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Supply Chain Management-A Challenging Career for Management Grads

Supply Chain Management or SCM is no longer a field practised by a few selected companies it has become inextricably associated with effective Operations Management in any organisation, which ensures that resources, including people, money, machinery, facilities, material and information are used wisely. It requires familiarity with computer technology, an understanding of quantitative methods, planning abilities and problem-solving techniques that are useful in analysing business systems.

SCM encompasses an entire range of activities from procurement of materials to movement of goods and from manufacturing strategy to delivery of customer services. As such, from FMCGs to Consumer Durables, Auto Companies to Banks, there is virtually no sector of the industry that has not been impacted profoundly by this. It is therefore not surprising that the work profile of a typical Supply Chain manager is now moving away from one of hard-core shop-floor work to pin stripe data driven negotiation.

While haggling, bargaining and other daily issues still remain part and parcel of a job in SCM, the need today is for a savvy manager who knows where the data is and how to use it. IT has today turned into a big force in driving out inefficiencies in the system and its knowledge is critical for an SCM professional. Management decisions like route planning, forecasting, purchasing, etc are now being guided by a more refined IT driven methodology. Consequently, not only do most companies today have clearly designated supply chain department and functional ranks, they have also started hiring students in the management cadre for these openings.

Entry-level titles include Operations Manager, Operations Consultant, Manager of Business Process Improvement and Project Manager. In general, specialists in the field typically begin their careers in areas such as quality management, production control, service delivery management and logistics. They have opportunities to work in cross-functional teams involved in process reengineering, strategy development, product design and technology planning.

While hiring SCM trainees, recruiters look for prior experience, quantitative proficiency, IT skills and a professional approach. Till a few years back there were very few professionally trained SCM managers in the field but, today, many colleges have developed courses in SCM and more and more students are opting for it. Since SCM encompasses many industries, the job profiles and roles vary from industry to industry. However, in brief the main profiles in this field may be described as:

Project Manager - Project Managers are most often found in consulting or other team-oriented environments. The role certainly requires expertise in the specific project area. It also requires the ability to lead and manage cross-functional teams and to serve as the interface between the team and client.

Operations Manager/Consultant- An Operations Manager will often report to a high-level Materials/Company Director. Their specific responsibilities often include but are not limited to training, monitoring many aspects of routine business activity and finding ways to improve efficiency and effectiveness.

Statistical Analyst - Either in a problem-solving or routine maintenance role, an applied Statistical Analyst is involved in gathering quantifiable data about a process and translating that data into more accessible or applicable information, sometimes to the point of proposing solutions/improvement options.

Business Development Analyst/Consultant - Businesses may hire a Business Development Analyst with diverse quantitative and strategic skills to help build their business processes from the ground level. This role is found in corporate, non-profit and small business settings at a company or departmental level.

General Manager - General Managers have varying levels of responsibility and job scope; however, all General Managers will be responsible for supervising staff, observing performance and market trends and making strategic decisions. They are accountable both to their company and to the staff they supervise.

Indeed, SCM has helped many companies in improving profitability and is, today, the main competitive weapon for companies like Wal-Mart, Dell, Fed Ex, P&G to mention a few. To cite just one case, in a span of only 10 years, Wal-Mart transformed itself from a small niche retailer in the Southern states of US to one with the highest sales per square foot and the highest inventory turnover and operating profit of any discount retailer. Today, Wal-Mart is the largest and highest profit retailer in the world. More and more success stories such as this are today riding on the back of proper SCM implementation.

Naturally, therefore, the demand for SCM professionals has also been growing at a very rapid pace. It's not just about the numbers; the range of job profiles is also immense. Companies like HLL, P&G, Nestle, Colgate, Marico, LG, Tata Motors, Asian Paints, etc. have their own SCM or Operations department. Banks like ICICI and Standard Chartered have also started hiring Operations Management/SCM students in large numbers for their operations department. Most MBA students start their career as a management trainee in a department before moving on to becoming managers in some business specific area such as purchases, commercials, warehousing or logistics. Some companies, especially banks also assign roles as branch managers, national accounts manager and so on.

The future of Operations Management/ SCM looks more exciting than ever. IT and other tools like RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) are bringing about a whole new revolution in this field and an increasing number of companies are waking up to its potential.