Pall-Ex invests £200,000 to create future leadership team

Pall-Ex Group is investing £200,000 in putting 10 staff through a management degree programme in partnership with University Centre Quayside as part of a drive to create the network’s next generation of business leaders.

The candidates chosen to undertake the three-year course have been drawn from across the Pall-Ex Group of companies, after the opportunity was advertised to all staff at Pall-Ex, Fortec and the network’s four owned operations.

The UCQ chartered manager degree apprenticeship (CMDA) combines a BA (Hons) professional management degree - validated by The Open University - with the CMI Level 5 diploma in management and leadership.

Staff members on the course have been selected from across a range of business roles and include customer service administrator Ellie Harman, who recently completed her apprenticeship with Pall-Ex and James Barston, a business development manager with Pall-Ex Group.

The other eight are central hub operations manager Joe Murfitt; international operations manager Samantha Newton; Fortec general manager of operations Stuart White; corporate commercial analyst Lauren Pullin; member support co-ordinator Adrian Craven; network compliance managers Laura Brown and Nick Antill-Holmes; and network manager Chris Churchill from Pall-Ex owned operation, Shears Bros.

Each year Pall-Ex will make new places available on the management programme.

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Barry Byers, MD of UK business units at Pall-Ex Group is the driving force behind the implementation of the programme. He said: “I have always appreciated the importance of nurturing talent within a business, retaining those people and helping them become leaders.

“The opportunity we have been able to provide for this group of people signifies Pall-Ex Group’s commitment to supporting its staff. By ensuring we are continually providing opportunities for development, we are securing the future success of our business.”

Kevin Buchanan, Pall-Ex Group chief executive, added: “We recognise that our most important asset is our people. Their skills and abilities are a fantastic resource which we want to nurture as this will only benefit both the company and the individuals.

“We want people to be able to join our organisation at any level and know that their achievements when working in the group are only limited by their own ambitions and efforts. Developing our talent from within will only make us an even stronger business.

“This significant investment which Pall-Ex Group has made highlights our commitment to achieving excellence now and, in the years to come, as we aim to become the leading palletised freight distribution network in Europe and beyond and become the employer of choice.

“The people working hard to complete this course and those who follow in their footsteps will be at the forefront of ensuring we achieve this objective.”