The family of Steve Lewis would like to invite his industry friends to join them in Cardiff on Friday 21st October to celebrate his life. If it is not possible for you to travel to Cardiff, we hope to arrange a live link, or a recording of the celebration. Please RSVP to pcollins@voerman.com by Friday 14th October indicating if you would like to attend or would like access to the link/recording.
The management and Board of OMNI (Overseas Moving Network International) wishes to express their profound sadness at the passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Throughout her reign of over 70 years, she commanded absolute respect whilst showing kindness, compassion and understanding to everyone she met. In so many nations around the world she was known simply as The Queen and was held in unique esteem wherever she went. No other head of state has ever, or probably will ever, be treated with such justified admiration the world over. Our sympathy and thoughts go out to her family at this difficult time. We retain, however, the certainty that the British monarchy, as the second Elizabethan Age passes, will remain as a beacon to guide its people, and others across the globe, as it has done in the past.
God save King Charles III.
The Voerman Group has announced, with great sadness and disbelief, the passing of Steve Lewis, a dear friend and colleague, who died yesterday (30 August). Steve was 56 years old.
Steve joined the Voerman Group in 2015 after a long career in the international moving industry working for some of the leading global companies. Throughout his career at Voerman, he managed strategic clients, trained the team, and mentored young talent. He set up the Voerman presence in Asia with Asian Mobility Services and was working to grow the talent in the area as well.
The company said that Steve will be remembered for his commitment to the industry, his sense of humour, his warm personality, and the way he could tell stories. “His loss leaves a tremendous void and he would want us live life in the spirit that he lived life,” the announcement said. “Our thoughts are with his sisters, his family members and all his many friends around the world.”
Roeland Delfgaauw joins Gou in Mexico
The Gou Group has announced the appointment of Roeland Delfgaauw as its Commercial Director. Roeland brings 25 years of experience in the moving industry and is a familiar face to many as he frequently attended many industry conferences and has been a PAIMA Board member. Roeland will be responsible for overlooking all sales for the Group and will report to Patrick Ohara and Eduardo Gou.
Entrenched in global cultures and charged with enabling a highly engaged workforce, mobility professionals are ideally suited to inspire, guide and even lead organisation-wide DEI initiatives. That’s why Graebel Companies, Inc., has launched Graebel® DEI Consulting Services. With Graebel’s guidance, built from years of DEI mobility experience and its people-first philosophy, global mobility professionals can structure and level-up their DEI initiatives to empower a highly engaged workforce, drive bottom-line results, and produce lasting cultural change at a time when the workplace and company cultures are being challenged and redefined.
Juan Romero has been promoted to Western Regional Manager for Brytor International Moving in Canada.
Canal Movers in Panama has advised on 19th July 2022 of a series of protests in the country that could disrupt services in the future.
Asian Tigers Singapore has revealed that its Chairman, Eric Lim, has been selected to enter the International Association of Movers (IAM) Hall of Honor. This prestigious award is in recognition of Eric’s many contributions over his 47 years in the moving industry.
OMNI Member Grupo Mudanzas Mundiales in Costa Rica has announced that as of Friday the 24th of June the Virtual Tax Administration (ATV) and Information Technology for Customs Control (TICA) platforms of the Costa Rican Ministry of Finance are restoring their usual service.
Asian Tigers Singapore, and its sister company, Silk Relo, have become the first companies in the international relocation industry to have earned certification from the Human Resource Standards Institute in alignment with International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 30415:2021: Human resource management (HRM) – Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) standards.
Gerson Relocation BV appoints new operational director
Gerson Relocation BV has announced the appointment of Marco Bongers as operational director. Marco’s primary role is to oversee the operational matters for all corporate, private and trade customers. He will also be focussing on the development of trade business and building these relationships.
Andrew Meadowcroft promoted at Aires
Aires in the USA has announced the promotion of Andrew Meadowcroft to Vice President of Customer Experience. In this new role, he will oversee all strategic client services as they relate to people, process, and technology while ensuring global consistency in the corporate customer experience. Among other responsibilities, the position will focus on participating in IT initiatives to ensure client satisfaction, leading continuous improvement initiatives to enhance all customer experiences, coaching staff towards improved performance, and serving as a cultural ambassador for Aires.
Asian Tigers China (mainland) has announced the appointment of Simon Shrubsole to the position of General Manager for Asian Tigers Beijing, effective from 30 May 2022. Simon has worked in the moving industry since 2009 and is a fluent German speaker. Simon replaces Wilson Fan who steps down to focus on his EMBA studies.
Photo: Simon Shrubsole
OMNI (Overseas Moving Network International) has delivered its second online sustainability workshop which, as this is an issue that affects the whole industry, was also open to and attended by FIDI affiliates and staff. The event took place twice, for the benefit of different time zones, on 25 May 2022, and was hosted as previously by Johan de Kam, an academic and trainer/consultant with the University of Warwick in the UK.
OMNI (Overseas Moving Network International) presented its annual tonnage awards at a specially arranged ceremony in Cannes immediately prior to the FIDI conference.
The awards celebrate the exchange of tonnage through the OMNI network and honour both those companies that contributed the most and those that have increased their contributions significantly during the previous 12 months’ trading.
Grospiron International hosted a party on the free evening of the FIDI conference to entertain its partners from around the world. The party was held at the beautiful La Petite Maison restaurant in exclusive Palm Beach, overlooking the Mediterranean Sea and with a panoramic view of Cap d’Antibes and the Lérins Islands.
SIRVA, and BGRS, both leading global relocation and moving companies, announced on 6 May, 2022 that they have entered into a definitive agreement to combine into a new organisation initially named SIRVA BGRS. The transaction is expected to close within the next 90 days and is subject to regulatory approvals.
A recent press release said that by bringing together two of the world’s leading relocation companies, the combined business will deliver unparalleled support to clients through diverse product offerings, robust technology and expanded global presence.
Chris Mackley, General manager of OMNI, talks to Paul Barnes of Inspire Global Mobility Consulting about the ways in which OMNI is pushing forward sustainability within its members. Chris talks about OMNI’s programme of workshops with academic Johan de Kam, and how it’s working with FIDI and IAM to encourage the whole industry to take the sustainability issue seriously.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1WzJGRijqHZV1K1qxyjwN5UE-k85VI2kV/view
OMNI member Mudanzas Mundiales in Costa Rica has reported that, due to an alleged hacking, the platforms Administración Tributaria Virtual (ATV) and Tecnología de Información para el Control Aduanero (TICA) of the Costa Rican Ministry of Finance are temporarily out of service.
This service interruption directly affects the nationalisation and tax payment processes for the entry of merchandise into Costa Rica. Although the contingency plan for the National Customs Service is being executed, it only applies to exports, the other operations in the system will be re-established once the situation is solved.
