Time to start protecting our most valuable resources

Dan Hardy explains why a comedy sketch at this year’s Retail Risk London Gala Dinner has given him plenty of food for thought…

The Retail Risk – London Gala Dinner is always a great night. And last week’s bash was no exception.

The evening was memorable for many reasons, but comedian Simon Brodkin’s hilarious skit, on why being cryogenically frozen is a bad idea, really got me thinking.

If you’re not familiar with it, Simon talks about his fear of being brought back to life in a few hundred years and having to explain to “some dude,” living on a scorched planet Earth, how we wasted our most precious resources…

“Can I get a drink of water please?” they’d ask.
“No, the last drop was drunk in the year 2040.”
“What was water like?”
“We had a lot of it, but we probably didn’t look after it as well as we could have. We used to have water fights and just chuck it all over each other!”

It might be a light-hearted dig at our cavalier approach to the planet’s natural reserves, but the message hit home.

The reality is that we can run out of anything if we don’t protect it.

Simon’s performance also reminded me why it’s crucial to look after resources in other areas of our lives too, including business…

For me, that means nurturing and protecting the most precious resource of all – our people.

We have some exceptional young talent at ASEL. Real shining stars. Since taking over as Group MD earlier this year, I’ve made it my mission to put them centre stage – in some cases, quite literally! Take the Retail Risk conference, for instance.

Whilst giving my keynote speech on the main stage, I was joined by two technically gifted, terrific members of my team (without whom our work wouldn’t even be possible).

As my colleagues took centre stage and explained the detailed workings behind our risk modelling solutions, I simply stood and watched in awe. Their knowledge, dedication and sheer brilliance were mesmerising as they explained our risk modelling capability using live data feeding into the screen as they presented!

The feedback I received after the presentation was incredible.

Whilst ASEL has been providing dynamic risk modelling methodology for some time, it turns out that many retailers didn’t truly appreciate the full extent of what we can do. I was bowled over by the number of people who subsequently approached me wanting to learn more about our wider capabilities. We’re talking big names here!

Later, as I left the Gala Dinner that night, I reflected upon just how fortunate ASEL is to have such a talented team of people at the very core of its operations.

Of course, I already knew how valuable they were. But with Simon Brodkin’s words ringing in my ears, I’ll be going the extra mile to look after this precious resource. They are, after all, the future of ASEL.

Oh, and maybe I’ll think twice before taking that extra-long shower tomorrow… just in case I do ever find myself being cryogenically frozen in the years to come!