The pandemic taught us just how sophisticated the global supply chain has become, and that it takes a special kind of person to manage its intricacies and solve all the unpredictable problems that arise.
In the past, the industry tended to entrust these responsibilities to people with analytical backgrounds; people trained to look at data, make interpretations, and act on the information presented. While those people are still critical to the supply chain, the industry has begun to realize the need to hire more creatives, like art majors, who can recognize patterns and solve problems by making connections that are not always that obvious. The supply chain has become more sophisticated, and the complex problems it presents require a different skill set.
“The industry has become more dynamic, and both carriers and forwarders have realized that a different skill set needs to be added to the industry in order to better serve our customers’ needs,” Anthony Fullbrook, President of OEC Group’s North American Region, said. “We need creative thinkers and problem solvers who can proactively look beyond the information that is being presented. Adding those creatives will create a more resilient supply chain that can benefit everyone in the shipping industry.”
While it might seem like an easy fix for shippers to go out into the world and hire the top-performing students at the best schools in the country, the “easy fix” has its own challenges baked in. The pandemic cut into millions of students’ education, reducing their knowledge and skills in areas including language and math. That interruption also widened the gaps between highest- and lowest-scoring students, with lowest-scoring students seeing five times the decrease in their reading scores that high-performing students saw, and four times the decrease in math scores. This steeply increasing divide leaves industry executives in a bind: Not everyone can hire the top students in the class.
While higher education gets more expensive by the year, Americans have also been having fewer children since the 2008 financial crisis. That trend hasn’t reversed in the 16 years post-recession, and experts say it will cause an “enrollment cliff,” a phenomenon where class sizes and university enrollments plummet, making it even harder to find and retain quality talent.
“Attracting and retaining top tier talent is critical for the industry’s success. In order to attract and retain top talent companies will need to pay higher wages and provide competitive benefits,” said Steve Myers, COO of OEC Group’s North American Region. “Shippers need to understand that having quality problem solvers in the industry that can handle their cargo and ensure it gets delivered on-time comes at a cost. Paying those increased costs to make sure the supply chain runs smoothly is a necessary investment that benefits everyone.”
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