Industry expert claims the new supply chain is 'sexy'

The supply chain was previously the domain of nerdy folk who plan and oversee the movement of goods from order receipt through to production, storage, and distribution.  But no more, supply chain management is now officially sexy – yes you heard it here!

Good supply chain managers make the difference between happy customers and irate ones who don’t make return visits. And in today’s demanding times with businesses under tremendous pressure to cut costs, improve service and cash flow there is a shortage of experienced supply chain managers. This is particularly true in global companies with far flung operations and those with an increasing focus on emerging markets.

When people outside the supply chain profession hear the words ‘supply chain’ they start to think about trucks and sheds. They don’t instantly think about the high tech, high-stakes game that involves managing multiple tradeoffs and a rich mix of skills. Supply chain managers need sophisticated technical skills, they need to be consummate diplomats and be experts at everything from business strategy and problem solving. They also need to be able to embrace ambiguity and draw insights out of masses of data. It is the era of the supply chain super person and whilst many of us cannot leap tall problems in a single bound, or use X Ray vision to uncover what is unseen to others, we are all doing some extremely exciting and innovative work.

So let’s start to make supply chain sexy to draw in that much needed talent that will be needed to drive the supply chains of the future.

Dave Alberts is the Director of Supply Chain Consultants Crimson & Co