Mondi : awards recognise outstanding business ideas and teams

CATEGORY: OPERATIONAL EXCELLENCE

Winner: Mondi Iraq / Industrial Bags
Project: Against All Odds - Excellence in Extremis

Imagine the scene: It was 2014 in Iraq. ISIS had invaded just 90 km from Mondi's industrial bags plant. Security, infrastructure and social cohesion had broken down. The expat employees had left. Borders were closed and, above, it was a no fly zone. War.

In the middle of complete chaos, new management came in and was tasked with turning the business around. Where to start?

The challenges were extreme by any measure: war conditions and import duties causing huge fluctuations in demand; logistics problems and material shortages due to border closures; low efficiency and low productivity; catastrophic financial results and an unreliable banking system; high dependency on expat employees and a diverse, multicultural environment

But the new management was convinced that teamwork was the solution. Start with employee moral; work as one; stick together and keep each other safe. Together Everyone Achieves More

Hear Mondi Iraq's Managing Director Rami Kawar describe it.

'Our local management team inspired the whole organisation, set strategic goals and focused everyone on activities with high impact in order to meet stakeholder expectations,' says Claudio Fedalto, Sales & Marketing Director Mondi Industrial Bags.

'By the end of 2017 our sales volumes and overall equipment effectiveness increased significantly. We now have excellent financial and operational results, delighted shareholders and customers and, very importantly, inspired employees. Mission accomplished!'