Author: Sime Curkovic

From me: Everything has a supply chain? It’s a new world & that is all I am going to say… KALAMAZOO, Mich.—It’s no secret recreational cannabis sales in Michigan are continuing to climb.

From me: Everything has a supply chain? It's a new world & that is all I am going to say...KALAMAZOO, Mich.—It’s no secret recreational cannabis sales in Michigan are continuing to climb. With that growth, skilled marketers in the industry are now in high demand, and Western Michigan University students will soon be prepared to meet the need. The Haworth College of Business is offering a new cannabis marketing course starting in...

Also, employers beware – too much remote work for college grads & young professionals is VERY dubious territory for their professional development.

Live shot of campus: https://lnkd.in/eVAymYz. About 4,000 students will be living in on-campus housing this year! I will be fully back to normal w/ my students in a few days & I am very grateful after 2.5 years of less than normal. I actually returned to Face to Face teaching Fall 2021; however, teaching w/ a mask on was challenging (I completely took for granted the importance of facial expressions in...

Please consider opportunities at smaller firms so that you can get a lot of broader all encompassing complete enterprise cross functional work experience (i.e., a job that allows you to wear many different hats).

FYI: 60% of the US workforce is employed by a family-owned business. I have a former supply chain student that works for a small company. He does everything on the slide below. He is basically their VP of SCM and he reports directly to the owner. I have other students that work for VERY large companies & they only do one of the dots on the slide. In fact, they might only do a...

This commercial popped up on my computer & I could not stop watching. I might have to use this in my Intro to SCM class. Brilliant. I have not watched a 2 minute commercial since…ever?

This commercial popped up on my computer & I could not stop watching. I might have to use this in my Intro to SCM class. Brilliant. I have not watched a 2 minute commercial since…ever? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDuwGZcfz0I 11 trendy things we are doing in the WMU supply chain program (maybe create a funny commercial)… 1. Getting hit w/ a price increase? We will be looking at raw material market data from multiple...

Required reading for all SCM managers, faculty, & students? 2021 White House Report on “supply chain resilience” (Warning: this is 250 pages)…And do not forget these 6 other SCM reports:

Required reading for all SCM managers, faculty, & students? 2021 White House Report on “supply chain resilience” (Warning: this is 250 pages)...And do not forget these 6 other SCM reports: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6962752404496793600?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop Exactly one year after President Biden signed Executive Order 14017 on America's Supply Chains, the White House unveiled its Plan to Revitalize American Manufacturing and Secure Critical Supply Chains in 2022 and released six additional supply chain reports in the following areas: 1.  The...

Recessions tend to be very bad for college grads. However…

If you look at this 2020-2030 job growth chart closely, all things supply chain related scored VERY well (i.e., operations & logistics).  https://www.visualcapitalist.com/the-20-fastest-growing-jobs-in-the-next-decade/ Basically, we are going to see 20-30% growth in SCM jobs over the next decade. Also, the jobs in SCM pay VERY well. Lastly, the data science jobs scored off the charts in growth & pay. So, SCM + data science = jobs & $. Finally, automation is killing all...

It’s the droughts! Climate is ‘the No. 1 reason why food prices go up:

It’s the droughts! Climate is ‘the No. 1 reason why food prices go up: https://lnkd.in/gRumzRa8. https://www.visualcapitalist.com/visualising-the-greenhouse-gas-impact-of-each-food/ WMU launches food marketing graduate certificate. FMK + SCM = Jobs: https://lnkd.in/gBfwKyUA. Double Majors: Food & Consumer Packaged Goods Marketing (FMK) + Supply Chain = Multiple Job Offers (i.e., Stryker, J & J, Kellogg’s, Hormel, Pepsico, Coca-Cola, etc.). See also post from David Shillingford: https://lnkd.in/gie_uGvm WMU FMK: Ranked Top 10, WMU SCM: Ranked Top 10https://lnkd.in/ec9fQuahttps://lnkd.in/eRWMVP6https://lnkd.in/e9j33EQ I am...

Hottest MBA Degree Now? Supply Chain Management. That darn MBA degree still has a great ROI!

Hottest MBA Degree Now? Supply Chain Management. That darn MBA degree still has a great ROI!...“Over their lifetime, an MBA graduate can expect to earn $3 million more than someone with only a bachelor’s degree.” When is the right time for grad school? The avg age is 33. I find the age stat to not be too meaningful. For anyone <33, you will likely be the first centurion generation. That means you will live...

I just did this in class. Do you understand exchange rates & how it impacts Supply Chain Management? Many struggle. Let’s practice-

I just did this in class. Do you understand exchange rates & how it impacts Supply Chain Management? Many struggle. Let's practice- https://lnkd.in/eHNiCXrm Let’s say you just graduated from a SCM program. You have accepted a job offer from Boeing as a Buyer in Seattle. You will help Boeing identify suppliers to help meet its material needs. You must immediately find a supplier which can supply Boeing with electrical wiring harnesses. You find a supplier...

Roughly 43% of the world’s oil production came from just three countries in 2021—the U.S., Saudi Arabia, & Russia. Together, these 3 produced more oil than the rest of the top 10 combined.

Look closely. I think I understand this. AMERICA (not Saudi Arabia) makes more oil per day than any other country (by far!). Here’s the problem, we consume more oil than we make (around -2M barrels/day). Also, that non-American oil is cheaper than American oil for Americans! Further, American refineries have to turn that oil into things like gasoline, heating oil, jet fuel, etc. Our refineries are at full capacity & are...