CARGOCONNECT-APRIL2026 - Flipbook - Page 80
Panel 2
Why Diversity Underpins Supply Chain Innovation
“In many organisations, gender
diversity is still measured primarily
as a KPI rather than being leveraged
as a strategic di昀昀erentiator. While
tracking representation is important, the real opportunity lies in
moving beyond metrics to actively
creating an environment where
diverse perspectives contribute
meaningfully to decision-making
and innovation. When diversity is
embedded as a strategic priority rather than a compliance requirement, it
delivers stronger organisational outcomes. At the workforce level, women
today represent a signi昀椀cant proportion of industry participation, re昀氀ecting
encouraging progress over the years. However, as organisations move
toward senior leadership roles, the pipeline continues to narrow, indicating
that representation at higher decision-making levels still requires focused
attention. Although progress has been made, the journey toward balanced
leadership representation has not been easy, and continued e昀昀orts are needed
to strengthen pathways that support women professionals in advancing
into leadership positions.”
RUCHEE AWASTHI, Sr GM– Global Reliability Programme,
Global Supply Chain, Schneider Electric (MODERATOR)
“There are three key leadership
qualities that play an important role
in enabling diversity to translate
into meaningful organisational
outcomes. The 昀椀rst is the ability
to listen. Leaders at every level
should remain open to ideas from
across the organisation, whether
they come from frontline teams
or senior stakeholders. Without
active listening, organisations risk
overlooking practical solutions that could strengthen decision-making and
responsiveness. The second important quality is collaboration. Encouraging
cross-functional collaboration helps bring multiple perspectives together
and enables teams to develop more balanced and comprehensive solutions.
Such alignment ensures that decisions are not driven solely by isolated
priorities. The third essential factor is empowerment. Providing teams with
the authority and con昀椀dence to act on their ideas is critical for translating
diverse perspectives into tangible results. In particular, empowering
women professionals with decision-making opportunities and execution
responsibilities ensures that their contributions are fully integrated into
organisational progress.”
SHIVANI JAIN, GM– Europe & Mediterranean Trade Lane, Clearship Group
80 | CARGOCONNECT APRIL 2026
“When we talk about diversity, it
represents a much broader concept
that is especially relevant in the
context of supply chain management. One important dimension
of diversity is cognitive diversity.
Within any supply chain team, it is
necessary to have individuals with
varied strengths and priorities—some
who are highly skilled in planning,
others who focus on service speed
and responsiveness, and others who concentrate on cost optimisation. A
resilient and e昀케cient supply chain cannot be built by focussing on only
one of these aspects; instead, it requires a balanced integration of multiple
perspectives and approaches. Another critical dimension of diversity relates
to the combination of experience and emerging technological capabilities. As
organisations increasingly adopt advanced technologies such as arti昀椀cial
intelligence for functions like shipment visibility and operational tracking, the
insights of experienced professionals become even more valuable. Individuals
with many years of operational experience can provide practical inputs
that help shape and re昀椀ne technology-driven solutions, ensuring they are
aligned with real-world requirements.”
MONMI BHARALI TALUKDAR, Lead– EXIM, Nestlé India
"As supply chain functions moved
from being largely back-end operations to playing a frontline strategic
role, organisations increasingly
began to recognise the value of
diverse perspectives in strengthening
performance and decision-making.
One of the key advantages of diversity
is that it enables organisations to
approach complex challenges from
multiple perspectives. A diverse
workforce supports stronger problem-solving capabilities, enables more
e昀昀ective root cause analysis and contributes to faster and more informed
decision-making. In the meantime, it is essential to create an environment in
which team members feel safe sharing ideas, con昀椀dent that their perspectives
are valued and assured that their contributions support broader organisational
objectives. When diversity is supported by inclusion, organisations are
better positioned to strengthen collaboration, improve performance and
achieve strategic goals more e昀昀ectively. In addition, diversity and inclusion
contribute meaningfully to supporting ESG priorities, which are increasingly
becoming strategic imperatives rather than compliance-driven requirements.”
SHWETA DESHMUKH, Head of Procurement– RM & PM,
Apcotex Industries
