Bashir Mourad CPIM, Supply Chain Manager for New Zealand – Johnson and Johnson

Forum member Bashir Mourad, Supply Chain Manager for Johnson and Johnson in New Zealand, tells us about his role, and why he expects at least one surprise a day.

What is your job and who is your company?

I am Supply Chain Manager for New Zealand at Johnson and Johnson.

What’s your role and how does it fit into the business/organisation?

I manage the end to end supply chain planning for the Johnson and Johnson New Zealand business in the Pacific market.

What does your organisation do well? What are your capabilities? What are your ambitions?

J&J has a benchmark sales and operations planning system, and exceptional supply chain planning resources, which allow us to effectively manage a very diverse and complex supply chain organisation. We manage the planning, storage and distribution for a very large and diverse portfolio of household consumer products sourced from many suppliers and locations all over the world.

What does your personal career path look like? Are there any highlights and/or awards along the way that you’re proud of?

My career path started off after university in project management, looking after new product introduction, compliance projects, supplier re-sites and new business opportunities. Then I moved into the supply chain function into a supply planner role.

I joined Australasian Supply Chain Institute (then apicsAU) and completed the APICS Certified in Production & Inventory Management (CPIM) which was valuable towards my best practice knowledge. Furthermore I qualified to facilitate through ASCI and found teaching others a rewarding experience. I have held multiple roles across supply and demand planning across the large portfolio of products. There have been many highlights along the way, including many successful product launches/acquisitions, process improvements leading to a leaner and more responsive supply chain as well as many initiatives where we have successfully partnered with both customer and supplier to deliver cost and customer service improvement.

What does a typical day at work look like?

There is no typical day given the uncertainty in our supply chain. One thing you can expect is at least one surprise every day, and our job is how to take that and make an opportunity out of it that we can both learn from. as well as ensure the customer and the business remain satisfied. The day has a mix of problem solving challenges/opportunities, collaborating with a mix of stakeholders including warehouse staff, freight forwarders, account managers and customer service representatives, all to ensure that the product is constantly in the right place with the right amount and the right time.

What are some tools/techniques/tactics you use to do your job as a business leader?

We are provided with a great range of tools and resources to do our job well. The most important resource is people. Therefore, building great relationships with stakeholders is imperative to success. We spend most of our time dealing with people, NOT working with our software applications, so this is why I see the value in investing as much effort as possible in building these relationships in order to allow you to do a great job an deliver continued value to the business, your customer and yourself.

Is there an issue in Australian manufacturing that’s not getting enough attention at the moment? Why is it important?

The issue I believe is that most people are NOT seeing or believing there is an issue. Manufacturing is disappearing from our country, we no longer have as many opportunities to see and work in this sector of the economy, and if this continues our future generations will have to move offshore to be able to physically experience this. We need to keep manufacturing local, not only to keep the wealth on home soil but also to keep employment opportunities for the many thousands of people this sector employs. Furthermore, Australia is rich in resources as well as an incredibly skilled and well trained workforce that we can make better use of on our home ground, and benefit not only Australia but also the rest of the world. We have the ability to compete on the world stage in manufacturing and make products that are recognised globally as superior in quality and innovative. We just need to focus on this and pursue the opportunities within this industry locally.

What do you get out of your involvement with the Australian Manufacturing Forum

Through ASCI, I have been made aware of this Forum and have joined. I’m looking forward to sharing a common passion for manufacturing with other members of the forum.