OPINION
The ‘Latent’ TALENT Year 2020, however difficult and chaotic, was the year that showed everyone how important the supply chain community is to keep the world running. The only reason we did not face food shortages under the widespread lockdowns was because the supply chain professions worked tirelessly, globally, to keep the supply chains running and ensure we get all the necessary goods for our daily livelihoods. We should all say a big thanks to all of them, and this opinion piece by Radu Palamariu, MD Asia Pacific, Alcott Global and the Global Head of Supply Chain & Logistics Practice, presents a blueprint for the future supply chain managers to move up the ladder…
LEARNINGS THAT COVID-19 PANDEMIC HAS BROUGHT FOR THE SUPPLY CHAIN PROFESSIONALS… The need for an internal pre-existence BCP (Business Continuity Plan) team and Logistics Business Continuity Plan that supports overall company goals and objectives was quite evident and the most impactful lesson that Covid taught us. What this phase taught us is that supply chain managers should have the operational network readiness to change modes and routings flexibly to avoid transportation modes and routings constraints faced due to countries locked down/transport space capacity constraints. Covid taught us the importance of greater digitization and connectivity as more employees work from home and maintain social distancing. The enablement of an integrated visibility tool (eg: operations dashboards) will help facilitate decision makings in planning and execution remotely. Besides, there are following pointers managers must consider: 1. There needs to be a greater diversity in supplier bases for critical parts. 2. Companies should consider dual sourcing/ localization strategies and
10 CELERITY March - April 2021
build logistics support strategies around it. 3. Consider warehouse space buffers and scalability against supply chain disruptions (ie to cater for early pull - in of materials in anticipation of countries lockdown). 4. Consider a more distributed manufacturing and warehousing strategy to reduce sole dependency on one site.
BIGGEST CHALLENGES THE INDUSTRY WILL FACE IN THE NEXT 5 YEARS… To me, attracting and retaining the right talent will be the main challenge. We need to make supply chain a “sexy” profession to work in so that the young generation will want to be part of. The fight for the brightest minds is now across all industries. As one example, we all know “data is the new oil”. Everyone wants data scientists and analysts to make their businesses better. From Google, Facebook to logistics companies, to shipping companies, to manufacturing companies, the only way to beat technology companies is to improve your company and industry brand. Moreover, statistics showing the talent crunch in supply chain are numerous. Companies
Radu Palamariu has been working on C-level and top management executive search assignments with Top Fortune 500 companies and local Asia conglomerates, particularly for manufacturing, logistics, transportation, supply chain management and e-commerce. A frequent speaker at industry conferences across the region, he is a contributor on latest technologies shaping supply chains, as well as human resources trends and developments.
need to put in place talent development programmes, constantly upskills their people and give them opportunities to grow and develop. This way they will retain them. People stay where they get taken care of and developed!
TOP SKILLS THAT COMPANIES LOOK FOR HIRING SUPPLY CHAIN PROFESSIONALS Supply chain network design wizards:
