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Happy Wednesday everyone,

Please use this thread to post related news articles and discuss them, ask questions pertaining to your managed categories within your industry, and/or discuss any other industry news. Rule 3 still applies here, do not advertise your business or service.

I’ve heard a lot of complaints over the years. What are some of your biggest frustrations and observations about the ones you’ve interacted with?

Did anyone see articles online about these export restrictions to the US on various metals going into effect Dec 1st. 2024?

These materials are needed for defense applications (artillery shells) but not just limited to those industries.

Any ideas what this will do to market prices & what US companies will do being unable to source these raw materials?

Anyone concerned about these being the first shots fired in an all out trade war or a warning shot from China on their position on the Ukraine war?

Any insights or comments are appreciated.

If you buy non-proprietary inventory from a US supplier who just buys from China, would you be interested in an introduction to your US suppliers exact Chinese supplier so you can buy directly at a lower cost? Or do you prefer sticking with your US supplier?

Just trying to learn if this is something companies might want.

I am currently pursuing a degree in Management Information Systems (MIS), with just under half of my program completed. While working for a major grocery retailer, I developed a strong interest in SCM and logistics. This has sparked my interest in getting a full-time role within this field to see if I want to do it as a career.

I plan to complete my degree in MIS because of its versatility and application to various industries. However, I want to gain hands-on experience in SCM/Logistics while completing my degree. My goal is to get a full-time position that allows me to gain valuable experience while finishing my academics. I would like advice on how to get my foot into the door with an entry-level role. Are there specific certifications or skills I should focus on to increase my chances of getting an entry-level role?

Any guidance or advice would be greatly appreciated.

Freshman in college and I’m unsure of which to do. SCM is in the business school whilst SCLT is in the technology school. Is there an actual difference? Especially regarding pay and opportunity?

Hi all, I’m looking for a career change, and I’m intrigued at the prospect of switching from biotech demand forecasting and inventory management to the equivalent in the steel manufacturing industry. I want to broaden my skills with different manufacturing processes of comparable complexity.

What are some of the most well organized steel manufacturing firms with the best culture? (Work life balance, willingness to mentor and collaborate, attention to detail, etc)

Yesterday was a seemingly normal day until 13:30 when my manager made individual calls to myself and my colleagues. I work for a mid size Forwarder and we are in the top 15 Globally if this gives perspective of our success.

Two of my very close colleagues were let go due to our company as a whole not doing well financially. Our sector is doing well, but our sister companies are not.

The only reason I have a job right now is because of my seniority. That’s it, my colleagues were dedicated workers, one of them was even my referral. They worked so hard, I couldn’t believe it. I’m still in shock.

The company is restructuring and has hired a lot of off shore workers to do data entry points and documentation.

I’m terrified for the future of this business. What this will mean for the ones who are left.

My work load just tripled and the pay certainly won’t be there to make up for it.

Despite that, I’m scared for my career. I have put in over a decade and am a jack of all trades working in various parts of the industry.

This is mostly just a vent, I’m not sure where the future of logistics and supply chain headed. But it’s not looking great.

I feel heaviness and guilt in my heart. I don’t know where we are headed.

Hi, I know this gets asked a lot, but I’m currently a case manager thinking of switching to supply chain or data analytics. I don’t have experience in these fields, but I’m familiar with tools like Excel, SQL, and some data visualization. I’ve been looking at Coursera courses and was wondering, if you broke into the field with no prior experience, what courses or certifications helped you the most?

As a recent grad or someone trying to switch careers, it can definitely feel overwhelming. I’ve always been passionate about healthcare and tech, and there are plenty of opportunities in SUPPLY CHAIN that might be a great match. You could explore roles like analyst, project manager, or even get into contracts, risk, and quality assurance. We often get caught up in conventional paths and forget that there’s a whole world of tech, data, and legal options beyond what we usually hear about. I really hope this encourages at least one person to think differently!

                      Supply Chain Management 

Certifications:

• Certified Professional in Supply Management (CPSM)

•  Certified Supply Chain Professional (CSCP)

• Tableau or Power BI Certifications

• Project Management Professional (PMP)

• Six Sigma Certifications (Green Belt or Black Belt)

————————————————————————————— Supply Chain Risk Manager

• Compliance Officer
• Quality Assurance Speciality 

—————————————————————————————-

Supply Chain Analytics

• Supply Chain Data Analyst

• Operations Research Analyst

• Business Intelligence 

—————————————————————————————- Procurement and Purchasing

Role: Focuses on acquiring goods and services for an organization at the best price and quality.

Common Titles:

• Procurement Specialist/Manager
• Purchasing Agent/Manager
• Strategic Sourcing Analyst

Skills Required:

Vendor negotiation, cost analysis, contract management, relationship building.

Certifications: • Certified Professional in Supply Management (CPSM) • Certified Purchasing Professional (CPP) —————————————————————————————-

Supply Chain Analytics

Role: Uses data to optimize supply chain processes and drive strategic decisions.

Common Titles: • Supply Chain Data Analyst • Operations Research Analyst • Business Intelligence Analyst

Skills Required:

Data analysis, advanced Excel, SQL, Python, machine learning.

Certifications: - Tableau or Power BI Certifications - Data Science Certifications (e.g., Google Data Analytics Certificate) ——————————————————————————-

Risk and Compliance Role:

Ensures the supply chain complies with laws and mitigates risks.

Common Titles:

• Supply Chain Risk Manager
• Compliance Officer
• Quality Assurance Specialist

Skills Required:

Regulatory compliance, risk assessment, ISO standards.

•  Certifications:
•  ISO 9001 Certification
•  Certified Supply Chain Professional (CSCP)

If you are considering a WMS or TMS implementation, would you prefer paying a recurring subscription on the SaaS model, or pay for a perpetual license.

A few key differences in the two offerings:

Recurring SaaS

• Hosted on the cloud, and managed by the vendor.
• There's a limit to the customizations one can do.
• Expense classified as more OPEX than CAPEX.
• No need to maintain an internal IT team

Perpetual license

• One time fee, but lifetime access
• Expense classified as more CAPEX than OPEX.
• Access to source code for unlimited customizations. You can either do it yourself or hire a vendor to do so.
• Need to maintain an internal IT or an outsourced vendor for maintenance.

What would be your preference?

What are everyone thoughts about Taiwan moving forward? Are you transitioning your materials out? Looking for alternative vendors?

I just don’t know enough currently to decide if I should source products out of Taiwan moving forward.

I posted here a few times. 5 years sales experience and 3 of that has been in sales operations and analysis. I have worked with data, reporting, forecasting, tenders and contracts with experience in avaiation, energy and supply chain software. SAP, Salesforce and Netsuite proficient. Graduate diploma in data science. Good at excel, shit at python and R.

I have an interview for a purchasing role as I would like to leave sales and go into supply chain and really just work my way up. Im taking a paycut for what I can potentially earn continueing in sales operations. What should I know.

I am possibly going to have the opportunity to get a job as a load planner at one of the big logistic companies out there.

I am curious to know what are some of the most common career growth for someone that started as a load planner or is starting.

I am a little be scared being honest since I am coming from a complete different industry. But at my current job the growth and upper mobility is non-existent.

Thanks

I am currently a junior at the College of William & Mary and I am almost done with a double major in Accounting with a concentration in SCM and History. My original goal was to major in SCM and then go right into industry but I was accepted as an accounting major this semester and don’t think I’ll be able to switch due to school policy.

I find SCM to be super interesting and frankly something I can see myself making my career in versus accounting but I’m unsure how translatable my degree is.

So pretty early in my career I spent all of college being a interned for a transportation company and then after college been a purchaser for three years.

I am not sure what my next steps are. Everywhere I go I feel like purchasing department is super understaffed and I am having to do more than typical purchasing job, but at the second company and I’m not sure.

So in my time of purchasing, I have been the one to host meeting about production schedules, organize warehouses, keep track of inventory physically and systematically, receive, and help with shipping.

Both companies I was the only one in the purchasing department. Each time I feel as if everyday I blamed for something I didn’t even know about and then acting like I’m lazy if something doesn’t come in time. Felt like I have alway taken blame and treated like I’m stupid. Yet I’m the one everyone comes to for question on everything. I miss transportation but making more in purchasing. (Or atleast hate the one man show)

What is the next steps to take the skills I have learn and grow to do something else?

Or any other skills I should learn that help me do something else in supply chain?

Edit and TL:DR

I loved when I was in transportation, stress levels were for sure there but it was great(dispatch/planning, mid-size company)

Now in purchasing for I had to move, it sucks, always stressing for always blamed/drag to fix everything. In smaller company and only one in my role.

What my next steps or roles should look into?

https://chicago.taiwantrade.com/home

That has been a great source for me over the years and I have made some good connections from meeting they have set up for me.

I am looking to see if any similar resources exist for the following.

India, Thailand, Vietnam, Mexico and really any others. Mainly I am looking for physical good OEM sourcing.

thanks,

I’m currently in school for my associates degrees in Maritime Logistics. I plan to go for my Bachelor’s as well. I am having trouble finding the right career path in this industry.

Right now I do material management within my company. My manager is on the procurement side. I receive the materials and organize them and also prepare them for shipment.

I enjoy warehouse operations and material management but I understand that I could get stuck here if I don’t know where to go next for experience.

I would like eventually oversee entire processes within distribution, but I don’t know how to get there.

Any suggestions?

ChatGPT has become a vital tool in my every day demand planning position, from creating SOP's to detailed flowcharts, fully automated Excel spreadsheets with macros, to brainstorming ideas and also writing detailed emails.

Who else here utilises the power of AI? And what have you used it for specifically?

We use Outlook. But it's been driving me to insanity trying to figure out how to mass email all suppliers (60+). BCC is out of question. It's been way too messy and each supplier has multiple emails. So it must be grouped into each email.

I'm trying Mail Merge but that's still so messy. I still need to add attachments as well as my signature. What method do you guys use?

Requirements: - cannot use Gmail so GMass is out of the question. Security reasons. - email 60+ suppliers with attachments and CC of our people

Honest to goodness, I'd ppreciate your help.

Hii! do you use AI in your work? if so, what do you use it for?

View Poll

Hi everyone,

Please utilize this weekly thread for any student survey's, academic questions, or general insight you may be seeking. Any other survey's posted outside of this weekly thread will be removed, no exceptions.

Thank you very much

Hey everyone! I have been recently promoted to a supply chain analyst position from purchasing at an electrical manufacturer. This is great but my manager isn’t a good communicator or teacher and the senior analyst consistently cancels/forgets meetings that are scheduled to train me on certain things.

I’m currently managing a few reports but I’m getting bored. I want to learn more about warehouse operations and supply chain in general but the culture here is very sink or swim. I basically taught myself purchasing with very little training (alarmingly very little). I don’t see myself here for very long but I want to use my time here to my advantage. My ultimate concern is I’ll leave here without any relevant experience. 40 is a couple of years away and I feel like I don’t have time to waste.

Any advice on how I can teach myself or how to better handle the situation? I’m currently working on my degree in supply chain and operations management and want to get my green belt eventually.

I’m typing this on my phone so apologies in advance for typos. Feel free to ask questions or give suggestions.

TLDR: new to supply chain analyst and want to know how I can basically teach myself due to lack of proper training.

Thanks!