Distribution and Supply Chain Management

Distribution and Supply Chain Management are key processes for military logistics in the future, however the Army and DoD has done little to educate officers in these concepts and processes. This monograph describes distribution and supply chain management, and introduces and discusses the essential skills and knowledge a logistics officer must have to function effectively in a supply chain and distribution management environment. It analyzes how officers should attain these skills using the three pillars of leader development in Department of the Army Pamphlet 600-3, Commissioned Officer Development and Career Management, as well as consider what level of learning officers should attain throughout a career by using Benjamin Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives. It discusses how the Army/DoD currently teaches supply chain and distribution management concepts in various programs, such as the Logistic Executive Development Course/Florida Institute of Technology (LEDC/FIT) cooperative program, civilian graduate schools programs, and the Naval Post Graduate School, as well as assignments during which officers may gain such experience, such as the Army's velocity Management team, Army Materiel Command's Logistics Support Agency, and Training with Industry programs. It also examines programs, professional organizations and certification programs (such as CPIM-Certified in Production and Inventory Management, and CFPIM-Certified Fellow in Production and Inventory Management) in supply chain management processes. The findings indicate the Army and DoD is progressing in incorporating distribution and supply chain management principles into its educational curriculum, and that logisticians continue to gain operational experience in distribution management operations. The paper recommends the level to which officers should be educated, and provides suggestions for educating and tracking officers with distribution management expertise.