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The Adoption of Soft Skills in Supply Chain
The Adoption of Soft Skills in Supply Chain
Department of Business Administration, Liberty University
BUSI 613-D01: Supply Chain Management
Dr. Brooke Quigg
July 10, 2022
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The Adoption of Soft Skills in Supply Chain
Bak, O., Jordan, C., & Midgley, J. (2019). The adoption of soft skills in supply chain and
understanding their current role in supply chain management skills agenda: A UK
perspective. Benchmarking, 26(3), 1063-1079.
Author's Purpose
This article aims to evaluate and study the demand for soft skills in supply chain
management (Bak et al., 2019). A soft skill involves interpersonal relationships, human relations,
interpersonal skills, or behavior skills in the workplace, including leadership skills. (English
Version, n.d, Colossians 4:6) “Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that
you may know how you ought to answer each person”. The article highlights the contribution
that soft skills bring to the supply chain, such as behavioral and people management, through a
mixed-method study conducted in two phases (Bak et al., 2019).
However, there is limited research on soft skills, even though they are becoming
increasingly important. This limited research may be due to the difficulty of measuring soft
skills, as there is no accurate way to measure the skills themselves as opposed to hard skills
(Dubey & Gunasekaran, 2015). The objective is to identify the gap in soft skills and the degree to
which these skills are applied. Bak et al. (2019) believe it is necessary to have both hard skills
(functional) and soft skills (relational) to manage global supply chains successfully (Bak et al.,
2019). Moreover, the union of hard and soft skills will give managers a competitive advantage.
Application to Supply Chain Management
In this case, the application of supply chain management is talent management (Bak et
al., 2019). The principles of the talent supply chain are applied to talent management, where the
individual talent is represented as the product that moves through the supply chain, while
education and training provide the added value (Bak et al., 2019). To successfully integrate
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The Adoption of Soft Skills in Supply Chain
supply chains, Bak et al. (2019) note that supply chains require talent with interpersonal,
communication, collaborative, and sales skills.
Background of issue
Historically, supply chain literature has focused solely on hard skills, such as functional
and technical skills, since these skills are viewed as more applicable to employers' needs (Bak et
al., 2019). For instance, warehousing relies on hard skills to maximize flexibility, which is made
easier by technology (Liberty University, 2018). Technology has altered nearly all aspects of
warehouse operations by introducing new and more effective methods of storing and handling
goods (Liberty University, 2018). Moreover, Functional and management skills such as inventory
management, transportation management, and logistics service management have always been
intertwined with hard skills (Dubey & Gunasekaran, 2015). As a result, technical proficiency and
competence became a critical part of the job, making it easier for companies to measure (Bak et
al., 2019).
Today supply chains are growing in scope and scale, and soft skills are becoming
increasingly important (Bak et al., 2019). The concept of soft skills refers to skills associated
with relationships such as leadership, effective communication, collaboration, and coordination
(Dubey & Gunasekaran, 2015). According to Liberty University (2018), closer retailer-supplier
coordination on the supply chain is the model of the future and will ultimately determine which
companies survive and prosper in the new millennium. For example, soft skills are required in
strategic alliances. When a potential partner has been selected, agreements must be attained, and
both companies must make reasonable efforts to initiate the relationship effectively (Liberty
University, 2018). Bak et al. (2019) conveys those specific skills are required for supply chains
to operate successfully, such as decision-making, management, behavioral, and newly added
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The Adoption of Soft Skills in Supply Chain
negotiation skills. For this reason, managers implementing sustainability or managing sustainable
supply chain networks should combine hard skills with soft skills to maintain a competitive
advantage (Dubey & Gunasekaran, 2015).
Managerial Implications
Managers must be sensitive to both external and internal pressures when managing
supply chains. They must possess innovative skills in order to integrate sustainability within the
supply chains. It is crucial for supply chains to have managers who are able to comprehend the
business framework, have the skill and vision to revamp products, processes, and business
models in the right direction (Anon, 2014). Supply chain managers (SCM) must balance hard
analytical and technical capabilities with softer human and behavioral capabilities in order to
make integration work in a volatile business environment. The success of SCM is largely
dependent on the expertise of supply chain managers. They should be able to view the entire
supply chain as a web of interconnected processes, manage critical relationships, understand the
business model, and make informed decisions based on statistical analysis (Anon, 2014).
Unfortunately, research studies on the skills for sustainable supply chain managers
revealed minimum training frameworks that focused on developing sustainable supply chain
skills for managers (Anon, 2014). A manager today must be an effective team leader, possess
problem-solving capabilities, and have the skill to communicate effectively with people from
various levels and organizational structures (Anon, 2014). Human and behavioral components of
SCM have been largely neglected by organizations. Consequently, teaching soft skills is
problematic, since soft skills are acquired through less talk, more listening, and continuous
observation (Anon, 2014).
Summary
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The Adoption of Soft Skills in Supply Chain
An essential factor of a company's supply chain management's success is its ability to
collaborate effectively with partners to increase efficiency, drive costs down, and deliver value to
its customers (Bak et al., 2019). While supply chain literature emphasizes the importance of hard
skills, soft skills and their role in a successful supply chain are often overlooked (Bak et al.,
2019). As a result, examining the soft skills demand in the supply chain management field has
been initiated. In two phases, a mixed-methods study was conducted with 120 supply chain
employees and six supply chain experts (Bak et al., 2019). The study revealed that specific soft
skills are vital to the supply chain, including communication, planning, initiative, and negotiation
(Bak et al., 2019).
Due to the changing scope of the supply chain, different supply chain soft skills are in
high demand and growing at varying levels of importance relative to the 15 soft skills presented
in the literature (Bak et al., 2019). Since there is limited research into soft skills, there is no
objective method of testing soft skills as opposed to hard skills, so the requirements and
measurement of soft skills will vary depending upon the business environment (Anon, 2014).
Managers are not succeeding in the supply chain solely on hard skills therefore organizations
must add soft skills framework to management training. Again, further research must be
conducted on the role soft skills play in the supply chain and its effectiveness.
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The Adoption of Soft Skills in Supply Chain
References:
Anon. (2014). Getting to grips with global supply chain management: “Soft skills” shortages can
restrict revenue growth. Development and Learning in Organizations, 28(3), 21-
24. https://doi.org/10.1108/DLO-03-2014-0019
English Standard Version. (n.d.). English Standard Version Online.
https://www.biblestudytools.com/esv/matthew/22.html
Dubey, R., & Gunasekaran, A. (2015). Shortage of sustainable supply chain talent: an industrial
training framework. Industrial and Commercial Training, 47(2), 86-94. https://doi-
org.ezproxy.liberty.edu/10.1108/ICT-08-2014-0052
Liberty University (2018). Supply chain management (Custom ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-
Hill Create. ISBN Loose Leaf Print: 9781307611601. ISBN eBook: 9781307611458
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