Fernando León Rodríguez, subdirector of Lázaro Cárdenas, Guanajuato, Mexico-headquartered Bajo Cero Frigoríficos, won the Global Cold Chain Alliance’s fourth annual Global NextGen Award on June 11 during the Global Cold Chain Expo in Chicago, Illinois. The prize recognizes outstanding young professionals in the world’s cold chain industry.
Rodríguez represented Latin America as the winner of the 2018 Global Cold Chain Alliance (GCCA) Latin America Future Leader Award.
“The GCCA Global NextGen Award acknowledges talented young professionals who have the potential to become future leaders and make a positive contributions to the development of the global temperature-controlled warehousing and logistics industry,” said Don Dick, president of Dick Cold Storage and chairman of the World Food Logistics Organization (WFLO). “Finalists for the award are recognized for their exceptional achievement in cold chain.”
Among other eligibility requirements to compete for the top honor, finalists must demonstrate excellence in their work; the potential to excel further in many facets within the industry; and insight into their organization’s strategic values, direction, policies and ways of working.
Candidates for the 2019 GCCA Global NextGen Award were nominated by national refrigerated warehousing associations to compete at the Global Cold Chain Expo. In addition to Rodríguez, other finalists included:
- Anthony Crowhurst, IT infrastructure manager at Emergent Cold, who represented Australia as the winner of the 2018 RWTA Frank Vale Award.
- Michael Fischer, general manager of RLS Logistics, who represented North America as the winner of the 2019 WFLO Don Schlimme Future Leader Award.
- Ben Price, commercial manager at GroContinental (an AGRO Merchants company), who represented Europe as the winner of the GCCA European Future Leader Award.
As part of the selection process, each nominee was interviewed and judged by a panel of industry leaders from around the world. Candidates were evaluated on their knowledge level of the industry, track record of excellence, communication skills and leadership abilities. In addition, each contestant delivered a five-minute presentation to the panel of judges and Global Cold Chain Expo attendees.
About the GCCA
Comprised of core partners including the International Association of Refrigerated Warehouses, the World Food Logistics Organization, the International Refrigerated Transportation Association, and the Controlled Environment Building Association, the Global Cold Chain Alliance represents all major industries engaged in temperature-controlled logistics.
