Lockdowns and border closures imposed in efforts to contain the spread of COVID-19, compounded by panic buying of some goods, presented numerous challenges in supply chain management, requiring skills in identifying risks. It was also reported by the National Australia Bank (NAB) that some businesses are rethinking ‘just-in-time’ inventory management and are paying suppliers sooner to ensure supply.
In the CEDA webinar The Workplace of the Future, the shift to flexible work and Agile project management are discussed as trends that may enable businesses to grow through the pandemic. This is supported by the National Skills Commission project Emerging Occupations: How New Skills Are Changing Australian Jobs, which identifies Logistics Analysts and Agile Coaches as emerging occupations; demand for these skills may increase due to the response by industries to the pandemic.
Skills in workplace health and safety have also become a priority, with both workers and customers becoming responsible for mitigating the risks of exposure to the virus. Cross-sector infection control skill sets with contextual advice for 10 industry sectors were endorsed in July 2020 to enable current and future employees to upskill in managing these risks.
The Australian, State and Territory governments have recognised small business owners and their employees may need additional support to strengthen their business skills as a result of the pandemic, and have introduced a number of programs through their COVID-19 recovery plans and budgets.