My Unipart Journey - Christian Smit

From distribution to digital, Christian Smit at Unipart Logistics has used his knowledge, understanding and drive to see him progress from an agency operative to Product Owner. We spoke to him to see how he got there…

“Twenty years ago, I moved to the UK from the Western Cape of South Africa. I initially went to London but after a few days, I ended up in Oxford, visiting a friend who worked at Unipart. I knocked on the warehouse door and got a role with the agency TTC in March 2004 and worked as a DCO (Distribution Centre Operative) for a while.

“I moved to a permanent contract in the June and then worked my way up to assistant team leader, and then to team leader on the Homebase contract and stayed there until they moved out of Cowley warehouse. I then moved to McLaren.”

Christian seized opportunities to progress and develop in front of him: “I was one of the first team leaders that went on the pilot for the Gate to Great accreditation program, which was very good and I learned a lot.”

“The McLaren contract was the first contract that the warehouse management system from UDES was implemented on.

"Through my experience working with the system on the contract, five years ago I secured a first line support role as a Support Analyst.

"Around a year ago, I joined the Unipart Logistics IT team. For the past six months, I've assumed the role of a Product Owner. Presently, I'm in charge of managing workflow applications such as People Changes & Recruitment (PC&R) and Health and Safety applications, as well as overseeing the development of new products.”

Looking back on some standout memories, Christian remembers fondly how technology has changed over the years: “When I started working in Cowley, we used to have a TV with a VHS player that was pushed in and that's how you used to watch Grapevine…it's nice to see now everything is digital.”

And when it comes to serving our customers better than anyone else, he has had no problem rolling up his sleeves and getting his hands dirty.. literally!

“When working on the Homebase contract, I had to go to one of their homeware stores. We were asked to clean up a skip - we had to get into the skip and clear out some old stock, which was not nice!.”

Sharing why he’s still so dedicated to the only company he’s ever worked for, Christian said: “Over the last 20 years, the company has been very good. When I had some health issues, Unipart was very supportive. And over time, I’ve received a lot of training; they look after your progression. If you're willing to work, and you’re willing to put your hand up, there's lots of opportunities to progress.

“I remember our Product Manager, Jonathon Willett, starting. I remember when he walked in as a fresh faced 17-year-old apprentice, and now he's Head of Corporate Non-people Applications. I've seen a lot of people progress which is great.”

“I always try to tell colleagues in our operations that if you want something, you just need to put your hands up. Unipart do provide opportunities for you, and I think that is why so many people stay here.”