Need Supply Chain Staff? Hire Gamers

Editor’s Note: Terri Hiskey, is VP of SCM Product Marketing, Oracle

The current labor shortage is nothing new for supply chain organizations, which have struggled to attract enough younger workers as more and more Baby Boomers retire.

And the pandemic gave that labor shortage risk a new sense of urgency, as it put supply chains under a glaring spotlight. People came to understand not only how vital supply chains are, but that they are also intricately interconnected, incredibly complex, ever-changing puzzles.

So here’s an idea. Perhaps it’s time for supply chain organizations to start actively recruiting from some of the world’s best puzzle solvers: gamers.

Supply chains are very similar to the worlds that gamers face every day on their screens. The games they play are problem-solving exercises on steroids. Gamers must glean information from a range of sources and constantly adapt tactics and strategies on their quest, often teaming up with virtual teammates (or leading virtual teams) to get to the next level. They find and exploit patterns, remotely control robots and vehicles, bring multitasking to whole new levels, and keep their focus on the desired outcome.

It’s a perfect match. And with the general public’s worldwide focus on supply chains, it’s also a big opportunity to entice more young workers with great skillsets into the industry.

But there’s one more big reason gamers might be drawn to the world of supply chains: it’s where they can get their hands on some of the most innovative technology around, like augmented reality, robots, and AI.

Entice Workers With a Tech Future
While the pandemic exposed the weak links in many organizations’ supply chains, it may have also accelerated the industry’s move toward modern systems—including fascinating applications for emerging tech. For example, manufacturers had to quickly implement social distancing for their essential workers, and that often required reconfiguring the factory floor. Some used augmented technology to plan out these changes, so they could see how it would work before they went to the trouble of pushing their machines apart and moving heavy equipment from one place to another.

Virtual and augmented reality were already proving their value in other areas of supply chain, like equipment maintenance. When a machine needs repair, innovative organizations use the technology to ensure the technician they send has the right parts and tools for the job—and once onsite, to provide guidance from a senior technician back at the company’s headquarters.

Employees in supply chain organizations are also at the forefront of using sensors, Internet of Things (IoT) technology, AI, and data analytics to help organizations dramatically improve operations and advance sustainability initiatives. These technologies can help employees prevent equipment breakdowns, optimize delivery routes, reduce waste of perishable products, cut inventory costs, and improve workplace safety.

On the floor in many factories, employees manage robots on the assembly line and use AI and IoT to quickly identify production problems. Instead of searching for hard-to-source and often costly parts for older machinery, they can now create replacement parts with 3D printers. In the warehouse, inventory can now be measured not by people scanning barcodes, but by controlling drones that count items as they fly by shelves.

The supply chain sector provides a real-world proving ground for the latest technology. That gives supply chain organizations an incredible opportunity to attract younger employees—and will especially appeal to those with unique skillsets honed by years of navigating complex game challenges.

Younger Workers’ Priorities
People in early stages of their careers want to work for organizations that give them experience they can build upon. They won’t see old-school systems, paper spreadsheets, and manual processes as a springboard to professional growth.

Younger generations also want to work for organizations that are committed to environmental issues, and the supply chain is on the front lines of sustainability. A strong corporate mandate to meet stringent sustainability goals will go a long way in attracting employees for supply chain roles. But you can’t manage what you can’t see, and new technologies give organizations visibility into environmental impact and connect the dots to make meaningful improvements.

Consider the appeal of logistics. The supply chain professionals who manage the transport of products from factories or warehouses to customers are really playing the most complex game of Tetris imaginable, loading trucks as efficiently as possible and in a way that minimizes fuel usage and emissions. They design and redesign routes and delivery schedules based on a constant barrage of data—and increasingly tap powerful machine learning capabilities to identify the best course of action.

Modern technology is key to all of this, bringing together the relevant data in an easy-to-use dashboard so that employees can make decisions quickly. For example, the system might send an alert that a shipment of supplies is going to be late to a factory in Germany—and with access to comprehensive information, an employee can analyze whether replacing those parts with others from a supplier further away makes sense in terms of cost, production schedules, carbon footprint, and other dimensions.

Expanding the Labor Pool
Companies that use modern systems in their supply chain will have an easier time attracting younger employees, and they’ll be able to recruit from a larger labor pool.

For many of these roles, a college degree isn’t necessary. What’s crucial is critical thinking skills. Supply chain organizations need employees who can quickly analyze what’s happening and weigh the options, consequences, and ramifications of each potential action. Those are skills that come with practice and experience.

Of course, gamers are just one example of a potential labor pool that organizations may be overlooking. As jobs on the factory or warehouse floor shift away from physical labor and heavy lifting to operating robots and drones and managing self-driving vehicles, those roles can be filled by a more diverse group of employees, including older workers and those with physical disabilities.

There has truly never been a more exciting time to be in the supply chain sector. For innovative supply chain organizations, it’s a huge opportunity to bring in a new generation of tech-savvy employees ready for the challenges ahead.

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