Pan-Pacific Conference XXXIV. Designing New Business Models in Developing Economies

Figure 4: Competency of students
In 2016 respondents were asked what universities
could do to better prepare students for a career in the
supply chain industry. Respondents indicated a strong
need for more practical application as is indicated by
the three highest cited potential solutions, i.e. more
hands-on experience, interaction with practitioners
and industry thought leaders and exposure to realworld
examples through case study teaching. This
supports the findings on work experience (see Figure
1) where industry indicated a much higher need for
work place experience. The need to develop “soft”
skills was also noticeably highlighted and supports
the previous finding that the “soft” skills are those
most sought after in South African supply chains
today (see Table 1). This is illustrated in Figure 5.
CONCLUSION
The purpose of this paper was to assess whether or
not there are significant changes between
practitioners’ perceptions of workplace requirements
and whether educational programmes are meeting
industry requirements. Despite the indication that
filling positions may not be as problematic as it has
been in the past, it is still extremely difficult to find
the caliber of candidate to fulfil leadership roles in
supply chain organisations.
Fig 5: Skills requiring better preparation
This is further evidenced by the indication that
organisations are increasingly seeking better qualified
140
and more experienced resources to fill managerial
posts. The implication is that incumbents are
underequipped to perform at an appropriate level in
their current positions. This suggests that existing
supply chain education programmes are not providing
candidates with the required technical and “soft”
skills as well as practical experience demanded from
modern supply chains. This is supported by the
industry indication that candidates need to be better
prepared in almost all disciplines required for
effective supply chain practitioners. This research
thus suggests that, if supply chains are to be created
that can enhance global competiveness and
sustainability, supply chain education must be
relevant. This implies a review of existing service
offerings and consideration of the inclusion of “soft”
skill teaching and practical work experience. Further
research should therefore be focused on methods to
incorporate these aspects into university and other
trainings institutions’ curriculums. It is suggested that
failure to adapt education to modern supply chain
requirements will restrict South African supply
chains to being less than competitive in a globalised
economy.
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