Janina Gröhn, Sustainable Affairs Specialist at DHL Freight, gives everything on green road freight solutions. She kicks off our new Women@Freight series, in which women from all Freight divisions give insights into their day-to-day work. In this interview, she talks about her journey within the company, her passion for sustainability, and making memories.
How did your career at DHL Freight begin?
Currently I work at the DHL Freight Sweden head office in Stockholm as a Sustainable Affairs Specialist, but I studied analytical environmental chemistry and did my graduate thesis in Brazil, analysing levels of mercury in flooded areas. So you might ask how I ended up working with trucks at DHL Freight? I’ve worked with sustainability and management systems in various companies throughout my career. For instance I implemented sustainability reporting within the Swedish Police Force. But what I really wanted to do was make a difference in the transportation industry. So I applied for this position at DHL Freight. Here I get the opportunity to help customers reduce their freight related carbon footprint, and at the same time be a part of the shift towards a more sustainable transportation sector. This way I can look in my children’s eyes and honestly say: I devoted my knowledge to a better future for us all. I did my best!
How does a typical day at work for you look like?
My days vary and are a combination of customer contacts, meetings and development of our sustainable business by increasing the number of vehicles running on renewable fuels. Therefore I plan and structure my days by listing my top priorities before I check the day’s mail. Then I might prepare a presentation for a meeting, calculate a customer´s carbon footprint, write an internal press release or answer a tender question about DHL Freight’s sustainability performance.
What do you particularly appreciate about your team at Freight?
That I have colleagues who work with sustainability, both locally and also worldwide. This enriches my work in so many ways! At my previous work places, I was often the only one working full-time with sustainability. But here I can exchange ideas and thoughts with people that are familiar with the internal organisation as well as working with environmental sustainability impact. Our job in the Swedish sustainability team is to involve different parts of the organisation to induce development in a sustainable way for our customer’s, and our own, environmental impact.
What’s been your best experience at DHL Freight so far?
My best experience with DHL Freight, besides all the different customer events where I, as a speaker, get the opportunity to encourage customers to make sustainable decisions, was when I volunteered at the famous Vasaloppet ski race in Dalarna, Sweden. I was cheering and handing out beverages to tired skiers so they would make the final eight kilometres to the finish line. The race is 90 kilometres long so the skiers really needed an energy boost.
What advice would you give to women who want to join Freight?
Do not hesitate to apply for a position you want! Be assertive and give public appreciation to your co-workers for their efforts and help. Especially women!
If you could meet a famous person – dead or alive – who would it be?
Steve Jobs. I would have a conversation about being true to your vision despite the professional and personal costs.
What gets you up in the middle of the night?
Besides my kids, my bullet journal in a Japanese Hobonichi planner. There I track the past, order the present and design my future. I make creative doodles and collect memories using my fountain pens and favourite water colours.
| The new Women@Freight series puts the focus on powerful women |
 Logistics is often perceived as a male dominated industry. But more and more women have joined the ranks in the past few years - especially at DHL, where diversity is part of our DNA. The new Women@Freight series features women from across DHL Freight's divisions. |
