Considering a career in supply chain management?
Dive into the world of supply chain success with Alma Arzate as your expert guide!
This video covers everything from the fundamentals of supply chain management to essential tips and key traits.
Join us as we discuss crucial qualities for hiring and receive tailored advice just for you. Don’t miss out—watch now and elevate your expertise in supply chain management!
Rob: One of the most popular topics on this channel is career tips, and we’ve got some more coming up this week with a special guest, Alma Arzate. Alma, welcome! It’s so great to have you with us this week. You have a very illustrious supply chain career, don’t you? So let me see if I can get this right. You can test my knowledge. You’re from Mexico originally, you’re now living in Canada. You’ve worked with a whole bunch of different supply chain companies, and you’re currently with Apotex, in the pharmaceutical industry. Is that right?
Alma: Ah, 5 out of 5, Rob. Perfect score!
Rob: There we go and a very, very senior director position in supply chain. So we’re hoping to get some tips from you on supply chain careers this week. I know you’re really focused on mentoring people in your own organization and in the broader industry. So if you had some tips for people getting into supply chain and those who are in supply chain progressing their careers, what would those be?
Alma’s Career and Introduction to Supply Chain Management
Alma: That’s a great question. First of all, before we just jump into the topic, let me offer a thank you for this invitation to share my thoughts, my advice with the supply chain secrets community and thanks to all of you in the audience that are making the time in your busy life to watch this episode today. So, thank you for that! Now, let’s talk about progression in supply chain careers. I will share my perspective after a 25-year career across the automotive, electronics, medical device, consumer packaged goods, and pharmaceutical industries. So to your point, Rob, I’ve been in multiple companies, multiple sectors, and definitely multiple countries.
Before we dive into the tips, let’s start by defining supply chain management. When you hear about it for the first time, it can be a bit confusing until you realize how much we rely on it and the daily impact it has on almost every aspect of our lives. We have the food, electronics, pharmaceuticals, and many other products made available by means of a supply chain. Supply chain management is the interconnected network of activities that creates and distributes value-added products and services to end consumers. Currently, we’re experiencing and expecting an even bigger shortage of supply chain talent.
Importance of Supply Chain Certifications
As a leader, it’s a priority to find and retain supply chain professionals. For people entering this sector, you’ll find that you’re not limited to just one position or industry. I’ve been in 5 industries and had 18 roles within supply chain, so you’re not confined to a single path. Certifications are essential. For example, CPM, CPIM, and CSCP certifications from the Association of Supply Chain Management (ASM) can help you take on more advanced roles. Education and certifications provide access to a library and body of knowledge that is crucial for career advancement.
Key Traits for Supply Chain Success
Beyond formal education, several key traits are crucial for success in supply chain. My favorite ones are resiliency, initiative, drive for results, a high sense of urgency, and perseverance in the face of challenges. Because guess what? You want to have a lot of challenges in the supply chain and problem-solving skills because you cannot just have the challenges. You also have to solve them, right? So try to support and I will say collaborate well with others. When you’re in companies, build strong and mutually beneficial relationships. I’m always asking people what can I do for you without any agenda, anything to gain here but guess what happened, Rob. When I need something from those folks that I helped, they reciprocate. Along the way, they reciprocate, right? So it’s really like being a good human, you know. It’s really like being a good peer.
Rob: It’s a great habit to get into and I think, you know, without any expectation of something in return because, you know, it’s karma down the track. Somebody will step up and help you. Yeah, it’s like paying it forward.
Alma: Absolutely! Like I always say to my team, deposit in the bank account, right? Deposit, deposit, deposit, eventually you might need to withdraw. But then what happens is people are very much like really ready to help me, right? So that’s something that I have learned so continuous improvement. I talked about that. So always try to look for ways to improve processes, systems, develop people in terms of innovation, figuring out creative ways to overcome obstacles, getting through the goal line. Of course, with a lot of work, it’s going to be a lot of work to be honest like determination. Something that we’re not very good at, Rob is help from others, at least others are your allies. You don’t have to get through the goal line by yourself. You can get through the goal line with a team of 10 people, 15 people, and you know, make them all feel like winners, even if they’re not in your department. You’re partnering with finance, you’re partnering with your product launch, you’re partnering with regulatory affairs or global information services. This is your team. You cannot just have… I cannot just have global supply chain logistics winning all the time without sharing those wins with the people around me, right? So maybe try to develop a reputation or being someone that shares the wins, right? Someone that is relied upon in high pressure situations and that, I think that’s actually going to help you propel your career.
Rob: Yeah! I love those tips, Alma! You really encapsulated those so well. You know, I’m curious, I’m sure we’ve both hired a lot of people. Hopefully, we haven’t fired too many because if we hire right we don’t end up firing too many.
Alma: Sometimes, sometimes I had to. I have to be honest with you but you know, it’s like…
Rob: Sometimes you make a bad call.
Alma: Yeah!
Rob: But you know, when I’m hiring, I think you know what you’ve said is there’s some great qualities there that we’re looking for, you know, the certifications, the formal education is great. You kind of have to have that, always hire for attitude though because I think…
Alma: 100%.
Rob: You know you can train people, but you know all of these traits that you came up with so much of that is around attitude and I think that’s really the golden nugget that I’m always looking for. Is this person really gonna have the energy and drive to do well in the organization?
Alma: And you know what? You’re just touching something so important. This attitude, I think feeds the resilient aspect because on your way to getting to leadership role and I need to make sure that the audience understands this. You are going to make mistakes, okay. I know it’s going to be hard but it’s inevitable. You’re going to make mistakes. I have made many mistakes in my life and my professional life. And you know what? It’s not that I love them, but I do have to take accountability, when I make a mistake, right? So, something that I have learned over the last few years is more like not to dwell on your stumbles because ruminating, right? Being harsh on yourself is not productive and to be fair, looking at my history, it has never helped me solve any issues, you know, like ruminating and being in a corner and being like down on myself or kicking myself when I’m already down. So, try to give yourself the grace, the space to take a challenging experience as an opportunity to learn and then just reflect. Reflect on what you can do next time to not put yourself in that position again, because at the end of the day, it’s not about how many times you fall, but about how many times you stand up after you fall. So just keep standing up, dust off, keep walking, right? Because otherwise it is very nonproductive to be dwelling on things that already happened.
Watch the complete video for more tips and insights.
You can connect and follow Alma on LinkedIn. Here’s the linked: https://www.linkedin.com/in/almaarzate/
Related articles on this topic have appeared throughout our website, check them out:
- 7 Key Supply Chain Leaders’ Skills and Why You Need Them
- Pursuing a Career in Logistics and Supply Chain
- Supply Chain Education: What Skills Do Your Staff Need?
- Jobs and Career Paths in Supply Chain and Logistics
- The Supply Chain Workforce – Where is It?
