A Career in Logistics and Supply Chain Management

The scope of the logistics and supply chain management is one rise due to the rapid and bulk movement of goods. All manufacturing industries need to manufacture, store, and dispatch the goods on time in order to make their business successful. But carrying out all the three operations simultaneously is a challenging task and requires proper planning and strategy. An effective and efficient management solution is required to function in the business in the market. The logistics and supply chain management sector work on the principle of 'delivering services within the specified time at a reasonable cost without compromising the quality of the service.' In the retail sector, the perfect delivery of goods through customer-responsive service along with the competitive price as per the market is the primary priority.

Since the logistics businesses are expanding in recent years, many companies have emerged in the market such as Zighra Logistics which is one of the top transport and logistics companies in India. Along with the collaboration with eCommerce firms the logistics and supply chain management companies are creating thousands of direct and indirect jobs which is from executive to management level. The logistics and supply chain companies need young and talented minds for their business operations. Many universities around the world have also started offering a Diploma program in logistics and supply chain management. Some universities also offer a Masters’s program for the same.

As per current trends, the distribution/supply chain manager jobs are open to all graduates irrespective of their field of study. When it comes to an administrative level they ask for a specific degree in logistics and supply chain management along with work experience in this field.

Skills preferred to start a career in logistics and supply chain management:

Candidates with the characteristics of continuously learning and a desire to understand patterns and trends are more preferred for employment. Problem-solving, optimizing, forecasting, converting real problems into logic are extremely useful tools in the successful operation of the process. The position holder should understand the real problem and respond to the situation in a calm and effective manner. Fresh graduates who have deep knowledge about the internet and aware of the latest software tools have high chances of getting selected. Since the operation is teamwork, the person should also be flexible to communicate and work with the workers from other departments and sometimes coordinating and updating with the customer. The company also expects constant knowledge update through continuing professional development (CPD) program from the candidates, they have to undergo this program throughout their career. The CPD program compromise of a set of training courses, conferences, and networking events.

Positions that are on-demand:

According to Dr. Ki-Soon Hwang, course director of the MSc Logistics and Supply Chain Management degree at Kingston University Business School, positions for logistics and distribution managers, purchasing managers, and warehouse managers are more in news. Graduates can also pursue a career in the following divisions:

• supply chain design and planning
• procurement and supply management
• freight transportation
• warehouse design and management
• distribution network design and planning
• inventory management and control

Job opportunities in India:

Flipkart a leading eCommerce company in India has launched an internship program for students in order to help them gain skills in supply chain management. The internship is a 45 days paid internship program and is open for the undergraduate students from Tier-II cities and beyond. Interns to be paid up to Rs.500 per day depending on their roles. According to Flipkart the program was launched last year and saw the participation of over 2,000 students across India to learn supply chain management during 'The Big Billion Days' an annual sale event by Flipkart.

Flipkart has also announced creating 70,000 direct jobs and lakhs of indirect seasonal jobs during the festive seasons in the company's supply chain network that includes delivery executives, pickers, packers, and sorters.

Earlier at the beginning of 2020, Jeff Bezos the CEO of Amazon also visited India and had promised to invest $1Billion in India to digitize business which helps in exporting $10 billion of Indian goods by 2025 through Amazon along with creating thousands of direct and indirect jobs in the urban and rural India.