Throughout the time spent observing and during interviews, a recurring theme was the importance of the human element and hence this section on the matter. Many managers have echoed the unique challenges of being located in South Florida and acquiring and retaining the quality talent that will benefit the company in a long-term horizon. The term ‘‘challenging’’ was often mentioned when it came to finding people with the right training in supply chain management, and hence the expectations for position are constantly re-evaluated. On a strategic level, the priorities for the next six months to a year are to continue to internally grow ex- pertise and also to recruit people with a new skill set for today’s supply chain. As a senior supply chain manager explains, there has been a real upgrade of the skill sets that are required for the people who work in supply chain. Previously, it was more at the trans- actional level; nowadays employees must perform at the strategic level. This shift in skill set has been necessary and the kind of person now required to do the job is significantly different that what it was five years ago.