"We have a saying in the business: Logistics is like electricity, you turn the switch and you expect the lights to come on," said Mark Richards, an industry veteran who is vice president with Associated Warehouses, Inc.
Warehouse supervisors make sure products are moved in and out of warehouses quickly.
In some ways, technology has helped. Instead of using hand entries to track the movement of products, most inventory is handled electronically, making it easier to find the product and pull it for shipment.
Yet it can also put more pressure on warehouse supervisors whose customers expect shipments to happen immediately -- if not sooner.
Many small business customers, for example, don't track their own inventory closely. "They run out of something and they want it right away," said Richards.
Many supervisors make handsome livings. But there are thousands of small operations where the pay is not as good, even though the pressures may be just as high.
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