With one out of two supply chain professionals satisfied with their jobs and an increase in job opportunities for supply chain leaders post-pandemic, is supply chain talent your greatest risk? In this report, Supply Chain Insights captures insights from studies conducted in 2019 and 2020 to give insights for supply chain leaders on retaining employees and improving job satisfaction.
Talent Management research intelligence_13 paradigm shifts_20 March 2024.pdf
Managing Supply Chain Talent During the Pandemic
1. MANAGING SUPPLY
CHAIN TALENT
DURING THE
PANDEMIC
Low Employee Satisfaction May
Be Your Greatest Risk
Lora Cecere
Founder and CEO
Supply Chain Insights LLC
3. 3SALES & OPERATIONS PLANNING // 2020
Open
Content
Research
This report is shared using the principles of Open Content
research. The goal is to share research widely to improve supply
chain performance. You are welcome to share this data freely
within your company and across your industry. All we ask for in
return is attribution when you use the materials in this report.
We publish under the Creative Commons License Attribution-
Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States, and you will find
our citation policy here.
Research
Methodology
This report reports findings from a survey fielded twice: 229
respondents from North America in August 2019 and 129
respondents from Europe in March 2020. To help the reader, we
outline the survey demographics in the appendix. Respondents
were sourced from Linkedin contacts and through help in
Europe from Supply Chain Movement.
Disclosure
Your trust is important to us. In our business, we are open and
transparent about our financial relationships and research
processes. We never share respondents’ names or give
attribution to the open comments collected in the research.
This research was 100% funded by the Supply Chain Insights
team.
4. 4 2020 // SALES & OPERATIONS PLANNING
Supply chain effectiveness during the pandemic is growing in
importance. In parallel, talent competition is increasing.
COVID-19 is a time of change. In April 2020, in a DSJ Global Job
Confidence Index survey of over 650 experienced supply chain
professionals, 41% of supply chain workers say they are unlikely
to stay with their employer through the pandemic. The driver is
a higher salary or the perception of better career progression
opportunities.1
Retaining talent and growing capabilities is key to improving
supply chain performance. To make the point, let’s examine the
numbers. While 10% of jobs globally are manufacturing, 37% are
associated with the supply chain. In the U.S., the supply chain
profession employs 44 million people, while manufacturing
represents 15 million jobs. Service jobs represent 80% of supply
chain employment with an average annual wage of $63,000.2
Supply chain careers are relatively new. The discipline, first
defined in 1982, includes source, make, deliver, and planning
functions. Since 1995, the number of supply chain positions
quadrupled.
The focus of this report is job satisfaction. Here we contrast
the responses for Baby Boomers (employees born 1946-1964),
Generation X (birth between 1965-1984), and Millennials
(birthdates between 1984-2004). Overall, Baby Boomers are
happier than younger employees.
In this report, based on the two years of research and multiple
studies over the past five years, we find:
• Sixty-six percent of supply chain respondents are
satisfied. Continued issues with meeting effectiveness,
career path planning/coaching, and the pace of adopting
new ways of working drive dissatisfaction. Baby Boomers
are significantly more satisfied than Millennials and
Generation X.
• Significant gaps exist in the availability and quality of
candidates in the areas of supply chain planning and data
analytics. Closing the gaps requires the development of
talent programs and training executive teams. While most
companies have skill-development plans for new-hires and
high-performers, few have holistic programs to close the
satisfaction gaps.
• There is mounting frustration of Millennials on the pace
of adoption for next-generation supply chain process
adoption. While it is easy to dismiss the impatience of
Millennials, but these high-energy employees represent the
future of the supply chain.
Summary
1
Global Job Confidence Index 2020, April 8, 2020, https://www.dsjglobal.com/global-job-confidence-index-2020?utm_source=Cision&utm_medium=PR&utm_campaign=job_
confidence_index_2020
2
The Supply Chain Economy and the Future of Good Jobs in America, Mercedes Delgado and Karen Mills, March 9, 2018, https://hbr.org/2018/03/the-supply-chain-economy-
and-the-future-of-good-jobs-in-America.
5. 5SALES & OPERATIONS PLANNING // 2020
Millennials are impatient: pressing their organizations to build
next-generation processes but meeting resistance. Baby
Boomers are statistically more satisfied with the current state
than the younger employees. Older employees resist change.
As the Baby Boomers retire, Gen X and Millennials are
pressuring for faster change.
The lack of a clear industry definition of next-generation
processes fuels the flame. Millennials want the same level of
automation of supply chain processes that they experience
in their personal lives. Younger employees struggle because
there is more clarity on the pizza order status for lunch than
an inbound shipment’s critical arrival for a manufacturing
plant. While personal platforms and applications embrace
geo-mapping and telematics, this is not the case for traditional
supply chain applications. The tension is high because
embracing next-generation supply chain processes requires the
admission that current supply chain technologies are legacy.
Supply chain processes and technologies have changed
little over the last decade and are tough to navigate. Younger
employees are frustrated and report lower levels of satisfaction.
Satisfaction rates in Europe are significantly higher than those
in North America, with only 58% of North American leaders
reporting satisfaction. The reason? While there is no clear
answer from the survey, based on conversations with supply
chain leaders, we speculate that the differences are due to
less vacation time and more significant politics in larger North
American organizations.
Job satisfaction rates improve when the employee believes the
organization values their work. More satisfied employees report
a better work-life balance and a clear career path or mentor.
Accomplishing this goal is not as easy as adding a supply chain
human resource function. There is no substitute for leadership.
In our study, only 50% of the supply chain HR functions rated
effective by their organizations.
Building an effective supply chain team is not easy. Executive
leadership’s understanding of the supply chain continues to be a
barrier, with 36% of respondents identifying executive leadership
support of the supply chain as a complex non-linear system as
a significant issue.
Improving Job Satisfaction
0
10
20
30
40
50
Very satisfied Satisfied Dissatisfied Very dissatisfiedNeither satisfied nor
dissatisfied
22%
17%
30%
16%
22%
7%
11%
5%
7%
2%
13%
14%
45%
41%
51%
Total
USA
Europe
Source: Supply Chain Insights LLC, Talent Study (2019-20)
Base: All Respondents (n=337)
Q8. Overall, how satisfied [are][were] you with your [current][most recent] job?
Significantly Higher than TOTAL at 80% Confidence Level
Significantly Lower than TOTAL at 80% Confidence Level
Figure 3.
Relative Satisfaction of Supply Chain Leaders
6. 6 2020 // SALES & OPERATIONS PLANNING
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
47
46
33
32
28 28
24
21 21
20 20
19
14
10
9
7
3
4
45
49
66
34
30
38
43
34
30
25
24
20
24
32
14
22
18
22
21
16
11
19
15
9
4
3 3 3
6
11
10
7
16
41
Competitivesalary
Challengingwork
Flexiblework
arrangements
Company/products/
servicesyoubelivein
Work-lifebalance
Diversityofpeople
andideas
Workingwitha
talentedteam
Officelocation
Appreciatedforyour
work
Financiallysecure
company
Reasonablecommute
time
Comprehensive
benefits
Corporateimage
Leadersyouadmire
Training/professional
development
Profitsharing
Clearcareerpath
Other
Total
USA
Europe
Drivers
of Job
Satisfaction
Satisfaction varies across the globe. As shown in Figure 2, an
employee working in Europe is more likely to feel that the work
is challenging and that their contribution is appreciated. Also,
a European employee reports a better work-life balance with a
shorter commute. Conversely, there are more meetings in North
America and more tension between leadership and supply chain
teams.
The takeaway? While a good salary gets an employee in
the door, job satisfaction improves retention. Improve job
satisfaction by working to make the jobs more meaningful and
focusing on improving job recognition.
Figure 2.
Best Things in the Current Job in Supply Chain
Source: Supply Chain Insights LLC, Talent Study (2019-20)
Base: All Respondents (n=337)
Q9. What [are][were] the 5 BEST things about your [current][most recent] job?
Significantly Higher than TOTAL at 80% Confidence Level
Significantly Lower than TOTAL at 80% Confidence Level
7. 7SALES & OPERATIONS PLANNING // 2020
Building the Right Work
Environment
Employees report a low satisfaction rate with meeting
effectiveness and overall communication. To better understand
the data, let’s look only at the North American market, where
Job Satisfaction is lower. In examining the data, we see that
communication within the work team, amongst peers, is better
than between the group and leadership. While not statistically
significant, Millennial employees report lower satisfaction
between management and employees. There is a belief
that there are too many meetings and that overall meeting
effectiveness is lacking. The dependency of online discussions
with a pandemic is unknown
Meeting effectiveness and communication between executive
leadership and supply chain teams is rated significantly better in
Europe than in North America.
The takeaway? Work on meeting effectiveness and work-life
balance of employees. It is hard for a planner to get their work
done when they are in meetings all day. In addition, use network
design simulation and what-if optimization technologies to
help business leaders better understand the impact of supply
chain decisions. Use Sales and Operations Planning sessions—
focusing on the after-action review of the prior period— as an
opportunity to help business leaders learn.
Generation
Total Baby Boomer Generation X Millennial
Base: All Answering 205 28 119 58
A B C
Communication among co-workers 44% 50% 45% 41%
Communication between management and employees 37% 43% 39% 29%
Number of meetings 28% 21% 26% 34%
Meeting effectiveness 25% 29% 25% 22%
Source: Supply Chain Insights LLC, Talent Study (2019)
Base: All Respondents (n=206)
Q12. How would you rate each of the following at your [current] [prior] job?
ABC higher than other group at 90% or higher level of confidence
Figure 3.
Improving the Work Environment for Supply Chain Teams
8. 8 2020 // SALES & OPERATIONS PLANNING
What Makes a Good Boss?
Working for a great boss improves job satisfaction. As shown in Figure 4, success requires clear communication, coaching,
and ongoing leadership. Employees want clear accountabilities, project ownership, and appreciation. Sounds
easy? It is not. A supply chain leader running from meeting to meeting struggling with conference call after
conference call and crisis after crisis has to remind themselves to focus on employee development.
Success is about much more than signing an employee performance review or giving an
obligatory statement performance increase. Supply Chain employees hunger for the gift of
a leader’s time, expressed appreciation, and affirmation.
10
20
30
40
46%
47%
38%
41%
40%
36%
31%
38%
32%32% 32%
26%
25%
31%
15%
16%
14% 14%
15%
11%
9%
7%
46%
39% 39%
33%
32%
30%
27%
15% 15%
13%
8%
Clearlycommunicates
expectations/instructions
Givesusefulfeedback/
coaching
Leadsbyexample(practice
whatyoupreach)
Givesemployeesownership
ofprojects
Havethecouragetodo
what’sright
Appreciatesemployee
workandeffort
Paintsamotivating
visionforthework
Isresponsivetoemployee
questions/needs
Canembracediversity
inpeopleandideas
Allowsemployeeswork/
lifebalance
Makestheteamfunto
workwith
Total
USA
Europe
Figure 4.
Source: Supply Chain Insights LLC, Talent Study (2019-20)
Base: All Respondents (n=368)
Q21. What do you think are the 3 most important characteristics for a BOSS to have in the supply chain work
environment today?
Significantly Higher than TOTAL at 80% Confidence Level
Significantly Lower than TOTAL at 80% Confidence Level
9. 9SALES & OPERATIONS PLANNING // 2020
Companies feel that ONLY
13% OF EMPLOYEES are
WELL-PREPARED
entering the workforce
FROM COLLEGE*
63% OF
RESPONDENTS*
cannot find the talent
that they need. ONLY 1
RESPONDENT
has a clear
career path
Is a problem-solver
Has strong analytical skills
Has strong oral communication skills
Is able to see the big picture
TOPTIER
51%
46%
44%
44%
Works well with others
Can think out of the box
Can embrace diversity in people and ideas
Is able to see cause & effect
Is able to handle conflict peacefully
Has a strong work ethic
MIDDLETIER
39%
36%
33%
30%
28%
27%
Is a good listener
Is able to take constructive criticism
Has strong written communication skills
Has good attention to detail
Is able to follow instructions
BOTTOMTIER
23%
23%
20%
20%
6%
Source: Supply Chain Insights LLC, Talent Study (2019)
Base: All Respondents (n=229)
Q20. In your opinion, what are the 5 most important skills or characteristics for an EMPLOYEE to have in the supply
chain work environment today?
Figure 5.
Most Important Skills for Supply Chain Employees
10. 10 2020 // SALES & OPERATIONS PLANNING
Building an effective supply chain team requires skill-building.
Only 13% of Baby Boomers and Generation X employees feel
that employees are well-prepared for the workplace upon
graduation. Yet, there is more demand for talent than supply.
Only 63% of respondents can find the talent they need when
they need it.
The five most essential skills for a supply chain professional
are problem-solving and strong analytical skills coupled
with strong oral communication capabilities. If you
speak to anyone in the recruiting industry,
you will find that this is a tough standard to
meet. Employees with strong analytical and
problem-solving skills will often rate lower on oral
communication abilities.
Planning skills are in short supply. This survey is the third study
on supply chain talent in five years, showing the progressive
gap in industry planning skills. Not only does the industry not
recognize this gap, but leaders are doing little to rectify the
issue.
The start of this journey is defining excellence in planning. We
find most organizations lack clarity on what drives a good plan.
Instead, many Companies installed planning technologies as an
IT project without clarity on the definition of effective planning.
The industry continues to flirt with the integration of data
scientists into supply chain teams. We find that there is no
easy answer. As a result, the supply chain leaders report limited
success.
A data scientist is proficient in data wrangling, machine learning,
Python/R, statistics, and data visualization. While
rich in hard skills, based on interviews with supply
chain leaders, we find that the data scientists are
weak in soft skills. As a result, organizations
struggle to integrate Data Scientists into their
teams. While there is an acknowledgment of data
scientists’ potential and promise on projects, we
have not interviewed any company feeling that
they are doing it well. Business leaders find the data
scientists parochial: viewing the problem through a data-based
lens and lacking the real-world understanding of organizational
dynamics.
Take away? Employees with clear career paths and
opportunities for training are significantly more satisfied. Spend
time with employees to help them build analytical skills to
excel in planning and analytical positions. It is easier to train
employees than to hire in these positions. The reason? Demand
is higher than supply.
Address Skill Shortages
Data Scientist
Demand Planner
Supply Planner
S&OP Planner
50%
41%
37%
35%
Information Technologist (IT)
Network Planning Analyst
Financial Analyst
32%
22%
20%
Procurement Buyer
Customer Service
Transportation Planner
Manufacturing Planner
17%
17%
16%
8%
TOPTIERMIDDLETIERBOTTOMTIER
Source: Supply Chain Insights LLC, Talent Study (2019)
Base: All Respondents (n=229)
Q22. Which 3 of the following supply chain-related positions do you think is in most DEMAND today?
Figure 6.
Skill Gaps Today
11. 11SALES & OPERATIONS PLANNING // 2020
Supply chain teams believe that 65% of entry-level employees
are somewhat ready for a supply chain career. As a result,
there is a need for ongoing training. As shown in Figure 7,
skill enrichment takes many forms. The belief is that current
academic and consortia curriculums are self-serving and
myopic.
Academics and students believe that students are well-prepared
while Baby Boomers and Millennials believe that they are not. A
dilemma is how to unwind current academic programs’ focus,
and have them stop drinking their Kool-Aid?
The gap is closed by committing to ongoing training Millennials
seek job-enriching experiences; this includes onboarding, cross-
functional moves, and training on next-generation supply chain
processes. Many organizations will find the Millenial drive for
a career path and a well-defined training program exhausting.
To drive alignment, consider engaging Millennials in structured
cross-functional experiences. Design these with a goal in mind,
making sure that the activity ties to meaningful outcomes.
Hiring. Preparedness of
Entry-Level Employees
While Millennials want to train on next-generation processes,
we find a lack of alignment on approach. Despite all the talk
on digital transformation and new forms of analytics, there is
a large gap between Millenial expectations and Baby Boomer
views of the future. A mistake often made is to train new
employees on next-generation capabilities without boundaries
and engagement by the leadership team. A lack of alignment
on the training strategy results in frustration and is a missed
opportunity.
Takeaway? Different age groups of supply chain employees
have different expectations, but all need skill enrichment
programs. While executives need a better understanding of the
supply chain as a complex, non-linear system, Millennials need
job enrichment to understand the interaction of cross-functional
processes better. To drive success, design an organizational
skill enrichment program and execute against a multi-year
strategy
48%Onboarding for new employees 85% 4.3
Internships or co-ops 66% 3.9
Growth training to learn more
within one’s current function
85% 4.2
Cross-functional training to learn
about other departments 84% 4.3
Training on next generation supply
chain concepts (eg, Industry 4.0) 81% 4.3
41%
47%
31%
50%
36%
44%
37%
36%
31%
IMPORTANT Extremely Very Average
Source: Supply Chain Insights LLC, Talent Study (2019)
Base: All Respondents (n=229)
Q25. How important is it for companies to offer the following types of training or education opportunities to supply
chain employees?
Scale: 1=Not at all Important, 5=Extremely important
Figure 7.
Importance of Offering Training / Education to Supply Chain Employees
13. 13SALES & OPERATIONS PLANNING // 2020
Generation
Total Baby Boomer Generation X Millennial
Base: All Answering 229 28 125 76
A B C
Onboarding for New Employees 85% 79% 82% 91% A
Growth training to learn more within one’s current function 85% 86% 80% 93% B
Cross-functional training to learn about other departments 84% 89% 81% 87% .
Training on next generation supply concepts (eg, Industry 4.0) 81% 79% 77% 89% B
Internships or co-ops 66% 68% 61% 75% B
The supply chain role is growing in importance. The function’s
future success depends on improving the satisfaction of
employees that are the least satisfied. For a senior leader, this
can be tough. Baby Boomer leaders struggle to understand the
Millenial. However, crossing the generational divide and aligning
to an aligned supply chain human resource plan is essential.
If not, organizations will face attrition and issues in hiring. We
recommend five actions to take immediately:
• Assess Current Job Satisfaction by Demographic.
Develop Action Plans. Use the survey for this report and
conduct it internally. Use the results to flesh out your
organizational opportunities.
• Develop a Clear Definition of Next-Generation Processes.
Align. Work within the organization to develop a guiding
coalition. Clearly define a commonly-held set of goals and
design meaningful work to achieve the goals. Focus on the
definition of principle-based leadership to improve human
potential.
Supply chain talent drain is a considerable and silent risk in the supply chain. Employees seek opportunity and appreciation. The most
significant gaps are in the areas of planning and analytics. The answer lies in addressing employee satisfaction by generation and
creating an employee engagement plan.
Recommendations
Conclusion
• Communicate, Communicate, and Appreciate. In the
typical supply chain day, the focus is on the what, not the
how. Change the focus. Spend time and effort in improving
effective communication. Work on reducing the number
of meetings and focusing on enhancing the one-on-one
interaction of coaching and mentoring.
• Build Human Potential. While most organizations have
career development plans for entry-level and high-potential
employees, this is not sufficient. Start by training executives
and then build skill development opportunities across the
organization. Enlist participation by employees to design
the programs. Recognize that in this COVID-19 world, this
may require new forms of collaboration software and
approaches. Have the courage to be experimental.
• Take Talent Development Seriously. Don’t assume that you
have the best practices and that employees are satisfied. If
you do, you run the risk of high employee turnover.
Figure 8.
Cross-Generational Views of Effectiveness of Techniques
Source: Supply Chain Insights LLC, Talent Study (2019)
Base: All Respondents (n=229)
Q25. How important is it for companies to offer the following types of training or education opportunities to supply
chain employees?
Scale: 1=Not at all Important, 5=Extremely important | *Showing those rating 4-5 on 5-point scale
ABC Higher than other group at 90% or higher level of confidence
14. 14 2020 // SALES & OPERATIONS PLANNING
Demographics
The study included 368 completes: 41% manufacturers, 6%
retailers, 9% wholesale distributors, 11% third-party logistics,
15% consultants, and 6% software providers. The sentiment
represents the status quo before the COVID-19 pandemic.
In the study, 71% of respondents were male, and 54% identified
themselves as caucasian. European respondents were
statistically less diverse in gender and ethnicity than the survey
participants in North America.
The largest respondent group in the study is Generation X. The
time ranges for the survey were baby boomers (born from 1946
to 1964), Millennials (birth during 1985-2004), and Generation X
(born between 1965-1985). Baby Boomers are retiring, passing
the torch to Generation X. However, as we will see in this report,
the processes defined by the Baby Boomers are not sufficient
for the new generation. Yet, companies struggle to define next-
generation processes. There is significant energy to change;
however, a mandatory ROI on process innovation thwarts
organizational initiatives.
The average respondent works in a 4.7$B process-based
company as a senior manager or director. There are no
significant differences in the respondent industry across
industry sectors.
01 02 03 04 05 0
Caucasian/White 49%
Asian / Pacific Islander 21%
Hispanic / Latino 10%
African American / Black 8%
Native American 1%
Other 6%
Prefer Not to Say 7%
Race / Ethnicity Region
Gender
Fe
m
ale35%
Male6
5%
US & Canada
44%
Europe 22%
Asia 14%
Other 20%
Source: Supply Chain Insights LLC, Talent Study (2019)
Base: All Respondents (n=229)
Q27. What is your gender?
Q28. Which of the following racial and/or ethnic descriptions apply to you? Please select all that apply, even if the
terminology isn’t exactly right.
Q29. In what region of the world are you personally based (physically located) at this time?
Figure A.
Respondent Demographics
15. 15SALES & OPERATIONS PLANNING // 2020
Vendor5
4%
Academic 1% Academic 1% Academic 4%
All
Respondents:
Work Status
Currently or
Recently
Employed:
Type of Work
Students or
Looking for
Work: Type of
Work Wanted
Ven
dor27%
Vendo
r23%
End-User42%
End-User
72%
End-Use
r 76%
Generation X
(1965-1984)
55%
Baby
Boomer
(1946-1964)
12%
Millennial
(1985-2004)
33%
<24
8%
26%
30%
24%
9%
25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64
Figure B.
Revenue and Industry
Figure C.
Generational Profile
Source: Supply Chain Insights LLC, Talent Study (2019)
Base: All Answering – Total (n=229), Currently or Recently Employed (n=205), Students or Looking for Work (n=24)
Q4. Which of the following best describes where you [currently work][worked in your most recent supply chain-related
job][hope to work in the future]?
Source: Supply Chain Insights LLC, Talent Study (2019)
Base: All Answering – Total (n=229)
Q26. Please tell us the year you were born.
17. 17SALES & OPERATIONS PLANNING // 2020
About Supply Chain Insights
LLC
About Lora Cecere
Founded in February 2012, Supply Chain Insights LLC delivers independent, actionable, and objective advice for supply chain leaders. The
company provides research to help companies gain a first-mover advantage.
Lora Cecere (Twitter ID @lcecere) is the Founder of Supply Chain Insights LLC and is the author of the
popular enterprise software blog Supply Chain Shaman currently read by over 320,000 supply chain
professionals. She writes as a Linkedin Influencer and is a contributor for Forbes. Lora is an author of ten
books, including Bricks Matter in 2012 and Metrics that Matter in 2014.
18. 7 Dart Manor Court
Hanover, PA 17331
617-816-9137
www.supplychaininsights.com