Christian Oldendorff has suggested his investments in data-focused start-ups is leading to a more innovative culture at his family shipping business.
Seeking to illustrate how a traditional shipping business model can be enhanced, the third-generation German shipowner said those investments are enabling his shipping company to optimise its operations with a better vision.
“Some of the companies are bringing back their culture into our core business,” Oldendorff told the Sea: The Future conference.
“It’s already showing [positive] effects [on] recruitment [and] creating engagement [in how] things work.”
Along with his brother Nikolaus, Oldendorff controls shipowner and manager Reederei Nord, with 55 tankers, bulkers and boxships in its fleet.
Having focused on start-ups and alternative investments for much of this decade, Oldendorff launched venture capital outfit Amplifier in 2016.
Amplifier’s stated goal is to provide seed and series A fundings between €250,000 ($279,000) and €2.5m to start-ups in the maritime, logistics and mobility technology sectors.
Currently, the Berlin-based outfit’s portfolio includes Katapult Ocean, Teralytics, Nautilus Labs and Kiwi.
Faced with continued supply-chain digitalisation and tightening environmental regulations, major industry players like Cargill and AP Moller Maersk have been investing in technology-focused start-ups to gain expertise from outside of the industry.
Some industry officials have argued that shipowners can learn much from start-ups by adopting a more analytical approach in optimising operations, even though they are run differently in day-to-day operations.
In the example of his shipping business, Oldendorff said he hopes to learn how to better deal with suppliers and clients and predict the effects from regulations like IMO 2020.
Overall, Oldendorff pointed out the industry needs to have a better vision of what can be best solutions for challenges in the coming years.
“The one thing I am frustrated about the industry is there is no vision,” Oldendorff said.
When it comes to vessel purchases, shipowners are “incredible risk takers” as their forecast return on investment are uncertain for the long term, according to Oldendorff.
In contrast, the amount of investments needed in optimising operations tend to be much smaller but this has drawn considerable less attention in the industry.
“That’s the problem, when it comes to vision,” Oldendorff said.
