What Does it Take to Be a Great Supply Chain Manager?
The supply chain is the heart and soul of most company’s operations.
Supply chain managers are responsible for managing and navigating the complexities of supply chains and logistics. They are in charge of your product’s journey, from sourcing materials to ensuring they meet customer demand.
Therefore, an effective supply chain manager must possess both analytical and people skills to succeed. Supply chain managers require a diverse set of skills, including:
- building and maintaining relationships
- accessing curating and using data
- planning, financial and contract management
- a solid understanding of warehousing, transportation, and manufacturing
Essential qualities in a supply chain manager
An effective supply chain manager is someone who has the right combination of soft and hard skills, and this can be a challenge to find. Here are five essential qualities to look for when hiring a supply chain manager:
- attention to detail and an innate understanding of the business and the environment in which it operates
- soft people skills to build relationships and negotiate with customers, suppliers, and team members
- collate and utilize data to track demand, sales trends, orders and shipments, including any inefficiencies or weaknesses in the system
- analytical and statistical capabilities combined with strong math skills to easily decipher demand and supply issues
- high understanding of technology, including the Internet of Things, big data, machine learning, machine learning, artificial intelligence, analytics software and apps
Technology will always be a valuable skill
The supply chain has seen many new technologies over the years and is projected to witness even more in future. Supply chain managers should be willing to innovate and learn about new technologies and stay up to date with the latest trends.
Supply chain managers with professional certifications, such as the Supply Chain Management Professional or similar work-based experience, are also in high demand.
Let Warehouse Recruiters help you find the perfect candidate for your warehouse facility in NJ, NY and PA. You can contact us at (201) 503-1082, or fill out our contact form here.