INDIANAPOLIS—Ask many industry participants what's the key consideration in the industrial sector at present, and the phrase “e-commerce” may be the first response. The real story is a little more nuanced, in the view of Pete Quinn, whom Colliers International named as national director of industrial services earlier this month.

“The number one driver right now, what we're hearing the most from our clients, is labor,” Quinn tells GlobeSt.com. “It's really driving location analysis, more so than ever. So you're seeing big boxes going into markets that they have not traditionally gone into, just for the labor.”

Within those markets, finding not only the labor, but also labor that's qualified to operate big-box warehouses, is the issue—and a discussion point for groups such as the Industrial Asset Management Council and the International Warehousing Logistics Association. “Distribution centers are getting more and more sophisticated, and they need to hire people who have the background, education and experience to work in those types of facilities,” says Quinn.