The use of technologies is imminent in the face of labor shortages in logistics

In an interview with Expansion, explains that there are two aspects and types of lack of labor force Within the logistics sector, one is the operational part, in which personnel is needed to carry out physical activities such as moving loads or collecting products.

For example, in northern Mexico, many agricultural workers go to the city during the harvest season and work in companies on a temporary basis.

“But we know that in three or four months, an operational workforce is perhaps starting to get up to speed with the processes, learn and generate results. So our vision as a technology company is that we have to invest. Companies should increasingly invest in the use of technologies that reduce the need for labor,” he says.

On the other hand, there is the lack of specialization and talent in the management of the supply chains.

“We need more analysis, more people better prepared to handle the complexity. The truth is that there are few very good people, there are exceptional talents throughout Latin America, but they are already occupied.”

This becomes a challenge for Mexico in the context of nearshoring, but automation, robotics, artificial intelligence and data science can be used to address this lack of personnel and specialized talent.

The Körber executive says that in Mexico, around 68% of companies say they have great difficulty filling some vacancies. The world average is 75%.

“At the moment it seems fine, but it is not, because the world average considers Europe and Japan, countries with a negative population growth rate, very different from what happens in Latin America.”

Given these scenarios, Hélcio Lenz says that companies should invest at least 10% of their total sales in implementing these technologies to remain competitive.

In Mexico, and in Latin America in general, it is noted that there are some steps backwards in the adoption of technology, because there is an issue of costs and investment, but the good news is that there are already companies that are using it and a business ecosystem with more awareness is being created.

“Robots are growing worldwide by 100% year after year. It’s impressive. It’s a very big market. I think that here in Latin America it will grow more than that, because since we are so small, any new project will lead to more significant growth.”

And the outlook for Mexico is good. According to an analysis by Gartner, a consulting and research company on information technology, the market for Warehouse Management of Technology Solutions for Distribution Centers in Mexico is estimated at 40 million dollars by 2025, double that of Brazil.

“I see that in Mexico, in particular in the last two or three years, there has been a lot of growth in logistics operations, a lot of investment from foreign companies. The level of international investment in Mexico is higher than ever,” he says.