Supply Chain Talent. What Can I Do?

Yesterday, I spoke on the future of supply chain technology. At the end of the presentation, a white-haired, aging Caucasian man raised his hand to ask the question. It was simple, "How could he help to solve the issues with supply chain talent?" His firm, a metal stamping company that supplies to the automotive industry, is struggling to find employees for material planning and forecasting positions.

My reply was, "Do everything you can to educate. Go to high schools and share your experiences with supply chain management. Speak at local colleges. There is a belief that opportunity exist in the manufacturing sector, but too few understand opportunities in supply chain. The jobs have shifted...." He nodded his head in agreement as I continued, "We must remember, that the world that we know today as supply chain management is relatively new. It developed over our lifetime. We were first generation supply chain pioneers...."

I then stepped back on the stage, and faced the audience and said, "My second piece of advice is to embrace diversity." In the audience of 125, there were six women and two people of color. I smiled and looked back at the person that raised his hand and said, "Supply chain is too much about older white men. We need to be more inclusive." He laughed and agreed. I shared some of our recent research on diversity, and encouraged people to think differently and encourage diversity of age, sex, background, color, and thought. I challenged the person asking the question with the statement of, "When the room looks just like you, realize that you have a problem."

At the end of the session, a young man in his early thirties approached me, and said, "What you should have said to the man asking the question is to make millennials feel more wanted." With passion in his voice, he continued, "I am tired of my managers telling me that I remind them of their kids. I have worked in this field for eight years and I am looking for some respect." I stepped back. This hit home. I frequently think about my millennial employees in the frame of my children. While I never explicitly state that the employees remind me of my children, I manage them with a parenting frame of reference. It is hard for me to see myself as a baby boomer ready to retire. It seems like just yesterday that I was in my thirties.

The thin, blonde man in front of me was right. When I was in my thirties, I wanted a chance. My goal was to be rewarded for hard work. I would not have wanted to overcome the barrier of a prior generation that created a field of employment managing a new generation with a limited view. I thanked him for sharing his wisdom. He gave me a gift. I share it because it might help you as well.

Managing ourselves as we age is difficult. It is hard to accept that you are the senior citizen in the room. Let me give you an example. I recently hired a woman that I managed when she was in her early twenties. She asked to come back and work for me based on a posting on Linkedin. When she called, I was skeptical. In her twenties she was withdrawn, petulant and resisted change. I challenged her, and never thought she enjoyed working for me. In the interview, I was shocked to find that I was one of her mentors and favorite managers. When we talked over the phone to discuss the new position, it was hard for me to have an open mind and not characterize her based on my earlier frame of reference. The person that I was interviewing had grown up and matured in some very admirable ways. Her insights, compassion and management skills caused me to step back and re-frame my thinking. She had grown-up, and I had also.

Tonight, I am going to a reunion with employees that I worked with in my forties. Many of them lost their jobs in the downturn of technology segment and were forced to find alternative employment. The loss of the job with a company they liked with a great, principle-based workforce was a tough blow. The working environment and the job opportunity made it tough to leave. As a result, many were never able to find their feet again in the job market and still yearn for the good-old days when they worked for this prior firm. Aging also requires continual skill adaptability. We cannot get stuck in the past. When I catch the train home tonight, my reflections will be on helping teams to transition and land on their feet through job shifts.

So, if I had the opportunity to answer the man's question again, I would add three additional thoughts. My new answer would include:

• Be a constant learner. Help the team that you work with to learn continuously and be adaptable. Reward employees for giving back to the community and their field of work. Make your employees more employable. When you do this, it is contagious. They create passion in the industry.
• Make the workforce inclusive. Manage yourself and your biases as you age. There is a big difference between parenting and managing. Don't confuse the two. Millennials should never feel like they are talking to their parents when they are speaking to their managers.
• Never underestimate the meaningful impact that you can have on employees. In times of tight labor markets, invest in taking an employee that knows nothing about the position and train them. The fight is worth it.

What would have been your response?

For additional insights, check out our recent webinar, The Millennials Voice in Supply Chain.