30 years in Kuehne + Nagel: Nicole's career development

Hip hip hurray, we have another jubilee! Nicole’s 30-year job anniversary proves that a fulfilling career can also be accomplished without changing employer. In an entrepreneurial environment characterized by freedom, opportunity and room to grow, Nicole never lacked a challenge to keep her going. From bookkeeper to Business Controller, this is Nicole’s Kuehne + Nagel story. 

Ever since high school Nicole had a knack for numbers, a talent that she decided to deploy in her studies of bookkeeping and taxation. In 1989 she graduated and started her finance career in our logistics environment. “It is partly due to the strong growth that Kuehne + Nagel has seen over the years that I was able to develop my career as well”, Nicole says. Initially she performed the classic tasks of a bookkeeper. “At the start we were a rather small company and I focused on tasks such as creating and recording invoices and calling customers when needed.” As the company grew, more possibilities and challenges appeared. “With our expansion I also got to do budgeting and month-end closures, and eventually I became responsible for financial reporting.”

“I suppose I was a bit intimidated by the job. As Business Controller you are part of the Management Team and bear quite a big responsibility in the management of the site from a financial perspective. But as I was gradually taking up some of the role’s responsibilities anyway to help them out, I thought: maybe I am capable to do this after all?”

But that’s not where her development stopped. When the Business Controller one of our Contract Logistics site left, they were looking replacement and thought of Nicole whose extensive experience in the finance department would make her a great fit. But Nicole at first didn’t share their judgement. “I suppose I was a bit intimidated by the job. As Business Controller you are part of the Management Team and bear quite a big responsibility in the management of the site from a financial perspective. But as I was gradually taking up some of the role’s responsibilities anyway to help them out, I thought: maybe I am capable to do this after all?” This insight convinced Nicole to give it a go.

"The variety and the contact with the Operations Managers make the job very interesting. We work together to safeguard the financial health of the company while delivering the best possible service to the customers."

Today, Nicole can’t imagine any other scenario than the one that led her to her current role. Although she sometimes nostalgically looks back to her times as a bookkeeper, when structure was still a constant, she also enjoys the ad hoc challenges she tackles as a Business Controller. “The variety and the contact with the Operations Managers make the job very interesting. The latter frequently drop by my desk to discuss the financial status for their customer accounts, and use this information to steer their operational activities. Especially the weekly comparison of the results with the forecast is important. Both the productivity impact and volume impact are discussed. Each month we also examine other costs and ask ourselves: where do they come from? How can we lower these costs? We work together to safeguard the financial health of the company while delivering the best possible service to the customers.”

30 years ago, when dot matrix printers and telex machines were state-of-the-art technologies in office spaces, Nicole would never have imaged her career path and the work environment to develop as it did. “Because of the technological changes everything seems to have accelerated. It changed the way we work, and at the same time I also gained more responsibilities. It has been a huge transformation, and seeing all the development possibilities in the company, also for young people, Kuehne + Nagel is an employer where you can spend your whole career without getting bored.”

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