UTi is a broad-based, information-focused logistics company offering a wide range of global integrated logistics solutions to a customer base that stretches worldwide. It was established in Germany in 1926. Its vision is to "deliver competitive advantages to the customer's global supply chain." UTi has 16 branches throughout China, with the first established in Xiamen in 1992. We interviewed Mr. Peter Fang, Regional Manager of Southeast China of UTi (HK) Ltd on August 18, which happened to be his birthday and the 13th anniversary of the UTi Xiamen Office. Peter Fang is also the Vice Chairman of the Xiamen Association of Enterprises with Foreign Investment Logistics Branch.

First employee of UTi in mainland China

After graduation from college, Peter found his first job as a sales person in a freight forwarding company. "At that time, I was not at all familiar with ship forwarding. In the first two years, I worked for the freight forwarding company and it was then that I started to learn about freight forwarding. At the beginning, I started from the most basic things. My main responsibility was counting cargo on trucks and containers at the dock. I worked very hard and often worked till three or four o'clock on the next morning. But I never complained about the hardship and never felt underemployed."

In July 1992, Peter received an offer from UTi, which said it was going to establish a representative office in Xiamen and asked him if he was interested in working for the company. "I was given only a few days to consider the offer. Before working in UTi, I also had a part-time job as a drummer in a band performing in a nightclub, which was well paid. To devote myself to UTi, I would have to quit the part-time performance." Faced with the alternatives, he finally chose to work in UTi, which was not as well paid at that time, but was challenging as well as intriguing to him. Peter recalls: "When I quit the part-time job on August 18, all the other members of the band were astonished. They thought I must have been given an extremely well paid job. Therefore, I became the first employee of UTi in China when it established its first representative office in Xiamen in 1992."

Learning every day

"Over the past years, I have also been witnessing the great changes that have taken place in Xiamen in terms of the investment environment and the logistics industry." In the past, logistics was merely about transporting the cargo from one place to another. Nowadays, it has developed into quite a different concept to what it used to be. "To be one of the leading providers of global integrated logistics, we need to develop integrated and specialized solutions for our customers. UTi not only provides freight forwarding services and information to our customers, but also increasingly we are providing solutions in the supply chain. Our capabilities are designed to allow tailor making our services, our solutions and our information for our global and local customers." Over the past decades, UTi has developed a critical mass of expertise in serving various industries, including the automobile & assembly industry, pharmaceuticals, the health & beauty industry, apparel, the fashion & textiles industry, the chemical industry and the hi-tech electronics industry. "We have talented professional people in each specific industry so that UTi is able to provide them with customized solutions."

"As a leader, I'm very strict with my staff at work. Outside the office, though, I'm quite easygoing. In the logistics industry, teamwork plays a significant role. If one link in the supply chain management fails, the whole chain breaks up. In UTi, we try to promote fairness, transparency and open dialogues, which enable the business to be conducted consistently throughout the organization. Over the past years, UTi's Xiamen Office has also gone through some bottlenecks in its development. All the UTi staff have acted together as a team and successfully overcome the difficulties. Books can teach you the basic principles of management. However, that's not all. The most fundamental thing is being able to communicate with your staff with your heart," says Peter.

Peter has now been working with UTi for 13 years. He has often been asked why he has kept working in the same company for such a long time. He simply replies: "UTi has a long history, being founded in 1926; however, it's a very aggressive company which motivates you to keep learning. I'm learning new things every day in the company, and there is still more for me to learn."



A manager who marries classical music

Classical music is an inseparable part of Peter's life. In his house, he has a collection of over 2,000 music CDs and 7 world-famous classical guitars. "In Xiamen, some classical music lovers get together now and then to appreciate the music and we sometimes hold family concerts at home." Peter's tone quickens when the topic of our conversation shifts to music. "Even when I'm working, I like to have some soft background music in the office." Peter Fang is now the Vice Secretary-General of the Fujian Guitar Association and often acts as a judge for nation-wide professional guitar competitions.

When asked whether he felt any regret over not pursuing music as his career, Peter replies with finality, "Not at all. I'm greatly enjoying what I'm doing. If my interest in music had been turned into a profession, it might have changed its nature completely. Music is a release from the pressure of work and keeps my life in balance."