Author: joshuastack
Christmas is Canceled?! Supply Chain Impacts
Just when you thought the supply chain couldn’t get any worse, CHRISTMAS IS CANCELED!
Global Sourcing is the New Procurement
Unless you’re a supply chain professional, the word “procurement” means nothing more than buying something. Could be buying a watch or a nice bottle of wine. “Where will we procure our dinner from this evening?” But, the supply chain discipline presents an entirely new meaning and understanding for procurement. And that meaning and use is shifting even faster now with the constant flurry of supply chain disruptions and the need for stronger strategic and global sourcing practices.
Why Your Supply Chain Recruiters Should Be Supply Chain Consultants
Sourcing top notch supply chain talent has become just as volatile as the supply chain itself and requires specialized recruiters who double as supply chain consultants and talent advisors for your organization. Disruption and volatility has become the norm in the world of supply chain. The field was wrought with archaic processes, aging workforce, and prone to delays from things like weather events and political whims. It now seems that geopolitical impulses and volatile externalities have had a permanent disruptive impact on the end to end supply chain world. Because of this, it has become ever more important to be able to rely on your specialized supply chain recruiter as a supply chain consultant.
Supply Chain Disruptions Ripple from War in Ukraine
As the 2nd quarter of 2022 approaches, the world continues to confront massive supply chain disruptions. Oddly, 2022 showed some promise of calm and stability in world markets. The latest Covid surge was slowing, allowing for production and manufacturing to return to normal in southeast Asia. American ports were finding relief in their previously heavily congested cargo bays and berths. The American economy continued adding jobs and surging ahead with strong earnings and low unemployment. The rest of the world started to echo these moves. And then a disruption that has threatened to crater these gains: War. Russia invades [...]
There’s No Such Thing as a Greatest Weakness Interview Question…
The bane of every job seeker's existence is the greatest weakness interview question. Even if the question isn’t going to be asked, a candidate will invariably prepare for it. That being the case, it’s not altogether a bad idea to be ready for the question because - like it or not - thinking this way helps you to prepare for any interview. The point of an interview is to get to know someone. Who are they? What makes them tick? What are they interested in? What are they not interested in? What experiences make them a valuable asset to [...]
Why Remote Working Will Die…
Employers around the nation are coming up with various reasons for why remote working will die. The wave of pandemic workplace innovations has caused a spike in flexible and hybrid workplace arrangements. Office spaces sit empty as more and more employees seek remote working opportunities to accommodate a pandemic lifestyle in hopes of also achieving a healthier work/life balance. This is much to the chagrin of many employers. What Happened Before the Pandemic hit, approximately 16.8 million Americans were working remotely. That number has more than doubled since then with 36.2 million Americans now working from home. This has [...]
Executive Search Reflects Turbulent Times
Executive search has always been a reflection of the macrostate of the supply chain industry. Are there more positions open than candidates to fill them? Is the talent keeping pace with the technology? How will elongated supply chains impact the talent pool needed to adequately and efficiently link them? These are just some of the questions facing executive supply chain recruiters every day. One observation from SCM Talent Group executive recruiter, Emily Unger, is that candidates may not be actively looking but they are actively listening. In other words, they realize that this is a candidate-driven market. Unger says [...]
Omicron and the Supply Chain
An already stressed supply chain labor pool Impacted by Covid19 The combination of lockdowns, shift in ecommerce buying habits fueled by government cash injections, an already depleted labor force, and production evolutions with real time issues like a Suez Canal blockage created a perfect storm of supply chain issues. Now, the world faces further issues due to omicron and the supply chain. Let’s start with the labor force. A US Census article from November 2020 forecasts a manufacturing labor shortage due to the average age of manufacturers being 55 and above. In 2015, two thirds of the US workforce [...]
Supply Chain Talent Shortage: The Downside of an Up Economy
There are few basic economic tenants that rarely need explanation. One such phenomenon is the principle of supply and demand. In the world of supply chain, we are seeing this principle play out across every sector of the industry. From trucking to shipping to ports to production and warehouses and to the people who manage all of the touchpoints, supply and demand has rarely, if ever, been more of an issue. As consumers’ purchasing power increases, so does the need to increase capacity in direct proportion to this change in consumer behavior. As executive supply chain recruiters, we’re seeing [...]
