Scott Barlow
Distribution Centre Optimisation Lead, Global Supply Chain, Fonterra
Bachelor of Business in Finance with a minor in Supply Chain Management
Being able to continue learning is the part he enjoys most about his job, says Scott Barlow who now helps Fonterra optimise its distribution centre network.
“Fonterra is a large multinational company with a large supply chain function. In my role, I get to look at our national distribution centre network to find opportunities for process improvement, logistic network improvements and effective management of our distribution centre teams. Because I was part of Fonterra’s popular graduate programme before starting my current role, I experienced a large portion of Fonterra’s supply chain function, from up-stream planning and optimisation to the forefront operations in manufacturing and distribution.”
There are a few achievements he is especially proud of in his career so far.
“My most important achievement is leading and implementing a national storage initiative to provide more visibility of storage space within our network and prevent our need for costly third-party storage. This improved our national network and our logistics planning. A cross-functional achievement I’m proud of was my work to identify complaint trends down to the site of origin and the reason for damage. This was a big initiative, resulting in collaboration with manufacturing, our relationship management team and our customers. I’ve also successfully delivered a reduction in all our distribution centre costs each season.
“I feel so proud of all these achievements because I never thought I could be the one to drive them and that I’d be the one responsible for these projects. I feel that my experiences, both practical and theoretical, have placed me in good stead to succeed in this role and in these projects.”
Finding his path
Scott says he initially came to AUT to study both sport and business, but the COVID pandemic put a stop to this plan, and he ended up completing a Bachelor of Business in Finance with a minor in Supply Chain Management.
“What made me choose this pathway was my interest in both financial markets and decision-making based on financial analysis. I also took on supply chain management because I was studying at university when COVID began and supply chain disruptions were impacting the global economy. All of this was a great interest to me.”
It's a decision he certainly hasn’t regretted, and he still has many fond memories of his time at AUT.
“The courses on investment portfolio analysis and on entrepreneurial and small business finance offered great insights into decision-making for businesses, individuals, as well as some great context for the financial industry. The practical approach in the operations management, logistics and supply chain management courses enabled me to do some warehouse design, logistics optimisation modelling and taught me important concepts I now use in my career.
“Some of my highlights also come from my time studying sport and recreation, including taking part in some leadership and learning courses where I got to practise skills like giving feedback and leading with responsibility, and got to spend some time sailing on the Steinlager 2 as part of our leadership in the outdoors course. Outside of my studies, I enjoyed my time in the AUT clubs and societies, attending the Business Career Expo and taking part in the AUT Shadow a Leader programme. All of these made the experience much more enjoyable and set me up for success when leaving university.”
Advice for other students
Scott – who graduated from AUT in 2022 and is proud of being invited to join the Beta Gamma Sigma honours society – has some great advice for other students who are thinking about their own university studies.
“My advice to students is to really put yourself out there, in terms of networking, clubs, societies, classes and career expos. There’s a lot of benefit in putting yourself into situations where you can build relationships and engage with others – the person you interact with today might be the connection you need in the future. Link in with industry experts, use your workplace experience, spend time with lecturers to build your portfolio of experience and build your network.
“Don’t be afraid to back yourself. You won’t know the answer all the time but being open to feedback and knowing your ability to learn is key in being resilient in your university studies and in the workplace.”
There’s plenty of help if you need it, he adds, and says he is still grateful to the staff who positively impacted his own time at university.
“One AUT staff member who was influential in my studies was Dr Hari Srivastava from my supply chain management courses. He helped me during and outside of my studies to prepare me for a real-world career in supply chain management. I’d also like to call out the Employability and Careers team who helped me with my CV and elevator pitches, and identified key networking opportunities. I often used the career services to prepare me for the career expos on campus, so I was set up for success.”
