Supply Chain Salary Insights

US-CHINA TRADE WAR ACCELERATES MAJOR DECLINE IN TRADITIONAL SUPPLY CHAIN ROLES

For supply chain businesses, the ambitious ‘Made in China 2025’ scheme launched by the Chinese government in 2015 has continued to open up requirements for a new range of professionals. The initiative aims to move production in the country away from traditional outputs such as fashion items and phones, and towards new high-tech industries such as quantum computing and self-driving cars.

The ongoing US-China trade war has only accelerated these efforts, resulting in the massive decline of traditional supply chain and procurement roles in the market. Instead, there has been a rise in preference for candidates with sourcing experience in Southeast Asian countries. Government subsidies have also allowed organisations to make heavy investment in research and development. These changes have created a new demand for professionals in these functions and who can also guide the industry through this period of transformation.

Roles like demand planners, supply chain analysts and logistics analysts are highly sought after as they can assist companies in moving away from manual processes and towards automation that can serve larger scales and lower production costs.

CANDIDATES VALUE STABILITY OVER PAY

While the changes within the industry are rapid, pay packages are failing to keep pace with those of IT and e-commerce businesses that are also looking for similar talent. The turbulent climate has also caused candidates to become more cautious when considering a job change. Instead of looking for an immediate big jump in salary, candidates now place higher value on job security, stability and long-term career development.