Its revenue is up 5.9% over the last year. Don: We do weekly reporting on a Monday so you always understand how well youve gone across the business and across the network. Like most Kiwi business leaders, Braid is self-effacing and doesn't fancy talking to journalists about his life outside the company. Target operate domestic and international time-sensitive freight-forwarding and logistics services through its wholly owned subsidiary, Target Logistic Services. Don from Mainfreight talks to Fisher Funds. It doesnt matter what the worlds thrown at them, theyve shown they are capable of dealing with it. You know, people arrive when they arrive and they leave when they leave. The Mainfreight board is intent on doubling revenue to $2 billion by 2015, mostly from international earnings, and Mr Braid envisages at least 500 branches before too long. This analysis will also evaluate the appropriateness of CEO compensation when taking into account the earnings and shareholder returns of the company. The government is pushing really hard for the major New Zealand companies to pay their suppliers on time, within 30 days. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Copyright 2023 | Business Changing Ltd. | Website by Casual Fridays. He joined Daily Freightways in 1978, gaining a thorough grounding in all aspects of the business and eventually heading up . The company posted record earnings and revenue for its last full year and has continued to break records this financial year. Don: Theres been lots of things actually, like electric forklifts, the use of solar power Heres a good example: in New Zealand weve never had time clocks. So I think cashflow is king and Id be focused on that. Zac: Don, having a decentralized business, whats been your approach to leadership? But they had different regulations for different countries: it was a metre between the two trucks, it was a metre and half in Belgium, and it was two meters in France. Early in the piece at Mainfreight, leaders are given responsibility, so the ability to take responsibility and to make decisions is pretty important. They established agencies in the early days with Australian, Pacific Island and United States freight forwarders and the established agents in most major trading partner countries of New Zealand. Shareholders would be glad to know that the company has improved itself over the last few years. Those are the real world indicators of whether youve got morale correct or not or whether youve got some issues going on you need to address. Moreover, Don Braid also holds NZ$171m worth of Mainfreight stock directly under their own name, which reveals to us that they have a significant personal stake in the company. Both are real legends and seem to really walk the talk. Investment has to come year on year it cant just come as a bribe at election time., Embracing the company motto that Good enough is never enough, Braid is focused on fulfilling a vision to make Mainfreight a 100-year company. So what you produce in terms of profitability is real. His leadership is underpinned by a strong belief in Mainfreights global competency and capabilities to provide high-quality supply chain solutions for our customers. Don has over 40 years' experience in the freight industry, including 26 with Mainfreight. This strong performance might mean some shareholders don't mind if the CEO were to be paid more than is normal for a company of its size. Its an intimate touch with the P&L; the weeklies tell us lot. I think with a driverless truck, well lose that ability of interaction with the customer on pickup or on delivery. Its whether the toilets clean, the cafeteria clean, have people got a smile on their face? Don: The culture is really important and our culture starts with those closest to the customer. "He never moans about the currency and is always positive.". Musk Made a Mess at Twitter. So Don, my first question is whats been your main focus the past two months during Covid times and leading Mainfreight and global business? Mainfreight also renamed Wim Bosman branches in the countries France, Poland, Russia and Ukraine under the Mainfreight name.[12]. So the weekly P&L puts them on the spot. Braid, who joined Mainfreight through its purchase of Daily Freightways, says the company hasn't let the last few years of economic upheaval dull its ambitions. Bryan has a wealth of experience, both in executive and board roles. I might get a little bit wound up about stuff, a bit passionate about things, but I think you cant get so involved that you think about nothing else. Other Current Significant Directorships and Trusteeships: BUPA ANZ Pty Limited (Chairman), Adherium Limited, Clearspan Limited, Thinxtra Australia, Starship Foundation, Massey University Foundation. He knows where the company is going and, more importantly, how it will get there. Use of the word "staff" is banned within the company - one of a range of idiosyncrasies particular to the logistics firm. Will be fundamentally different from the last one. Don Braid of Mainfreight Limited presents key insights for directors about freight and supply chain patterns in the current climate. A licence from New Zealand Railways Corporation was needed to carry freight over 150km. Founded in 1969 as Dunedin Customs Brokers Ltd, DCB International provides international air and sea freight services from Dunedin. "It's just a little rule that we've had because if they [analysts] keep calling us a trucking company they clearly haven't done their research.". Zac: How do you prioritise where to spend your time in a normal week? Getting decisions made as close to the customer as possible is probably our secret and giving that responsibility to those in the branches. Mainfreight has international operations in the United States through CaroTrans International and most recently Mainfreight International businesses after the 2007 acquisition of Target Logistics, in Asia (nine branches in China, one each in Taiwan, Singapore and Hong Kong). Don Braid, Group Managing Director of Mainfreight Limited, was educated at Timaru Boys High School and has over 30 years experience in freight forwarding and logistics both New Zealand and internationally. [5] When deregulation of land transport occurred in October 1982, Mainfreight quickly took advantage of the opportunities presented and won a large share of the freight market. By the way, its not just about us seeing those numbers. Youve got to break it down. Braid says the company strives to be de-centralised through giving responsibility to all individuals in the business and letting them make decisions. He's got plenty of charm if he wants to have it and his leadership skills just stand out - people want to stand next to him.". Yes, wed committed an enormous amount of capital expenditure coming into this new financial year, but we were in good shape in that the balance sheet looks pretty good. Terms of use Group Managing Director, Mainfreight. After the full acquisition that took place August 2007, Mainfreight Asia quickly gained momentum in the Air and Ocean sector, driving business in China and Southeast Asia. Not bad for a Kiwi trucking company! It's interesting to note that Mainfreight allocates a smaller portion of compensation to salary in comparison to the broader industry. What else do we need to do to satisfy that bunch of customers? Those people become good leaders early in the piece they might be only leading a couple of people by the time they make branch manager status but they understand the roles of leadership within Mainfreight. The reality is, this leadership team in New Zealand has been through the earthquakes and the GFC and now the pandemic. "You need some energy and you need to be on the front foot," he says. "He never talks about himself and always talks about long-term goals," Hunt says. So for the first couple of weeks of lockdown in New Zealand, we were wondering, how deep is this going to go? It now has 22 company depots in Australia and relies on agents and third parties in the Northern Territory, Tasmania and some of regional Australia. The trick is to decentralize it and to give them control of the profit and loss, allow them to have sufficient KPIs, and measurement systems to monitor those as quickly as possible so that nothing gets out of control. Out of that, I think weve got the culture really starting to develop. The price of the rights fell as low as 7.5 cents on the last day of trading. Braid goes to great lengths to stress that the company's success is the result of the efforts of its entire, 5167-member "team" around the world. Mainfreights newest regions, Asia, Europe and The Americas (spanning from Canada to South America), are expected to grow exponentially as the world trade shifts towards other developing countries. The branch managers are the kings and queens, by the way, because thats where the moneys made the national team is just there to support the branch managers. But, he said the first seven weeks of trading in the current year has been at similar levels to the past six months. WINNER Watson said she did not believe bonuses were a way. Don: Sometimes I think people dont recognise or believe or have enough passion in what theyve developed. In May 2011, Mainfreight established a CaroTrans branch in Santiago, Chile. When it comes to capable, motivational and effective leadership Sam Knowles delivers with interest. It has largely grown earnings and revenue since 2008 and tripled its share price between early 2009 and today. Mainfreight is the fourth largest company in NZ, doing over $3 billion in sales and over $300 million in EBITDA, with physical assets of $1.5 billion and debt of less than $200 million. Don Braid has been with freight and logistics company Mainfreight since 1994, after joining the firm as part of the acquisition of Daily Freightways (where he had been for 16 years). We applaud that; weve always paid every supplier on the 20th of the month following and we ask the same of our customers. Don Braid is a Group Managing Director at Mainfreight NZ based in Mangere, . He has also lent his considerable support to not-for-profit organisations such as the Starship Foundation. Its about making sure they dont lose the disciplines that make us who we are but embracing them as people delivering for our customers. He has led the company in strengthening its global logistics business and ensuring an increased diversification of revenue streams across many countries, trade lanes and activities provides Mainfreight shareholders would be similarly pleased. He is fiercely proud of the Mainfreight culture seeing this as a key reason customers choose Mainfreight over the competition. Educated at Timaru Boys High School, Braid has been described as possibly the most self-effacing leader of major listed company in New Zealand and is widely regarded as straight-talking and strong leader. Braid said Mainfreight was on track to push close to the $2 billion sales mark by March next year. We ask our people to recruit very good people with passion and energy; people good enough to become branch managers. Engage via Email. Weve got examples of that in our business right now. Don Braid, Group Managing Director of Mainfreight Limited, was educated at Timaru Boys' High School and has over 43 years' experience in freight forwarding and logistics both New Zealand and internationally. His company has been a shining example of success amid tough global economic conditions. Boasting a total shareholder return of 168% over three years, Mainfreight Limited has done well by shareholders. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com. And analysts have been warned that they "won't get a second interview" if they make that mistake of calling Mainfreight a "trucking company". And thats why we travel a lot when you visit, you can smell the morale in an instant. He previously worked for the Otago Daily Times, after a return to business journalism in 2018. Leading reputation management consultant Noke Kiroyan says it is perfectly possible although not always easy to run a business in Indonesia without resorting to corrupt behaviour. As a young salesperson aged 19, I couldnt make a cold call. Theyre all networked, but theyre all distanced so we knew we needed to communicate really well with them and have a blueprint that we know would work. For further information, please contact Don Braid, Group Managing Director, telephone +64 9 259 5503, +64 274 961 637 or email don@mainfreight.com. What do those customers look for from us? FINALIST Between 1994 and 1997 Mainfreight started acquiring former competitors, such as, Daily Freightways and Chem Couriers in 1994, a 75% shareholding in Lep New Zealand in 1996, and Combined Haulage and Senco Haulage in 1997. So weve got eight and a half thousand people and 282 locations. Do also serves as a member of the Board of the Starship foundation.