Interview Albrecht Meeusen, vice-president & business manager in P&O Nedlloyd Korea

P&O Nedlloyd Container Line was formed in December 1996, as a 50:50 joint venture of English 'P&O' and Dutch 'Royal Nedlloyd', representing the liner shipping interests of the two companies. It is the second largest container carrier in the world with around 150 vessels as of January 2002, with routes connecting all parts of the world and a yearly turnover of around US $4.5 billion.

Those who complete high-school in Korea might have heard of 'Hendrik Hamel' in Korean History classes.
In the fourth year of the reign of King Hyojong (1653) when the Chosun Dynasty's diplomatic relations were restricted to only neighboring countries such as Japan and China, Hamel, belonging to the Dutch East India Company, was cast away on the coast of Cheju island with 36 members of his company on the way to Nagasaki, Japan. Thereafter, he was moved to Seoul, serving in Hulryundogam, a military center in Seoul during the Chosun dynasty, and sometimes in the Cholla Navy or the Cholla military center. In July 1666, he finally escaped from Korea with 7 colleagues and returned to Holland via Japan in 1668.
The reason his name appears in Korean history schoolbooks is that he wrote a journal about his 14 years in Korea after returning to Holland. The journal was the first one to introduce the geographical features, customs, politics, military, education, and trading practices of Chosun Korea to Europe.

Albrecht Meeusen, vice-president & business manager in P&O Nedlloyd, has been in Korea for just over a year. He left Indonesia after one and a half year stay. When he arrived at Kimpo Airport in his summer suit, a fierce snow storm welcomed him, not tropical trees or a shiny sun. His arrival date, February 15, 2001, was a record for heavy snow, 23 centimeters deep.
He introduced himself as the vice-president and business manager for P&O Nedlloyd in Korea. Mr. Meeusen divides his attention for the functional areas over the days of the week. For him Monday is Sales and Marketing and Customer Services day, Tuesday is Management Team and Organization day, Wednesday is Operation & HR & D day, Thursday is Finance & Customer Services day, and Friday is Sales, Marketing & IT day, Saturday is Claims day.

Korea Shipping Gazette (KSG): What is the highlight of your Sales and marketing day every Monday?

Meeusen: "I couldn't say it. It's top secret (laughing). Well, I'd like to say that 'voice from customers'. P&O Nedlloyd always cares about feedback from the customer to stand firm as a number one shipping company in the world. If customers using our vessel felt uncomfortable, we have to fix it. We are upgrading our customer services by fixing the problems as soon as possible."

On top of this, P&O Nedlloyd is pulling shipper's attentions with various sailing services, new built vessels, fast transit time and new equipment.

KSG: With the help of bigger and faster vessels, competition amongst shipping lines is getting hot. Under the circumstances, what is P&O Nedlloyd's secret service?

Meeusen: "We are proud of our 'E-Commerce' in issuing Bills of Lading (B/L), tracking, tracing and booking cargoes. We are so much inspired by the 'Korea Web Awards 2001', which our company won in the E-commerce section February 27."
When playing the 'E-commerce' manual CD by P&O Nedlloyd, three words to explain the system's character appear: 'Secure', 'Efficient', 'Simple'.

The Internet has allowed customers to view cargoes as void of time and space. It also prevents shipping lines from making phone calls, faxes, and possible errors in documents.
Customers are available to book cargoes and print B/Ls as well as tracing through the Internet. However, there are people unfamiliar with new things.

"I know Korea has a record number of Internet-users. People in Korea make plane reservations through the Internet and buy goods from Internet shopping malls. However, Korean shippers remained at low levels in internet use when checking cargo and vessel schedules. Instead of taking advantage of the internet products, they call us to find out vessel schedules and other questions. Sometimes our Customer Services asks them to hold on, and go to the web-site to check for the customer the required information. E-commerce is designed for ease of use, 24-hrs a day. Just try it."

KSG: I think you've formed a strong opinion since you first came to Korea. Though it hasn't been a very long time, could you tell me what the main character of Korean society is?

"Well, as for my thoughts in the time since I first arrived, Korea lies in a state of transition. Korea is in the center of change while it has moved to an industrial society from an agricultural one in a very short time. The Confucian closed traditional Korea is moving to a flexible open society."

So, 'change' is how Mr. Meeusen would characterize Korean society. And the Korean government is the right example to illustrate that change.

"The Korean government is hearing opinions from various foreigners. Compared to the West, their closed mind is widely opened to the outside. P&O Nedlloyd is a member of the Association of Foreign Shipowners Representatives in Korea. On various occasions in meeting with Korean Institutions, this association has raised inconveniences regarding laws and systems, that hamper the creation of South Korea as a hub. Governmetn officials always show a willing ear and open mind to learn very quickly.

Eastern and Western thought are based on different traditions and backgrounds. Nowadays, beyond the limits of time and space, the two of them are seen within Seoul offices where, traditionally, respect for one's elders has been held an important value; this stands in contrast to the Western value of mutual respect. When employees of P&O Nedlloyd meet Mr. Meeusen, they just say 'hi' to him and call him by his first name. However, when they meet their Korean boss, they bow and call him by his position instead of name.

KSG: Well, I think you handled a lot of parts in the company. What did you major in your college?

Mr. Meeusen : An MScBA (Master of Science in Business Administration), MTL (Master in Transportation and Logistics), and CEMS (Community of European Management Schools).

I guessed as he worked a lot, he might feel a great deal of stress from work. I asked him how he dealt with stress. He replied that he read books and enjoyed sports to relieve stress.

When returning home, he came back as a husband and father; his wife Eva studies psychology at the Open University. They have a four and half year old daughter, Josephine, and a year and half year old son, David.
When he first heard he would be going to Korea, he did not know much about the country. However, as he has been surrounded by kind Korean people, has found the time to tour some of Korea's beautiful ancient palaces, and experienced some of the various seasonal foods, he confessed his growing fondness for Korea.

During the 350 years from Hammel to Hiddink, there have been many things that have bettered and deepened relations between Korea and the Netherlands. I hope that later Mr. Meussen, another link between Korea and the Netherlands, recalls his time here with the best of memories.

Written by staff reporter Hyunsook Paek