Team Nebula from PUMBA share their journey of becoming the National Finalists of L'Oréal Sustainability Challenge 2019
Reducing plastic with feasible solutions
5 teams made it to the finals. We considered BITS Pilani as a good competitor, the team which eventually won the competition. Their strength was the simple yet practical and implementable solution they presented.
Our approach from Day 1 was to be clear about the Supply Chain Management and the core reasons of reducing plastic. The mere purpose of the competition framed the basis of our work, which set our objectives clear. The tricky part was adjusting the fine line between the reality of factory operations and the feasibility aspect of our solutions. We tried to keep our solutions applicable, relevant and impactful.
The key idea: A focussed and logical mindset
We as a team are a group of close friends and have worked together on several occasions in college as well. This had strengthened our mutual understanding as well as the acceptance of each other’s ways of working. Conflicts were many but the underlying friendship and the logical breakdown of ideas proved helpful in resolving them.
Our strategy was to stay focussed, logical and positive. This was the main reason why we were able to come this far in the competition. Our learnings from PUMBA have been instrumental in developing our mindsets. The credit for the great team spirit we possessed definitely goes to them! Each of us has had a hand in bringing the team closer to victory. Together, we provide are a blend of hard work, resilience and supreme positivity!
The well-organised competition
The problem statement was really well-defined. We had an amazing experience in the head office. Also, the L'Oréal factory tour proved to be an excellent learning opportunity for us. It was a well-organised competition where we were fortunate to meet wonderful peers from other colleges and great and diverse leaders from L'Oréal. One of our favorite moments has definitely been the factory tour. It was an enlightening session for us where we witnessed the making of the products we all love using!
It has been a pleasure to get an opportunity to understand and dive into the details of the beauty industry and understand the real current practices in various aspects of the supply chain. In a nutshell, the course of the entire competition as well as getting titled the National Finalists of L'Oréal Sustainability Challenge 2019 was a superb experience for us.