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In our popular podcast series, cargo.one Founder & Co-CEO Moritz Claussen hosts candid chats with visionary leaders from all across the air logistics world, uncovering their formative experiences and most prized advice. Subscribe today!
cargo.one:one roars down the runway once again, this time joined by a well-respected, energetic and inspirational global airline leader. With around 25 years of experience, both on the carrier and forwarder-side, Jeffrey Van Haeften, Emirates SkyCargo’s SVP Cargo Commercial Worldwide, is currently responsible for driving the global giant’s commercial vision and strategy.
Jeffrey first trained in Business and Management and joined a finance company, which he admits “at that age was pretty boring”. After a serendipitous recommendation at a friend’s birthday party, Jeffrey took his first industry steps with the famous Martinair – where he began in operations and then moved into account management for 5 years. He admits, “The 24/7 mentality, the aircraft coming in, the logistics to do, every day something different…managing logistics, I mean, you get addicted to it!”
After gaining a wealth of knowledge for almost 10 years in global markets with the rapidly scaling Martinair, Jeffrey then pivoted into roles within the global freight forwarders DHL Global Forwarding and CEVA. He developed his forwarder-mindset and instincts for a number of years, steering their business development, carrier management and product development.
Knowing what's cooking
Jeffrey’s carrier-management expertise meant he could later bring Emirates SkyCargo a wealth of real-world understanding around customer needs and experiences: “I could look in all the kitchens of all the airlines and I could really see what I liked and what I didn't like, what was overdone, what was underdone.”
Jeffrey’s broad market experience now enables him to remain focused on long term differentiation and value building, rather than the ups and downs of our continually dynamic market: “You always try to keep perspective and an eye on the long-term journey and not only deal with short-term bumps”. Jeffrey points to the “unstoppable” appetite for goods to be delivered ever more quickly: “If you look at global demand on the long term, it's there to stay.”
Over the years, Jeffrey has honed his ability to fully understand customer value and the solution approach best needed: “It's not always about the lowest price. It's also somehow finding the best solution, which also can save costs on the freight forwarder side.”
Today, maximizing value creation means airline teams must often operate “more like a consultant” than in the past: “If I sit with customers, I'm not just sitting there to tell them what I have to sell. I'm trying to listen more than I tell…I think I'm a much better listener right now than I was maybe 15, 20 years ago.” Jeffrey is mindful of the strategic value that a multi-specialist and multi-experienced team will deliver.
Enjoy the full length episode, here:
“I always want to have a mixed bag of personalities, but also with key learnings from different aspects…because only then you can learn and you can optimize for the best.”
Jeffrey an Haeften
Staying ahead of the market
Jeffrey explores how his teams at Emirates SkyCargo are continually engaged in analyzing the market, and remaining agile to dynamic market requirements. He explains, “I think it all starts with market intelligence. I mean, you have all trends, risks, shifts due to tariffs or other geopolitical things – that let's say the interpretation of data or of events happening”.
A long term advocate for digital transformation, Jeffrey points to the exciting potential for AI to enhance speeds and enable human expertise to be better deployed: “AI can reduce friction – for example, quoting. The account manager can focus more on the relationship and less about those little details”. He sees great potential for AI to help drive “true end to end visibility” that would “really improve efficiency drastically.” Jeffrey notes the step change in innovation, which is being pursued by a new generation of leadership in the industry: “More leaders are open to suggestions about what they see around them”.
“If you want to modernize the industry, you need a new wave of people…The account managers of the future, they will not do the same things as they do right now.”
Jeffrey Van Haeften
Jeffrey considers how the industry will need to grow into the next decades: “In the future, there will be a real shortage of staff being in logistics…the air freight industry will grow in the next decade and we need people and it will be more digitalized.” Jeffrey points to the importance of “going to big universities and schools…to attract the right talent” to help us shape its future. While air cargo has the appeal of “a constant problem-solving game”, he admits that on an industry-level “we're not actually doing enough…to advertise it”.
This commitment to building the future workforce also extends to his own hiring approach. Jeffrey is looking to build layers of new ideas and perspectives into his future teams: “I really try always to encourage our cargo managers to look for a new kind of talent…because our industry needs to renew as well.”
Jeffrey’s continual energy, ambition and optimism is a valuable example to those considering a career in the air logistics sector. He is keen to encourage others to grab the opportunity with both hands: “I think there's a bright future for people starting in our industry. Don't limit yourself to one station. Explore the world!”
What advice would Jeff give his younger self? Tune into Episode 15 now to find out! 🤩
cargo.one:one features many more exciting guests in the series. If you enjoyed this episode, stay tuned to our blog or subscribe using your favorite podcast platform including Spotify, Apple podcasts, Amazon Music, iHeartRadio, Castbox and more.
