Career Wise: A Guide to Becoming Supply Chain Finance Professional

This week let’s explore a career in Supply Chain Finance

Since the beginning of time, humanity has had the need to move resources, goods, and people from one place to another efficiently, so that people get to access the products they need. The modern world is no different, and incredible technological breakthroughs have only made connecting the world to its

manufactured goods easier. However, someone must oversee this process to boost productivity, cut expenses, and expedite delivery – a task tailor-made for supply chain managers.

A recently developed supply chain management discipline, supply chain finance

(SCF), has the potential to benefit millions of businesses and resolve their pain

points. A lot many of these pain points arise due to a lack of fixed collateral and a

lack of available credit products from financial institutions.

SCF experts are required where the performance of enterprises in the supply chain is dependent on the creditworthiness of both buyers and suppliers. We have identified four crucial skills here to help you make it in almost every supply chain finance job listing.

Budgeting

A daily to-do list for an SCF specialist includes: reading financials to be familiar with balance sheets, enabling spending projections to stay within the budget while providing financing to suppliers before the shipment of products, and also offering appropriate solutions to the target company. Most MBA programs, financial analyst degree programs, and business programs incorporate mathematics or statistics courses, that allow you to develop financial/budgeting skills.

Negotiating

Negotiation requires tact and perseverance. Communication, strategizing, planning, and cooperating make you a good negotiator. You can take specific certification courses or in-person or online workshops to assist you with the team and one-on-one negotiation strategies.

Networking

The SCF expertise domain includes internal reporting requirements that necessitate consistent communication amongst stakeholders. Preparing and presenting findings to C-suite level management is required for reporting financial transactions, revenue, expenses, and planning. Understanding challenges in international business transactions where cross-cultural etiquette comes in handy to build trusting relationships with foreign suppliers.

Relationship Building

A financial team can succeed if the team leader has good people management skills. Each person’s role is vital in implementing the solution, from your subordinates to critical stakeholders. Both graduate and undergraduate level business programs cover engagement or personnel management.

Credit Analysis

SCF credit analysis is also changing with the use of technology. It is now possible to move away from historically valued collateral-based pledges and work on ‘tech-based’ credit-scoring models, including real-time transaction data and ‘machine learning’ technology.

Green Finance

The sustainability drive is also causing supply networks to shift, which is improving supply chain due diligence to ensure every stakeholder in the supply chain satisfies sustainability standards. Banks and lenders are shifting credit access away from carbon-intensive supply chains, such as those that use coal in the manufacturing process, in an effort to move toward reaching net-zero goals.

Building a Career in Supply Chain Finance

Along with advanced degrees in banking, finance, one must have years of financial experience as well as a comprehensive knowledge of supply chain management. It is a field that is expanding and changing, and one that might offer a demanding and fulfilling career.

— Written by Rishabh Agarwal-Senior Vice President, Credlix

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