Three Promises, One Policy: DHL Freight Integrated Management System Policy
DHL Freight is committed to renewal and efficiency. The three individual policies for Quality, Environment & Energy, and Health & Safety will become one Integrated Management System Policy. This reaffirms DHL Freight’s dedication to sustainability, maintaining high-quality standards, and protecting its employees. In an interview with Freight Connections, Daniel Schümmer, Global Head of Certification Management DHL Freight, explains the background.
Strong Concept, Fast Implementation
Department heads Monika Harth (Quality), Christoph Schönwandt (Environment & Energy), Christina Giesen-Ruhl (Health Management), Luc van Diemen (Occupational Safety), as well as Daniel Schümmer (Certifications), worked as a team to draft the Integrated Management System Policy. The result is a policy that benefits DHL Freight, its customers, and the environment equally. Schümmer expressed optimism when presenting the Integrated Management System.
When asked about the most memorable moment during the development of the policy, Schümmer immediately recalled an evening when he sent the final draft to the DHL Freight management board and requested feedback within several days. Instead, he received the green light that same evening – a more than pleasant surprise. Schümmer is still proud to this day that the management board took the time to read and approve the policy so quickly. This is evident in our conversation.
What is the Integrated Management System about? It is DHL Freight’s commitment to excellent quality, efficiency, low-emission and environmentally friendly logistics and the health and safety of workers and employees. Of course, DHL Freight was already committed to this before. The new approach is to regard these three promises, which relate respectively to customers, the environment, and employees, as a unit. Daniel Schümmer explains: “The Integrated Management System combines quality, environment, energy, and occupational safety into a holistic concept. These are not individual issues, they are all interconnected.”
What may sound theoretical at first has practical relevance, as Schümmer illustrates. “Consider the transportation of dangerous goods, for instance. This touches on health and environmental protection for employees. It’s also a quality issue if the customer doesn’t receive a delivery on time or at all due to a lack of care.”
The Integrated Management System combines quality, environment, energy, and occupational safety into a holistic concept. These are not individual issues, they are all interconnected.
Daniel Schümmer, Global Head of Certification Management DHL Freight
Integrated Management System and the Strategy 2030
“Our policy is closely linked to the Strategy 2030,” emphasizes Daniel Schümmer. Service quality, sustainability, and employee protection are all key components of the FREIGHT 2030 strategy, which intends to promote sustainable growth and create an efficient, fair, and environmentally friendly business world. DHL Group and DHL Freight want to be the employer, provider, and investment of choice, as well as the green logistics provider of choice.
This comprehensive approach is reflected in the Integrated Management System, highlighting the company’s own high standards of quality, sustainability, and employee care. “We are aware that we have a responsibility,” says Schümmer.
Integrated Management System and Norm Requirements
The decisive factor is that an integrated management strengthens each respective subarea and its compliance with standards. Daniel Schümmer notes: “We are certified according to four ISO standards, each of which covers a specific area. These standards naturally require us to align our policies accordingly. In this context, it is important to have a concrete policy, not just a strategy.”
DHL Freight’s Integrated Management System meets all applicable standard requirements:
ISO 9001 (quality management)
ISO 45001 (occupational safety and health protection)
ISO 14001 (environmental management)
ISO 50001 (energy management)
The Promises of the Integrated Management System Policy
Certification and standardization are not an end in themselves; rather, they enable external control of DHL Freight’s promises. These promises are ambitious.
Service Quality
It’s all about providing high-quality services that fulfill customer wishes in the best possible way. “We promise to carry out our transportation services in a way that ensures customer satisfaction,” confirms Daniel Schümmer. Energy efficiency, sustainability, and satisfied, healthy employees all increase the quality of service. Since everything is connected, an integrated approach that reflects these interrelationships is highly effective.
Caring for Employees
Daniel Schümmer leaves no room for doubt: “It is important to us that our employees are healthy and stay healthy.” This commitment to health requires concrete measures in various areas of the company.
For example, DHL Freight has established rules for the ergonomic design of computer workstations, personal equipment, and installations to protect employees, both internal and external, in operational logistics facilities. One such rule is implementing special restraint systems for trucks and trailers to prevent accidents on the loading ramp. Schümmer summarizes DHL Freight’s objective as follows: “Our goal is to reduce accidents to zero.”
Environmental Protection
“We realize that we are partly responsible for environmental problems, partly responsible for pollution, and partly responsible for CO2 and other emissions in the logistics industry,” Daniel Schümmer concedes. “We move our customers’ goods in all directions. This requires energy, most of which is not yet available without emissions. The question is, how can we organize transportation so that these goods are shipped as efficiently as possible?” By asking this question, Schümmer clearly identifies the ecological challenge facing transport logistics companies
The approach of integrated management is to combine resource distribution and energy management with environmental considerations. “Distribution must be very efficient. Intelligent route planning enables better utilization of the loading space in motion. This saves vehicles and the corresponding consumption and emissions. It is our promise that we will work as efficiently as possible.”
Schümmer underscores: “We promise that we will become more environmentally friendly and use energy more efficiently to save resources.” Schümmer also anticipates a possible objection: “Yes, of course, this is our business, and it’s also about money – but we invest the additional revenue we earn through GoGreen Plus services in green drive technologies, and that can be measured independently. So, it’s more than mere lip service.”
From Idea to Policy
The idea was born. What cannot be separated in everyday logistics should be reflected in an integrated corporate policy. This required the expertise of specialists from various areas, so several teams came together. “These included colleagues from quality management, GoGreen (Environment & Energy), occupational safety, and DHL Freight’s health management,” recalls Daniel Schümmer, explaining how the concept began.
Special thanks go to our colleagues Laura Marlene Waerder, Nico de Kruif, and Daniel Mahnken, who contributed to the development of the new policy by providing active feedback, concrete formulations, and design suggestions. Thank you also to the Management Board of DHL Freight for their comprehensive support and prompt confirmation of the policy.
The policy’s subject areas are defined in the underlying ISO standards. A fruitful discussion based on these standards led to the development of the Integrated Policy. Initially, feedback from the individual specialist areas resulted in various versions, from which the final version was derived. “Good communication and cooperation among this diverse team of specialists from various disciplines was key to our success. That is our strength,” says Daniel Schümmer.
Good communication and cooperation is our strength.
Daniel Schümmer, Global Head of Certification Management DHL Freight
DHL Freight’s Policy Promises Can Be Measured
For the new policy to be effective, it is crucial that employees identify with it and that all stakeholders are involved. This requires communicating and raising awareness of the company policy, both internally and externally: to employees, customers, and authorities. Daniel Schümmer is aware of this. “The issues we address in our policy are important but also challenging. I am convinced that we will successfully meet this challenge.”
When it comes to concrete implementation, the specialist departments are called upon. “How do I measure success? What do I need to do to fulfill the promise?” According to Schümmer, internal performance dialogues have already been implemented as part of the DHL First Choice Initiative. These dialogues correspond to measurable key performance indicators (KPIs) in the areas of quality, the environment, energy, and occupational health and safety. “What is important for all stakeholders: The promises of our Integrated Management System Policy are measurable in KPIs. At DHL Freight, quality, safety, and sustainability are more than marketing topics; they are lived realities.”
In addition to the central aspects of service quality, environmental protection, and employee health and safety, integrated management also has a strategic component for Schümmer when considering the future workforce. “The Integrated Management System Policy also provides clear testimony: DHL’s Road Freight division is well-positioned and robust, with a clear strategy. In these uncertain times, people are looking for stability, and we can offer that.”
What is important for all stakeholders: The promises of our Integrated Management System Policy are measurable in KPIs. At DHL Freight, quality, safety, and sustainability are more than marketing topics; they are lived realities.
Daniel Schümmer, Global Head of Certification Management DHL Freight
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