So You Want To Be A Supply Chain Manager?

By Gary Marion

culled from:about.com
Before we get started, not everyone is cut out to become a supply chain professional.  As much as you may want to join our lofty vocation, take a breath.  Only a handful of hoops pros make the All-Star team.  Not every actor gets to play a superhero.  And only a few have the intestinal fortitude to handle the dizzying heights of supply chain.  Fortunately, there is a very simple litmus test to see if you qualify.
If given the choice, would you choose to live Tony Stark’s life – or Franklyn Farnum’s?
Everyone knows who Tony Stark is. Superhero, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist and – let’s not forget – portrayed by the coolest actor going.  Stark is never going to make it in the world of supply chain.
But do you know who Franklyn Farnum is?  Of course not.  But you know what Farnum did more times than anyone in history?  Appeared in Best Picture Oscar-winning movies.  7 of them, to be precise.  To put that in perspective – Meryl’s been in 3, Morgan Freeman – 3, and Tom Freakin’ Hanks – 1.  But Franklyn Farnum was in 7.  Seven!
Farnum missed his calling.  He would’ve been an excellent supply chain manager.  He probably understood what a good supply chain guy or gal does – which is help create organizations that excel. But unlike Tony Stark, no one’s going to chant a supply chain guy’s name at the next shareholder’s meeting.  And that’s totally cool.  The only time the supply chain phone rings is when something’s late or about to be late or showed up teal instead of lavender.  And that’s fine with the supply chain pros.  Let the head of sales get the crystal trophies and applause.  Let the CFO golf with the mayor.  Let Rachel in marketing get interviewed by CNET.  The supply chain pro is Gladys’ left Pip.  The supply chain pro is the first player down on special teams who gets wiped out by the lead blocker, so the second guy down can make the tackle.  And supply chain pros are all right with that.

Still sound appealing?  Still want to be the person at your company that’s responsible for having enough inventory on hand to make sure your customers’ orders are fulfilled – but not too much inventory on hand because all that inventory costs real money – and accomplish this balancing act using information that is, at best, incorrect and, at worst, wildly incorrect?
You’re in?  Okay, fill out the application.  Depending on your level of education and experience, you’re going to be applying for job titles like supply chain analyst, buyer, procurement specialist, senior buyer, materials manager, purchasing manager, supply chain manager, supply chain director, vice president supply chain or Chief Supply Chain Officer.  Actually, if you’re applying for one of those last two, you may not be filling out an application form.
But how do you prepare for a career in supply chain?  Today, you can actually study supply chain in college and grad school!  Lucky you.  Like any profession it helps if you go into it with a basic understanding of its mechanics and vocabulary.  To understand the difference between a re-order point and a safety stock.  Or safety stock and livestock.
If you don’t have a degree (or degrees) in supply chain, don’t worry.  That didn’t stop me or 99.9% of the people that I know that went into the field.  Many of them are business majors who ended up (not by choice) in the logistics or purchasing end of things – then discovered they had an acumen for optimizing business flow and didn’t need the crystal trophies as proof.  Or, in my case, my political philosophy studies didn’t prepare me for a real job, so I let the Unites States Army turn me into a logistician (actually, an officer in their Quartermaster Corps).
Regardless of your education or how you get attached to the first link in your supply chain career, once you get in – just like in every walk of life – learn from everyone and everything.  Why is your company cycle counting?  What are they cycle counting?  What does your customer's ordering have to do with how your suppliers are managing their production schedules?  How does your company use metrics to adjust its transactional and tactical and strategic supply chain practices?  And how does that compare to what companies in your industry are doing?  How can you help design a supply chain that gives my company a competitive advantage?
The best advice I can give any prospective supply chain pro – is that if those kinds of questions intrigue you – you and supply chain might be right for each other.  And that’s a good thing – because any company that has a thing that it sells to a customer has a supply chain that needs you.