Sara has been a key member of the Rebain team in Barcelona ever since she joined 12 years ago. Her knowledge of logistics have helped us to overcome many problems we surface in our day to day dealing especially in some of our ikeymarkets in Latin America and Africa.!!
As Logistics manager, she forms the heart of our Logistics team together with Yanina, which is key to our success in providing adequate service to our customers and suppliers worldwide. Besides her interest in continuously schooling herself to keep up to date to constant changing legislation, Sara is also a vivid writer and has already published three books which are available on amazon!! We are very happy to have such a talent in our team!!!
12 years at Rebain International (España), S.L.
Yannick: Can you tell us a little about your professional career and how you started working at Rebain International Spain?
Sara: I could say that my career path is a story of professional reinvention, in which each of the previous experiences helped me to acquire the necessary skills for this job. Being young, I liked learning languages and culture, so I decided to study tourism, graduating as a Advanced Technician in Travel Agencies, which allowed me to work in various areas such as a retail agency, at the airport as ground staff, or for the Castelldefels City Council as a Tourist Information Officer.
As I was also very interested in the administrative area, I combined my job with the study of secretariat, accounting and payrolls, which later allowed me to access a position as Secretary in a real estate construction company, and later as Executive Secretary in an urban development company. The company moved to Madrid, so I decided to look for another job. It was then that, at the age of 28, I found an offer for an Administrative Assistant in an international logistics company and I showed up for the interview eager to learn about another sector.
Yannick: What skills do you consider essential for your position and how have you developed them?
Sara: International logistics in a distribution company with a high volume of operations requires great organizational, coordination and communication skills, as well as great attention to detail.
Proactivity is also important to look for more economical and efficient transportation and storage options, as well as quick decision making, as it is an area in which unforeseen events often arise. I already had some skills, others I had developed on a daily basis, and I have also acquired knowledge thanks to continuous learning.
Yannick: What aspects of your current role in the company do you enjoy most and why?
Sara: The tasks that I enjoy the most are those that are related to management and contact with all parties involved in the order. Organizing the service properly, and keeping customers, suppliers, transporters and collaborators informed is the key to ensuring that deliveries are made efficiently as planned.
Yannick: What motivates you to continue growing and working in the company?
Sara: Working in a small-medium-sized business, gave me the opportunity to perform a wide variety of tasks, to learn and put new skills into practice. On the other hand, there is the human factor. I am extremely lucky to have some incredible colleagues who motivate me every day to be a better professional. I feel very comfortable, and I come to work happy.
Yannick: Could you share any significant experiences or projects you have worked on?
Sara: In the last year and a half, the digitalization of the company has taken a giant step, and I am pleased to have been part of it. I have been deeply involved in this process, with the support of our IT specialist and my colleague Yanina. Among the improvements is implementing a digital logistics control system, creating the database in the cloud, changing our mail service provider, and completely renewed our website.
Thanks to this we have reduced the amount of paper consumption, we have improved response times since the information is always accessible and available, and our online presence has increased, allowing us to connect with other companies in the sector and gain new clients.
Yannick: What personal/professional achievements are you most proud of and why?
Sara: The achievement I am most proud of has been becoming a Logistics Manager. My involvement, responsibility and continuous desire to learn have been the reason why I adapted very quickly to the position. I was sure that I already had the necessary skills to develop it optimally.
Yannick: How would you describe the balance between your professional and personal life, and how do you maintain it?
Sara: For me, the balance between professional and personal life lies in having a moderate level of auto demand, giving my best but knowing what my limits are, asking for help when necessary, and doing activities that help me disconnect. A fresh mind is the one that finds better solutions!
Yannick: What hobbies or personal interests do you have outside of work?
Sara: In my free time, I like to do exercise, go to the theater, or do cultural tourism by visiting museums and monuments. I also really like to read, learn about different topics and write. The last one fascinates me so much that I self-published three books and collaborated on the translation and edition of a novel with a friend that it’s also a writer.
Yannick: What advice would you give to future workers in a logistics department?
Sara: Submit your application to positions for which you believe you have sufficient knowledge and skills, even if you think that you don’t fit 100%. A proactive attitude and a strong desire to learn will do the rest.
Yannick: Is there anything about your experience at the company or any other aspect that we haven’t mentioned that you would like to share?
Sara: Yes, the close relationship we have with René and our colleagues is what makes Rebain Spain a strong company with future projection. We are committed to what we do, we are a great team and we demonstrate it every day. It is a pleasure to work here.
