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Managing tariffs in the supply chain: To mitigate these risks, companies can integrate solutions into their supplier agreements, even allowing for real-time adjustments based on tariff fluctuations. By tying contract pricing to recognized indices, such as commodity exchange data and/or Bureau of Labor Statistics figures (i.e., PPI for relevant metal categories such as aluminum and steel), organizations can create structured, transparent mechanisms for cost-sharing.

The Top Import Partner of Every U.S. State: https://lnkd.in/eKT767J9. Check out Michigan...Top import customer: Mexico, 44% of total state imports?! $70B. You would think Michigan borders Mexico. American automotive OEMs and suppliers? In one of my supply chain classes, we discussed economic price adjustments and indexing, and a student asked how tariffs could be captured in a similar way. This led to a conversation about how the strategies outlined in our...

Will AI really kill the tools we teach like Excel? From 2020, notice where AI was on the list. We are still holding firm on Predictive Data Analytics, ranked #2! Every WMU SCM major now has to take this class (Excel on steroids). Our Business Analytics minor teaches Big Data w/ skill sets such as:

Will AI really kill the tools we teach like Excel? From 2020, notice where AI was on the list. We are still holding firm on Predictive Data Analytics, ranked #2! https://lnkd.in/gthyAWf3. Every WMU SCM major now has to take this class (Excel on steroids). Our Business Analytics minor teaches Big Data w/ skill sets such as: 1. Advanced Excel (power query & pivot) & macros;2. Data visualization (Tableau, Power BI...
Sime Curkovic Free Content

My SCM students often ask: What earnings can I expect in my career if it goes well? Elon Musk says: “You get paid in direct proportion to the difficulty of the problems you solve”. Another lesser known manager told my students: “The critical factor for this salary gap is that if you reach 35-ish years old and have never led a team, then it’s *extremely* difficult to move up to the next level.” Tons of data out there to be had and make sense of…

Winter NACE 2024 Salary Survey: https://lnkd.in/eJJCfx5c. My students love salary data…The 10 Highest-Paying Supply Chain Jobs: https://lnkd.in/e35zVDv4. As part of the 2023 survey, ASCM looked at salary ranges by title. Based on the data, the top 10 non-executive supply chain titles by their median salaries were:Demand planner: $78,375Supply chain analyst: $78,400Master scheduler: $81,500Purchasing manager: $90,000Inventory manager: $93,000Logistics manager: $100,000Procurement manager: $104,000Materials manager: $110,342Supply chain manager: $114,750Supply chain director: $145,000My SCM students often ask: What earnings can I expect in my career...
Sime Curkovic Free Content

SCM 101

Pasted below are the 3 lecture videos that I have sent in previous emails just in case you missed class or need to hear it again.   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MrBN_T9ogao&t=424shttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ay2orDXjP8o&t=8shttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T5SD4ugLMks&t=107sPasted below are practice exam questions (with the answers provided).  Note, you will not see these exact same questions on your exam (that would make it way too easy).  However, if you know the correct answer for the questions AND know why it is the...
Sime Curkovic Free Content

Speaking of negotiation, here is my slide deck on Negotiation from the 1990s…I used to pack this into one class. Now, every WMU Supply Chain major has to take an entire course on Global Negotiation. Why? Industry asked us to. It is our fastest growing class. Note: my students go into “buyer” roles VERY early on in their careers (it often gets built into their job rotations). However, the supplier sales rep on the other side of the table is not early in their career (they often have > 10-20 years, if not more, work experience). So, LEARN to negotiate! Hint, use data.

Speaking of negotiation, here is my slide deck on Negotiation from the 1990s: https://lnkd.in/ebFG4Qbg. I used to pack this into one class. Now, every WMU Supply Chain major has to take an entire course on Global Negotiation. Why? Industry asked us to. It is our fastest growing class. Thank you Dr. James Eckert! See his 1 page cheat sheet at the end of the slide deck. Note: my students go into “buyer” roles...
Sime Curkovic Free Content

Our new “apprenticeship” program: We concluded a co-op pilot program with a F500 company that was highly successful and has started its second iteration in. So, what makes this Co-op program different…

Our new "apprenticeship" program: We concluded a co-op pilot program with a F500 company that was highly successful and has started its second iteration in 2024. So, what makes this Co-op program different: https://lnkd.in/eGex9fzK. It is based on the European apprentice programs, whereby students work part time as an integral part of their studies. The advantages are that students learn from hands-on experience, while also earning college credits. It is not students with...
Sime Curkovic Free Content

Should college grads negotiate a job offer (i.e., a higher starting salary)? Yes, but only if you know how to negotiate. I do have students that get offers in the $60K-$70K range & many successfully negotiate up to $65K-$80K. That is a 10-30% bump before you even start! Many people have to work a few years to get that bump.

Students:These links will take you to salary data at MSU and Indiana. As you can see, your starting salaries are right in line with the Big Ten schools.  MSU 2023 Salary Data (for all business majors):https://broad.msu.edu/app/uploads/2024/01/Broad-Class-of-2023-UG-Results.pdf Alert from NACE: Students that get internships (you need to pass a drug test), get more job offers and they earn WAY more: Indiana University Salary Data 2023:Supply chain and operations management salary statistics, Class...
Sime Curkovic Free Content

From a colleague (this is gold): “Ideas for Using AI in Class Planning As educators, we’re constantly thinking about how we can keep our students engaged with interesting and relevant assignments. But crafting really engaging ones that also mimic the complex, real-world problems students will face as professionals can be laborious. In this article, Harvard Publishing shares how generative AI can help you create assignments that are more relevant and powerful for your students—and more efficient to produce.

From a colleague (this is gold): "Ideas for Using AI in Class Planning As educators, we’re constantly thinking about how we can keep our students engaged with interesting and relevant assignments. But crafting really engaging ones that also mimic the complex, real-world problems students will face as professionals can be laborious. In this article, Harvard Publishing shares how generative AI can help you create assignments that are more relevant and...

Top 25 School Rankings 2024: Gartner has ranked the WMU SCM program yet again (15 years running).

Top 25 School Rankings 2024: Gartner has ranked the WMU SCM program yet again (15 years running). Thank you to all the alumni and friends of the program that stay engaged w/ us & keep giving back. We are very grateful & you are a huge part of this ranking. It is our hope that we keep adding “value” to your degree. Now, go brag a little. For the full report: https://www.simecurkovic.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/GartnerSlides2024aaaaa.pdf...

70% of new supplier agreements contain inflation driven economic adjustment clauses with the use of indices being the most common. It might be time for price risk sharing in buyer-supplier relationships. Has Strategic Cost Mgmt (i.e., Price Analysis) become a lost art? Tools we use to teach this:

Case study reports and presentations: https://www.simecurkovic.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/CoverCurkovicPriceRIskSCMR2024.pdf https://bt.e-ditionsbyfry.com/publication/?i=821164&p=34&view=issueViewer https://www.simecurkovic.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/SimeCurkovicASCMPresentation2023a.pdf https://www.simecurkovic.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Things-to-do-today-SCM-v5-1a.pdf 70% of new supplier agreements contain inflation driven economic adjustment clauses with the use of indices being the most common. https://lnkd.in/g_ByzrNU. It might be time for price risk sharing in buyer-supplier relationships. Has Strategic Cost Mgmt (i.e., Price Analysis) become a lost art? Tools we use to teach this: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/sime-curkovic-61617a115_scm-procurement-inflation-activity-7039957830296100864-wujy?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop. We are teaching our students to look at raw material market data from...