The World Food Logistics Organization (WFLO), a core partner of the Global Cold Chain Alliance (GCCA) recently awarded the 2019 Don Schlimme Future Leader Award to Michael Fischer, the general manager of RLS Logistics.
The award was presented by Paul Henningsen, president of Henningsen Cold Storage and former WFLO chair, and Corey Rosenbusch, president and CEO of GCCA, during the 128th IARW-WFLO Convention, where 400 temperature-controlled logistics executives gathered to share experiences and best practices.
“Being able to attend the IARW-WFLO Convention and compete with my fellow future leaders for this award was a fantastic experience,” Fischer said. “I am really honored to receive this award and grateful to RLS for supporting me in this endeavor.”
Bestowed by WFLO, the future leader award recognizes talented young professionals in North America, 35 years of age and under, who have the potential to become future leaders and make a positive contribution to the development of the temperature-controlled warehousing and logistics industry. Nominees must have demonstrated excellence in their work, the potential to excel further in the many facets within the industry and possess insight into their organization’s strategic values and direction, policies and ways of working.
The award is named in honor of Donald V. Schlimme, Ph.D, who passed away in 2012 and was a longtime member of the WFLO Scientific Advisory Committee (1983-2012) and a WFLO staff advisor for many years. He was an expert in food science and cold storage and was committed to sharing his extensive knowledge.
Fischer competed for the award with the following finalists from an initial list of twelve nominees:
- Kyle Browning, operations manager, Americold Logistics
- Seth Cross, operations supervisor, AGRO Merchants
- Megan Hendricksen, director of communications, Lineage Logistics
- Brittany Jacobs, Health and Safety Specialist, United States Cold Storage
- Dean Stahley, facility manager, Interstate Warehousing
- Jonathan Szabo, chief operating engineer, Congebec Logistics
- John Tippmann III, operations manager, Interstate Warehousing
As part of the selection process, each finalist was interviewed by a panel of judges made up of industry leaders. The field was narrowed to three and each of those candidates delivered a short presentation to the panel of judges and convention attendees. A final recipient was selected after their presentations to the attendees.
“The dedication and quality of the emerging leaders within the cold chain continues to be impressive,” Rosenbusch said. “Mike and his fellow competitors are excellent examples of how bright the future is for the cold chain with talented individuals coming up through the ranks.”
Fischer will compete with other young leaders for the global GCCA NextGen Award June 10-12 at the Global Cold Chain Expo in Chicago IL.
