The Choice of a Career in Supply Chain Management - Assignment Example

The Choice of a Career in Supply Chain Management Contents Executive Summary 2 Introduction 3 Background 3 Supply Chain Management Requirements 4 Supply Chain Skills 4 Responsibilities of Supply Chain Professionals 5 Supply Chain Specialties 6 Entry Level for Supply Chain Management Professionals 7 Benefits and Pay 8 Conclusion 8 Works Cited 9 List of Illustrations Table 1: A list of different specialties in supply chain management and their roles Executive Summary This proposal seeks to provide an understanding of the career of supply chain management for its exploration in class. Supply chain management deals with the planning and management of operations that revolves around logistics, sourcing, conversion, and procurement. These professionals play very significant roles in the organization since they not only collaborate and coordinate partner activities but also provide an integration of supply and demand from within the company as well as outside. Entry into this profession is mainly done at the bachelor’s level where most of the professionals in the field are from business, engineering, or economics. There is good compensation for the professionals where the average salary as at 2012 was $ 100,890. These professionals have diverse specialties in which they can engage in. At the entry level usually getting in the capacity of buyer, assistant purchasing officer among other junior roles. The professionals grow to mid-level and ultimately to senior management where they take roles such as fleet managers, supply chain managers, logistics managers, and facilities managers among others. Introduction Learning is a process that requires integration of concepts and ideas from diverse areas. In an effort to ensure that, a class is able to grasp concepts, hypothetical cases are necessary. This proposal is based on the need to have a specific area of career focus that each of the students will be obliged to explore further. I propose to explore a career in supply chain management during the classroom setting. Supply chain management is a field that requires integration of skills that are geared toward enhancing efficiency in the process of integration and optimization of all the steps in the supply chain in order to ensure timely delivery of the product to the end user. It deals with all the processes focused on reaching the customers with the product. The entire process from the raw materials up to the stage of consumption is captured in the supply chain management. Therefore, this proposal endeavors to seek to have me allowed to have supply chain management as the career of choice for exploration in the classroom. Background Many careers are available for one to choose for classroom exploration. However, supply chain management outstands for me. This decision is informed by my interactions with supply chain professionals. An encounter with them as provided a very good opportunity for my understanding of some of the practices involved in supply chain management. With this background, I will be at a better position of exploring it further. One of my close mentors is a supply chain manager at Tesco; therefore, my closeness with him is an impetus to the decision. Specialization in a specific area of choice is likely to produce a keen interest as well as a broad understanding of that field. Supply Chain Management Requirements Many organizations are considering hiring professionals that are specialized in supply chain management including at the entry level. A bachelor’s or a master’s degree in supply chain management serves as the minimum requirement for a career in supply chain management. However, in most cases, most of the professionals enter after their undergraduate studies. In addition, though not mandatory other certifications are vital and can be obtained while is still working. Such include the certification in production and inventory management (CPIM) and certified purchasing manager (CPM). Quite a number of professionals in the supply chain management have one of these certifications. Upon completion of three years of continuous experience in supply chain management, a professional with a bachelor’s degree can consider subscription to the Certified Professional in Supply Chain Management (CPSM). Most of the professionals in the Supply chain management obtained their jobs after their undergraduate studies in business, economics, and engineering. Some of the knowledge taught in universities cut across these course including operations management, logistics, economics, statistics and manufacturing (Mutsuddi 57). In furthering one’s education, a professional can choose master’s degree in business administration while specializing in supply chain management. A consideration for a PhD in a more specialized field is also a way of advancing one’s career further. Supply Chain Skills A supply chain professional is required to be equipped with basic skills that will enable them to execute their roles effectively. In order to increase one’s chances of being hired and subsequent delivery in the work place, it is necessary that a supply chain professional exhibit the ability to use enterprise resource planning (ERP) software. Some of the ERP software that is important includes i2, Oracle and SAP (Goffnett et al. 138) Another important skill is interpersonal skills, which helps a professional in execution of their responsibilities. This is because most of the operations in the supply chain management involve dealing with other people outside the organization. Consequently, the professional is required to have good communication skills. In addition, being keen to details is a skill that a supply chain management professional is required to hold dearly. Writing skills are equally important in the pursuance of a career in supply chain management. Reports are part of the daily requirements for a supply chain professional. This means that report writing skills should be learnt by a supply chain management professional. Another important form of writing is proposal writing; in any of the capacities of the supply chain management, there will be need to develop proposals that will help convince immediate supervisors on decisions that one opts to have considered. Such proposals should be persuasive and convincing in order for them to be approved for implementation (Newman et al 21). Responsibilities of Supply Chain Professionals A career in supply chain management requires than one develop skills in various functions of the supply chain. The roles of these professionals cut across inside jobs as well as dealings with suppliers and customers among other stakeholders. Some of the responsibilities include: Customization of manufacturing practices. Providing support in throughout the operational lifecycle Engaging in organizational logistics Launching he development of the products Establishing customer relationships Planning on the responsiveness to demand Establishing customer relationship collaboration Fulfillment of orders as well as service delivery Evaluation of trade-offs between organizations and functions of the supply chain (done at the senior level). Development and implementation of innovative supply chain functions. Facilitating acquisition of supply chain knowhow to partners in the supply chain management (Dischinger et al. 65-67). Supply Chain Specialties Various specializations exist within the supply chain management profession. These specialties are dictated by the specific roles that are handled by a given organization. For example, inventory management can fall under the supply chain manager in a manufacturing company while the same role may fall under the transport department in a logistics company. Therefore, supply chain management has a broad range of specialties including logistics, procurement, manufacturing and planning. Some of the titles designated to supply chain management professionals are shown in the table below: Designation Roles Supply chain manager Is the general overseer of all aspects to do supply chain management. They are also involved in foreseeing the smooth implementation of supply chain practices and policies. The supply chain manager has the discretion to promote the performance of the supply chain in order to enhance performance while improving on the efficiency. This professional should be experienced and trained in areas such as operations management, supplier operations, transportation, and logistics as well as cost/benefit analysis. Logistics manager They are involved in forecasting, planning, customer service, logistical information management, warehousing and purchasing. This means that they should be experienced in most of these areas. Supply chain analyst They are involved in developing an analysis of specific aspects of the supply chain. They mainly serve under the supply chain manager thus helping the manager develop and implement supply chain strategies. Warehouse manager This specialty in supply chain deals with keeping of inventory, ensuring compliance with safety requirements and supervising the warehouse staff Fleet manager Mainly associated with transportation industry, the fleet manager ensures that there is efficiency in transportation, managing the fleet operators such as drivers and ensuring that delivery routes are established. Facilities manager They are involved in safeguarding the assets of the company such as machines, buildings, vehicles among others. (Cantor, Paula and Frank 42-46) Table 1: A list of different specialties in supply chain management and their roles Entry Level for Supply Chain Management Professionals Before taking a specific managerial line, graduates start their career at lower level and rise over time to managerial positions. A professional is likely to enter their career through positions such as sales trainee, assistant purchasing agent, assistant buyer, or inventory clerk. Upon years of experience, the professional will get into mid-level management where they are designated titles such as traffic manager, procurement specialist, materials manager, and purchasing analyst among others. Benefits and Pay Supply chain professionals have a chance of travelling from one place to another as they check on various issues relating to their roles. Upon travels, most companies offer allowances to their employees travel allowance and other allowances. According the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (i), in 2012 supply chain professionals earned an annual salary averaging $ 100,890. In this case, logisticians had an average of $72,780 annually while purchasing managers, purchasing agents and buyers earned an average of $ 60, 550 per annum (Bureau of Labor Statistics 1). Conclusion Supply chain management offers diverse opportunities that can be explored in class. There are different specialties within the profession that offers an opportunity for specialization. In addition, it requires one to exhibit diverse skills for one to be proficient in this career. I look forward to engaging in exploration of supply chain management since it offers a wonderful opportunity for me to connect with my mentor in terms of their specialization. Apart from the diverse opportunities that are available to individuals that pursue a career in supply chain management, there are benefits that come from embracing the career including a good annual pay and allowances. Having different responsibilities supply chain management offers an opportunity for an individual intending join the wagon to be rest assured that there are diverse issues to be handled. Having a degree serves as the most ideal entry position for a person intending to have a career in supply chain management. Works Cited Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2014-15 Edition, Purchasing Managers, Buyers, and Purchasing Agents,  on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/ooh/business-and-financial/purchasing-managers-buyers-and-purchasing-agents.htm (visited September 16, 2014). Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2014-15 Edition, Logisticians,  on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/ooh/business-and-financial/logisticians.htm (visited September 16, 2014). Cantor, David E., Paula C. Morrow, and Frank Montabon. "Engagement in environmental behaviors among supply chain management employees: an organizational support theoretical perspective." Journal of Supply Chain Management 48.3 (2012): 33-51. ProQuest. 16 Sep. 2014 . Dischinger, John, et al. "The emerging supply chain management profession." Supply Chain Management Review 10.1 (2006): 62-8. ProQuest. 16 Sep. 2014 . Goffnett, Sean P., et al. "Understanding Satisfaction with Supply Chain Management Careers: An Exploratory Study."International Journal of Logistics Management 23.1 (2012): 135-58. ProQuest. 16 Sep. 2014  Mutsuddi, Indranil. "Supply Chain Management for Effective People Management: Issues and Challenges." IUP Journal of Operations Management 11.4 (2012): 53-64. ProQuest. 16 Sep. 2014 . Newman, W. R., et al. "Charting Supply Chain Management Integration and Initiatives: A Framework to Guide Implementation.” American Journal of Business 24.1 (2009): 19-31. ProQuest. 16 Sep. 2014  Read More