In March as Women’s History Month continued to march along, the world celebrated International Women’s Day March 8, and Jennifer Frigger-Latham, Vice President, Sales & Marketing at EMO Trans based in Long Island, New York was hard at work from home, away from the spotlight, with her husband Paul and the couple’s two small children.
     What Jenni experienced up close and personal makes for an interesting study of discovery and appreciation of life in the new world that is emerging post pandemic.
     How she manages to raise two small children whilst carrying forward her duties at EMO Trans and also giving back whilst thinking big thoughts serving as an active member of the Airforwarders Association Board is another story altogether.
     But however she does it, we echo what Maya Angelou said:
     “I love to see a women go out and grab the world by the lapels.”
     EMO Trans in 2021 is an exceptional multi-national privately owned company that began delivering logistics solutions in Stuttgart, Germany during 1965.
     Today with 85 offices in 19 countries and 250+ network locations in 120 countries, EMO has quietly become a global force delivering exceptional services to customers large and small everywhere.
     “We are deeply invested in understanding and internalizing the needs and goals of our customers,”Jenni said.
     “In a shipping world where there is often no tomorrow, our goal is to forge long lasting partnerships, by always delivering the most efficient, effective supply chain solutions.
     “Global Logistics is what we love doing,” Jenni declared adding, “some of our customers have been with us for decades.
     “I believe people have become part of the EMO family because they recognize that beyond rates, tariffs, and automated processes, and other enhanced bells and whistles of our offering, EMO Trans’ human touch of caring is always there, building value everywhere up and down the line.”

Getting Organized The New Balance

     Jenni maintains that for women and men as well keeping things in balance during the past pandemic year and moving ahead is a special challenge.
     No magic about it either as Jenni tells it.
     “I took a strong interest in the freight forwarding industry at an early age, as I loved the challenge of searching for solutions and solving complex situations on behalf of customers.
     “One thing that I have learned is that everyone needs to know what to expect and that whatever happens, communication is vital.
     “Along the way, as I advanced through the company, I became keenly aware of the importance of balancing life both inside and outside the office.
     “Unpredictability creates stressful situations that benefit no one.
     “So, one way in making accurate predictions and building skills in meeting or exceeding demand is to consistently go through your mental card catalogue and try to match known solutions to new problems and in that manner actually develop new procedures.
     “It is important for companies to not just focus on maintaining productivity but also on sustaining our teams, who are so important. As we try to accommodate new opportunities, we need to pace ourselves and help each other so that we create a plan that is sustainable.
     “These days when vaccine distribution is on everyone’s mind as a path to improve our lives quickly and get the world back to some kind of normal there is a lot of coverage about supply chain activities, as transportation of vaccines, in people’s minds, is delivering life itself all over the world.
     “We are serving as architects of transportation.
     “In other words, in our attempt to exceed the need we often might be tempted to think of our occupation in somewhat dramatic terms.
     “So, we need to pace ourselves while realizing we are delivering the goods for everyone all over the world.
     “The vaccination effort started out slower than people wanted it to, but it is important now to recognize that in many places because of the brilliance of the supply chain, the plan is working.
     “Currently as example the U.S. is ahead of other countries immunization schedule.
     “In some instances, countries that are struggling to vaccinate are having production or procurement problems, as logistics services stand by awaiting shipments.
     “As supply issues are ironed out, the logistics industry will continue to rise to the occasion and deliver the cure and everything else that we are tendered.”

Women In Logistics

     “Looking at the role of women in the industry, I want to question our cultural preoccupation with innate gifts or talent and the idea that women will have a different set of tools biologically.
     “I think the topic is much more complex than that.
     “A talented person who is not nurtured will fail, while a mediocre person who is highly nurtured might do well.
     “I don’t want to deny all differences because a different experience is enough to shift one’s perspective and give another view in the boardroom that might have been a blind spot otherwise.
     “Women are fierce problem solvers who are ambitious; more times than not, our thought process is the same as our male coworkers. We all want to solve interesting problems at work, and work to make a good life for our families. If you assume that others have a similar motivation, you will often be right. People want to grow in their career and their life. Funny enough, simply being part of Gen Z is a greater indicator of one’s expectations than whether or not a person is male or female.”

The Importance of Mentoring

     “I believe as women, we can embrace the maxim that a rising tide lifts all boats with the caveat that as we are moving on up the ladder we should not lose sight of the importance of mentoring others.
     “What’s more, be open minded about whom you are going to mentor. Don’t be afraid to mentor someone different from yourself!
     “I think mentoring is a quietly radical way to have a more diverse future with enhanced opportunities faster for women.
     “I was lucky to have a father who is a nurturing and mentorship force in my life.
     “Someone like that in your life undoubtedly could have as much impact as innate talent and grit to help be all you can be.”

Love A Forwarder

     “Thinking about the COVID-19 lockdown of the past, I can say again that freight forwarders are like firefighters and fishermen, bonded by our predicaments and, therefore, the same no matter where we’re from.
     “The camaraderie in this business is intense, and although it has continued reasonably well over video chat, it’s not nearly the same as meeting face-to-face.
     “When a bunch of forwarders get together, the excitement of new ideas and friendships and boisterous talking is always the music of those moments . . .”

Why EMO Trans

     “There is an optimism about our company and the services we bring to the table,” Jenni said.
     “EMO Trans people around the world are a dedicated tightly knit force in shipping that follows the course my father established.
     “EMO people simply just do not take no for an answer. We find a way to deliver.
     “But having to deal with challenges including rates and space issues, as well as equipment shortages, port congestion and securing the best routing for our service partners, although difficult at times has made EMO Trans even more efficient; more streamlined and most notably as we step off into a new world post-pandemic, paperless.
     “Although most of us at EMO Trans cannot wait to get back to in person contact with our customers the age of Zoom and other contact services has ushered in virtual contact everywhere in the world.
     “The payoff I believe is that EMO Trans is staged to emerge in a post-COVID period as an even stronger, more resilient organization.
     “I expect the “new” communication tools will continue to be developed and utilized as we move forward post pandemic.”
Geoffrey