Press & Media

Learning for Life

June 2008 · Inbound Logistics · By Tamara Chapman

Logistics professionals who pursue continuing education keep up with industry innovations and move ahead in their careers.

{Excerpts from original article}

Logistics and supply chain management is a rapidly changing landscape that will present increasingly complex challenges.

To meet those challenges, logistics professionals need to stay on top of trends and ahead of the curve. They need to understand their own corporate realm and the greater context in which they work. They need to be generalists and specialists, critical thinkers and problem solvers.

They need to be lifelong students.

Logistics professionals face career stagnation if they fail to keep learning. What's more, they could compromise the performance of their companies and the health of the U.S. economy, says Abe Eshkenazi, CEO of APICS The Association for Operations Management.

Ongoing training is so important that Eshkenazi ranks it first among his top five tips -- before networking, developing expertise, sharing information, and taking pride in work -- for how supply chain professionals can succeed in today's economy.

Continuing education is especially critical now that the economy is faltering, Eshkenazi adds. If businesses are to innovate and increase efficiency, they need educated professionals poised to harness new technology and implement new strategies.

"Professional development gives companies a competitive edge," he says. "Organizations that invest in training their employees tend to be more successful than those that don't."

Nonetheless, professional development budgets are often at risk when business declines.

"When manufacturing companies hit tough economic times, they tend to cut back on discretionary spending," Eshkenazi says. "They complain that trained employees become more knowledgeable, build their resumes, and go job hunting. But the flip side is, employees who are not trained, stay."

And that could subject the company to substandard performance.
Like Eshkenazi, Frank Breslin, dean of the New Jersey-based Institute for Logistical Management (ILM) sees professional development as an imperative for the logistics segment, noting that ILM enrolls students from more than 40 countries.

Each of them will put their new knowledge and skills to work for their employers, making the marketplace that much more competitive.

"The thirst for logistics knowledge and skills is more critical today than ever before," Breslin says, "and it will continue to increase exponentially."

To quench that thirst, logistics professionals can dip into an increasing variety of opportunities. Their options range from hour-long brown-bag webinars hosted by trade associations to long-term university-level certificate programs that build expertise while providing resume credentials.

Students can take courses at night, on weekends, online, or in traditional classrooms -- whatever suits their learning styles and accommodates their busy schedules.

Students can even mix and match, opting for what Eshkenazi calls "a blended learning opportunity," in which, say, an online course is complemented by an on-site workshop that affords the chance for students and teachers to troubleshoot scenarios.

Trade associations cater to those who need maximum flexibility, providing a wide array of schedule-sensitive education opportunities. Developed in response to member needs, much of the programming is application-based training that can be put to immediate use.

In contrast, university programs emphasize the theoretical foundation and big-picture framework necessary for strategic thinking and planning.

In classroom programs, students should look not just to their instructors but also to their peers for advice, insight, and access to opportunities. Continuing education classes are filled with working professionals whose on-the-job experiences are as instructive as any textbook.

Dana Regan: Certification Jump-starts a Budding Career

When Dana Regan graduated from Villanova University with a double major in accounting and marketing, her degree provided the perfect ticket to a decent first job.

Today, the 25-year-old is counting on a certificate in transportation logistics to pave the way for success in her second job.

That job -- which she expects to keep indefinitely -- is with the firm her father founded, TranzAct Technologies Inc., an Elmhurst, Ill.-based, privately held company specializing in logistics management solutions. At TranzAct, Regan divides her time between operations and sales in the truckload brokerage department.

With her father, Michael, serving as TranzAct's CEO and chairman of the board and her mother, Jean, as company president, Regan has had ample opportunity to boost her business expertise simply by attending family dinners. Fittingly, it was her parents who urged her to pursue additional education.

After exploring her options, Regan enrolled in a certificate program managed by the American Society of Transportation and Logistics (AST&L). The certificate is awarded to students who successfully complete six out of eight modules on international transportation, logistics, and supply chain management.

"My dad is involved in AST&L, and when I joined TranzAct, he encouraged me to earn this certificate," Regan says.

She has been working on the certificate for nearly two years and expects to finish in fall 2008. During that time, she says, she has acquired a broader view of the industry, one that helps her understand the context shaping day-to-day business realities.

For example, a study of the TranzAct books might reveal that truck traffic peaks in one season and slows in another. "But on the job," she says, "you don't learn what causes those peaks and valleys."

Regan opted to earn her certification by taking intensive all-day classes offered in weekend sessions at the University of North Texas, Dallas. She prefers this concentrated experience to the alternatives -- night classes, occasional seminars, or self-paced sessions with textbooks and workbooks.

"I'm a classroom person. I like having access to an instructor and resources," she explains, noting that the out-of-town location allows her to escape the demands of her job and concentrate fully on the course content.

At a recent computer-based session on logistics analysis, for example, she was able to ask the instructors to help her over some hurdles.

"It was great because the resources were at my fingertips, and the instructors walked me through my questions," she recalls. Because the session lasted several hours, Regan was able to absorb and process the information thoroughly.

And that meant she was able to put her new knowledge to work almost immediately. In fact, Regan says, her freshly honed data-analysis skills make her a more confident and informed sales associate.

When she can analyze a potential client's logistics data and show, numerically, how a partnership with TranzAct can increase profitability, decision makers take notice.

"People are motivated by numbers. Presenting hard data is more persuasive than vague offers of cost-savings," she explains.

As much as she has benefited from the instruction, Regan has also learned from her classmates, many of whom have more experience and are willing to stay in touch by email. That translates to networking opportunities and troubleshooting resources.

Thanks to her instructors and classmates, Regan believes she has a better grasp of the family business and a deeper understanding of the logistics world. Armed with that knowledge, she's ready to make the most of her second job.