Corey Williams

6.30 AM

I wake to the sound of ‘Uplift’ Apple iPhone’s alarm tone, disorientated I roll out of bed. My mind programmed to perform a swiping motion disabling the alarm. Following a few minutes gathering myself I draw back the curtains of my room excited by the opportunity a new day presents.  Showered and enjoying my breakfast, this gives me a chance to catch up on the daily news. Having prepared my lunch bag the night before I pick it up and head out the door, just in time to listen to second edition of sport on 3AW.

7.45 AM

Walking into the Daimler Truck and Bus Australia office, I say my good mornings to members of the team already in and sit down at my desk. After unpacking my bag, logging in and having a laugh with my co-workers I revisit my to-do-list written the previous working day, allowing me to understand the expectations I have on myself today. I begin by checking my emails and updating my to-do list with report requests from my co-workers, actioning any emails in which I need clarity or further information before proceeding with my day. 

8.00 AM

I begin my daily duties; which include updating our main inventory database, creating and sending out daily reports, reviewing new data created in our system from the previous day and actioning directions received from our Regional Logistics Centre in Singapore regarding part creation, part supersessions and pricing variances. Maintaining our data is critical as colleagues within the office and the broader dealer network rely on this information to assist with their decision-making.

9.15 AM

I get up and stretch my legs greeting other colleagues around the office, catching up on the previous night’s reality TV before taking the short walk over to Mercedes Benz Australia dropping off reports received from Singapore. Arriving back at my desk I follow up with our local vendors on any overdue orders. By emailing or calling our local vendors, I am able to build a rapport with others in the industry. I collect updated estimated time of arrival dates for our open orders, and update these within our Spare Parts Inventory & Control System (SPICS) enabling others to view the changes. 

10.00 AM

The manager of business systems has emailed me asking for core credits to be processed and the authorised credit notes to be sent to accounts. Cores are nonoperational parts sent back to the supplier to be remanufactured. I create a sundry template of credits for processing before sending the completed sundry credit request to the Philippines to be processed. The Philippines will reply within a few days with attached credit note copies, which I will then distribute to the respective dealers within the network.

10.30 AM

I have received an email from our customs and shipping department, informing me a sea shipment has left the United States scheduled to arrive in Australia within the next two months. This freight can contain up to 800 lines of stock. Avoiding this information being manually entered into SPICS, which is monotonous and prone to data entry errors I create a text file. With the assistance of Microsoft Access and Microsoft Excel, I ensure the data is clean allowing the file to be successfully processed into SPICS. After updating a tracking sheet of all shipments from the United States, I create a file showing all box numbers is the shipment, which is emailed to our warehouse team notifying them of the pending arrival.

11.00 AM

I continue working my way through my checklist. Up next is my largest piece of work I produce each month. A digital presentation on all statistical data and key performance indicators for our parts operations department. This details to my team and management our ability as an operation to supply orders to our national dealer network, our inventory values, backordered lines for the month, along with many other figures and graphs all in which assist the department to achieve its own goals as well as working towards Daimler’s own purpose goal ‘for all who keep the world moving”

12.00 PM

My stomach starts rumbling and I know it is time for lunch. Before locking my computer, I tick off tasks completed from my to-do-list. Grab my lunch bag, and go for a quick game of table tennis before making my way to our own work cafeteria. I catch up with the other IBLs across the Daimler group, checking in to see how everyone is going. Often playing our lunchtime game of overrated/underrated on all different worldly topics. This is a good time of the day where we can bounce off each other. We all understand the journey one another is going through and the confusion that can sometimes arise within the world of a global company. This is an opportunity where we can discuss any strategies to help each other and improve our experience.

1.00 PM

Arriving back at my desk, I am greeted with a price file update for our parts purchased from the United States. I am required to match our part numbers currently on file with those on the updated excel spreadsheet. Once a match is found, I create a text file, which is processed in SPICS to ensure our systems reflects the correct prices.

2.00 PM

A meeting is arranged with my manager, the business development manager for Freightliner, the Freightliner business analyst and myself. I head to one of our meeting rooms with a cup of black tea in hand. There is currently a process in place aligning all our parts purchased from the US, with marketing structures similar to that of our other brands; Mercedes Benz and Fuso. Having already extracted the data and created potential marketing codes for part numbers concerned, this is a chance for members of our team to come together and discuss the next stages of the project. With this project being in its early stages it is important developments are communicated with those concerned, ensuring there is complete transparency moving forward. I walk away from the meeting, with an empty mug but armed with resources and knowledge, which can allow continuation of the project.

3.00 PM

Our Alliance Brand Manager has asked me to alter a selling price of a part number after discussions with a particular vendor, offering our dealers a better price in the highly competitive market of truck oils. After reviewing the price list, it is decided that a greater discount shall be offered. A conversation is held in which I am involved in understanding the reasoning behind the shift in structures, and how it is designed to assist in the pricing strategy for the Alliance product. I implement the pricing shift and it is now live for our dealer network. 

3.30 PM

I am determined to finalise my monthly presentation for Germany regarding inventory key performance indicators of the part operations team. After receiving data from our controlling team, I am able to create a digital representation that will be reviewed by managers before being sent to Germany for analysis of our market. Co-creation allows for better results within the company. 

4.00 PM

Its 4.00 pm already, the day has flown. I tick off my completed task and begin to create my to-do-list for tomorrow. Taking advantage of Daimler Truck and Bus flexible working arrangements I say goodnight to my co-workers, before being able to still make the most of the days sunlight either through university, social or sporting commitments.