In the year 2024, UAE has advanced three positions from 10^th to 7^th in the World Competitiveness Report and it is now ahead of countries like Norway, Iceland, Japan, Canada and Finland. In ranked 2^nd in the Economic Performance, 4^th in Government Efficiency and 10^th in Business Efficiency. This indicates the robustness of UAE’s economy, leadership and governance. Due to its proactive economic measures, UAE has not only very quickly recovered from the impact of Covid-19 pandemic but also improved its overall growth in all areas highly significantly. One such sector in which UAE has grown very well is the Logistics and Supply Chain Sector (IMD-World Competitiveness Ranking, 2024).

UAE’s Freight and Logistics Market size is estimated at 20.11 billion USD in 2024, and is expected to reach 30.19 billion USD by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 7.01% during the forecast period (2024-2030). It contributes to approximately 14% of the UAE's GDP as of 2024 as Maersk report. The major contributions come from transportation, inventory holding and logistics administration (Mordor Intelligence, 2024). At the same time, UAE has improved its Logistics Performance Index (LPI) to 11^th position globally in the year 2023 from 27^th position in the year 2014. It scored 3.96 out of 5 in LPI, the highest in MENA region. It surpassed countries such as Hong Kong, United States, and Switzerland in LPI. Given this performance of UAE in logistics and supply chain sector, it is imperative that this sector provides ample job opportunities for students in future and students aspiring to grab these opportunities need to acquire the contemporary knowledge, develop skills and building competencies required to match the requirements of these opportunities (LPI Report by World Bank, 2023; PwC report, 2023; Technavio, 2024).

Logistics and supply chain sector is going to be dominated by the benefits of application of digital technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, machine learning and internet of things (IOT). Supply chains are getting transformed into ‘smart supply chains’ shifting away from the conventional linear supply chains. Therefore, supply chain analytics will be an essential area which requires analytical, interpretation and decision-making skills for managing future supply chains. At the same time, in order to be at par with digital technologies in supply chain, the students should develop their digital literacy in the application and use of these technologies. Future supply chains are also going to be influenced by changing dynamics in procurement and purchasing areas with new trends in supplier partnerships and strategic alliances. Skills such as procurement skills, purchasing skills and negotiation skills are essential to be successful. Responsible consumption, Smart Cities, Supply-Demand balance, Supply Chain Resilience and Risk Management will be the key influencers of future logistics and supply chains. Therefore, this calls for acquisition of skills and competencies such as sustainability mindset, understanding environmentally friendly SC practices, skills to develop strategies to achieve the objectives of circular supply chains, and skills and competencies related to identification, assessment and mitigation of risks in global supply chains (Handfield & Nichols, 2020). Supply chain and logistics organization will be recruiting candidates who possess these skills in order to manage their supply chains effectively. Cross-cultural communication, managing international trade, leadership skills, ability to prepare import-export related documentation, port logistics related documentation and ability to manage global supply chain partners such as suppliers, manufacturers, strategic partners, dealers, warehouses and transporters are another set of skills and competencies required to be acquired in future (Zhou & Xie, 2023). Strategies related to on-time customer delivery, product availability, last-mile delivery, lead time reduction, minimization of inventory costs, optimization of transportation costs, and utilization of integrated solutions using software applications will be high demand. Prospective students seeking jobs in supply chains should develop skills required to manage these strategies.

Ability to minimize total supply chain and logistics cost will be the highly demanding task in future in supply chain systems. Therefore, system-wide thinking is one of the very important skills of future supply chain managers. At the same time, future belongs to those who have the ability to design strategies to achieve the United Nations Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs). Role of supply chain and logistics is highly significant in achieving these goals. Therefore, the current generation of students aspiring to enter supply chain sector should acquire all the above skills and competencies to be successful.

References:

• Handfield, R., & Nichols, E. L. (2020). Introduction to Supply Chain Management. Prentice Hall.
• How the UAE is developing into a global supply chain hub (2023). Retrieved from https://www.gulfbusiness.com-Deloitte
• How the UAE became a supply chain nerve center? (2024). Retrieved from International Finance  https://internationalfinance.com/magazine/logistics-magazine/the-uae-a-supply-chain-nerve-centre/
•  https://www.imd.org/centers/wcc/world-competitiveness-center/rankings/world-competitiveness-ranking/
• Logistics in the UAE: Navigating opportunities and challenges (2024). Retrieved from  https://www2.deloitte.com
• Ministry of Cabinet Affairs, UAE Logistics Performance Index by the World Bank (fcsc.gov.ae)
• Mordor Intelligence. (2024). United Arab Emirates freight and logistics market size & share analysis. Retrieved from  https://www.mordorintelligence.com
• (2023). UAE’s logistics and transportation strategy: Key enablers for growth. Retrieved from  https://www.pwc.com-GulfBusiness
• Sundarakani, B. (2017). Transforming Dubai Logistics Corridor into a Global Logistics Hub. Asian Journal of Management Cases, 14(2), 115-136.  https://doi.org/10.1177/0972820117712303
• Technavio (2024). Country logistics growth analysis - Size and forecast 2024-2028. Retrieved from  https://www.technavio.com
• TLI magazine (2024)  https://tlimagazine.com/news/the-uaes-path-to-becoming-a-global-logistics-hub/#:~:text=The%20UAE%20is%20strategically%20evolving,advancements%2C%20and%20supportive%20government%20policies
• World Bank. (2023). Logistics Performance Index 2023. Retrieved from  https://www.worldbank.org
• Zhou, H., & Xie, C. (2023). The influence of leadership and smart level on the strategy choice of the smart logistics platform. Journal of Cleaner Production, 429, 137803