Addressing the current unstable nature of the industry, and the world at large, Managing Director James Thomas discusses how Intersoft is tackling these issues both as a business and at an individual level, aiming toward a clearer, more reliable future.

How can businesses provide a sense of stability in the current cost of living crisis and leadership challenges, alongside the continual tension in Europe?

A snapshot of eCommerce paints an interesting picture of the pressure our economy is currently facing. Shoppers in the UK were spending 3.3% more in September than the previous year yet walking away with 6.2% fewer goods for their money.

You could also say instability is highlighted by the wide-ranging industrial action across the UK, including our partners at Royal Mail, who faced the reality of 15% fewer parcels being sent in the first 6 months of this year and the obvious drop in revenue that brings. And the loyal workforce that continued to deliver through the pandemic now have their own costs increasing with inflation. How do they continue to pay the ever-increasing bills?

There appears to be no simple “quick fix” solution. But what can the MD of Intersoft do to help provide a sense of calm during a precariously challenging time?

Staying connected

As a business, communication is key to driving success. We can ensure that we communicate with our teams, be that in good times or bad to improve their confidence in us. When we communicate effectively, productivity increases as everyone involved feels their opinions are valued. In this way, we can foster creativity and collaboration. It is important to understand that working well as a team is still essential, especially with the recent trend toward remote working presenting new challenges. Collectively we have greater strength than standing alone and communication strengthens this collective.

We have recently been certified as a Great Place to Work – something we are proud to have attained thanks to our people. If individuals feel confident and secure in their place of work, we as a business can step forward to tackle greater issues as a team.

Collectively we have greater strength than standing alone and communication strengthens this collective.

Setting ambitious goals

Alongside our yearly business targets, we’ve made Sustainability one of our top priorities and set an ambitious target of planting one hundred thousand trees by 2025.

Intersoft is at the centre of eCommerce, and its cost to the environment is becoming more relevant. 5 billion pounds of waste is produced through eCommerce returns and causing an unprecedented impact on our environment alongside road and transportation emissions, packaging waste etc.  The solution? Teaming up with experts, Ecologi, to help fight the global climate crisis.

We’ve split our actions into two methods:

1. Offsetting the carbon emissions of each of our employees at Intersoft

This means for every employee at Intersoft, we’re compensating the emissions (energy) they generate from home living, personal travel, holidays, food, hobbies (and just about everything else) and funding Ecologi to plant a tree and fund climate positive projects.

2. Planting thickets of trees for every million shipping labels produced through Intersoft

As a means of conserving our trees and being aware of the amount of paper that is needed to print a delivery label, we are funding Ecologi every quarter to plant trees and fund climate positive projects with our volume of shipping labels milestone which we aim to share across our social and newsletter channels.

You can see our growing forest on Ecologi here, where we have also funded a one-off tree-planting activity for everyone who visited our stand at the eCommerce Expo in London in September 2022.

Reducing uncertainty around the climate is one step towards a stable future for everyone.

Rewarding Innovation

In the midst of the precarious circumstances, we find ourselves in, finding new solutions to improve old methods is key. We work with our partners and customers to understand what works for them. This is how we developed the International Export Direct Entry system (IEDE), and Automated Over Labelling.

Both have been recognised at the UK eCommerce Awards 2022, receiving nominations for both the Innovation Award and the Software or Extension of the Year Award. In fact, the many accolades that Intersoft’s software and company culture have received over the last two years are a testament to how we strive for constant improvement.

It’s through improvement that we can make sure we as a business remain stable and confident in what we can offer.