For the first time in history the South African clearing and forwarding sector has access to a Bachelor of Commerce in Freight Forwarding and Customs Compliance.Metro Minds, as an associate faculty of the Da Vinci Institute, will be leading the elective stream for the business school.According to Metro Minds managing director Juliette Fourie, the company has invested heavily in this new offering that will see them run the freight forwarding and customs compliance modules of the degree.“The course is specifically focused on applying skills to navigate the seamless movement, clearance, handling, storage and distribution of goods in the supply chain. Skills and knowledge include systems thinking, agility and entrepreneurship and creativity, translating into making better decisions, solving problems, and thinking critically,” said Fourie.The course includes ten elective modules that range from the international trade environment, freight operations, customs compliance operations and operation management to customs management, logistics management, risk and insurance management, commercial management and digital management.Speaking to Freight News, Fourie said the course would also include practical application in collaboration with industry.“Another development at Metro Minds has been the ongoing focus on simulation of industry qualifications to enable work readiness and talent development into the industry,” she said. “This is aligned to cater for the skills of the future in the form of digital literacy, communication, creativity, innovation, problem solving and critical thinking.”With this in mind, Metro Minds launched the pilot Supply Chain Simulation in Cape Town recently. This simulation utilises practical real-life experiences.Another development that will also impact positively on industry is the development of Smart Minds – an interactive online learning platform designed to empower individuals to build knowledge, skills, and experiences. “All the courses are impactful and practical, with quizzes, videos, and exciting articles to expand and test your knowledge,” explained Fourie, highlighting the importance of practical experience for the forwarding and clearing sector. “The Smart Minds courses are diverse, including various topics ranging from personal development to human skills, life skills and industry-specific hard skills. The main aim is to optimise learning in the shortest amount of time, cost-effectively, with a memorable and fun experience.”These courses have also been created with affordability in mind. “This is ideal for self-development, and creating a learning culture for a team.”Fourie said another aspect that continued to be developed at Metro Minds for industry was leadership development. “Our Leading Minds product is focused on personalised and customised leadership frameworks created and developed as per business strategy and needs. It is a three-tier framework starting off with potential leaders, existing leaders and then senior leaders. Leadership is a differentiating factor in any organisation and should be a first priority as part of talent management and capacity building.”The course is specifically focused on applying skills to navigate the seamless movement, clearance, handling, storage and distribution of goods in the supply chain.– Juliette Fourie“
