They also want people with a good mix of industrial engineering knowledge and command of supply chains for efficiency, cost savings and risk reduction.

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"The foreign partners supply the specialized knowledge, so they should be offered more preferential incentives, " Kao argues.

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Chief executive of Sainsbury's, Justin King, said Tesco's announcement "highlighted how important a detailed knowledge of and involvement in your supply chain is".

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Besides, a company might want to keep control of its supply chain to protect its brand and knowledge.

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And people with such knowledge are (so the theory goes) in short supply.

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This is crucial knowledge for not only satisfying the demand, but also reducing supply chain costs and increasing margins.

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What is in much shorter supply is the ability to get people to act on knowledge.

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Forming supply chains, obtaining services, strengthening infrastructure and sharing knowledge all become easier when companies bunch together.

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Their businesses need a steady supply of people who can step into jobs involving a lot of technical knowledge and skill.

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In addition, we need a plentiful supply of talented individuals to fill the many jobs, especially teaching, that require scientific skills and knowledge.

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