacco are the individuals who received the award.
Kishwar Ahmed Hashemee from Kludio Limited, Md Abdul Alim from Unilever Bangladesh and Mohammed Zia Uddin from Reckitt Benckiser (Bangladesh) were honoured with special mentions.
As the chief guest of the event, Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) President Rubana Huq said it is important to incentivise and recognise the good work that goes behind building an organisation.
"It is not just one person that does it, it is not one strategy or one vision that does it, it is a collective effort. And people who are a part of this collaborative supply chain effort need to be recognised and celebrated," she noted.
As the guest of honour Unilever Bangladesh Chairman and Managing Director Kedar Lele said none of us was trained to handle this pandemic. It is also special because if there were one set of heroes that all organisations had in this year, they have to be the supply chain professionals.
"They are the ones who kept the organisations humming, they are the ones who ran the factories and brought in the products."
Mominul Islam, managing director and CEO of the IPDC Finance, said, "We believe supply chain is going to play a key role in the improvement of our efficiency and productivity to make Bangladesh competitive globally."
The phenomenal trajectory growth our country is enjoying requires our individual commitment to go the extra mile, he added.
The Bangladesh Supply Chain Management Society's President Naquib Khan described the supply chain as one of the worst affected sectors during this pandemic.
"This year was the most challenging year for all of us for continuing supply chain practices," he noted.
The jury panel of the event was comprised of Imran Rahman, special advisor to the Board of Trustees, University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh; Masud Khan, chairman, GSK Bangladesh; Syed Nasim Manzur, managing director at Apex Enterprise Ltd; and Md Miarul Haque, managing director, DHL Express Bangladesh.
They picked up the winners from over 85 nominated organisations and individuals this year.
International Supply Chain Education Alliance (ISCEA) was the knowledge partner of the event and its CEO Ejazur Rahman anchored the prize giving ceremony. The Business Standard was the media partner of the event.
