An efficient supply chain is the backbone of any modern business, and to manage the operations, every organisation needs a capable team, a team that has the right blend of youthfulness and experience. Since this team will be primarily responsible for sourcing the material for production to distribution, firms look for managers who will be able to handle the team and achieve the goals set by the firm.
Hence, there is a great demand for expert supply chain managers who can handle all the operations in an organised and efficient manner. This is why it is the right time to begin a career in supply chain and operations.
What is supply chain management?
According to a Fortune magazine report, the entire logistics industry is worth USD 1.3 trillion. However, there is a manpower crisis that the supply chain industry is facing. There is an average requirement of 1.4 million new supply chain workers. It means that there are a lot of opportunities for the right candidate. All they need to do is complete their chief supply chain and operations officers course.
Since there is a wide range of jobs after pursuing the programme, the students need to simply fulfil the academic and professional prerequisites before they apply for a job in supply chain management.
The different sectors in supply chain management
There are various sectors in supply chain management in which candidates can search for a job. These sectors are:
- Aviation
- Manufacturing and distribution sector
- Logistics companies
- Shipping corporations
Candidates can choose jobs for designations like Supply Chain Manager or Supply Chain Director, or they can also choose to work as a purchase manager of a supply chain or a strategic planner and can even choose to manage the inventory. The average annual salary of a supply chain manager is in the range of ₹8 to ₹10 Lakhs.
How is supply chain management important for all industries?
Supply chain optimization helps in business transformation. Companies like Apple and Amazon have re-designed the usual supply chain formula for removing bottlenecks like inventory stagnation and lower prices to gain an edge over the competitors.
Another example in this regard would be DHL, which was able to challenge the old paperwork-based system of processing border checks. They changed the norm by sending the customer's paperwork before the delivery of the package. This helped to quicken the delivery process. In both the cases mentioned here, efficient and well-designed supply chain management came to the rescue of the customer and company both. It helped them to save time and money and saved both the company and the customer a great deal of time and money and saved them from any type of hassles.
Prerequisites for applying for the chief supply chain officer course
There are multiple prerequisites for entering the field of supply chain and management. There is academic and professional eligibility that a candidate needs to fulfil. These criteria are mentioned below:
Academic prerequisites
If you want to begin chief supply chain and operations officers online training, then the academic eligibility criteria are:
- You need to have completed a 3-year bachelor's degree course. The academic aggregate can differ as per different college/university requirements. The college or university should be a recognised one. Also, make sure that you have scored the minimum percentage that the institute has mentioned.
- Candidates should be from a science or commerce background, preferably. You can have a Physics/Maths/Statistics/Economics/B.Sc (PCM)/B.E/B.Tech. Although there are no educational criteria, having this background will help the candidate grasp the course content easily.
- If candidates have an understanding of optimisation techniques in business and know about project planning and cost efficiency, then it would be highly helpful.
- Any additional qualification like SAP (CRM) would also be helpful for the candidate to have a better understanding of the course.
Professional prerequisites
- Prior experience in the supply chain is highly beneficial for students as they will be able to understand job-related concepts better than the rest as they have hands-on knowledge.
- APICS, CPIM or CSCP certifications help to understand supply chain management extensively.
- Proficiency in MS Excel is necessary because it helps in inventory management.
- A supply chain manager should also understand Databases, Charts and Graphs.
Conclusion
Building a career in supply chain and operations is not a massive hurdle anymore. You can do it with the help of a simple course from leading educational institutions like Imarticus Learning. Here, you can enrol for Professional Certification in Supply Chain Management and Analytics, which the faculty of the IIT Roorkee teach. Besides an extensive program from experienced industry professionals, you will also receive placement assistance from them, which will help you find the next step in your career.
