Supply chain talent development: Is growth from within the right answer?

Filed in archive Point of view on April 17, 2008

In line with my earlier post about supply chain education and SCM job market "Supply Chain Education and Its Challenges", I decided to write a piece about supply chain talent market.

Many companies these days are looking for supply chain talent in the pool of the graduates from logistics programs. While I supported this strategy partly in my earlier post, I think we should apply kind of a hybrid strategy:

First of all, we should ask ourselves: What kind of competencies are we looking for in a supply chain professional? and then we should ask whether such capabilities and talents exist fully out there in colleges with SCM programs? The answer is "Not fully".

So what should we do? I read an interesting opinion in a blog by Michael Higgs: "I have to say that I am a big believer in promoting people from within your organizaiton...There are only two skills that I see that are really hard to train, so the candidate should possess them upon hire: leadership (some have it and others don't), and tenacity. Most other skills can be trained or learned (in my opinion)".

I don't know whether you agree with Michael's strategy or not. I myself think his point of view is strong but not for senior management positions.

Tell what do you think?