Advanced Strategic Procurement, Supply Chain Management and Logistics

Course Outline

Overview

Starting out in procurement or refreshing your procurement skills after a break, means getting to grips with the “Essentials” of the topic. This course is ideal for that purpose. The course examines how corporate procurement takes place – usually on a competitive footing, but sometimes by placing direct orders with a supplier. The course will unpick the advantages and disadvantages of competitive procurement, and looks at who does what and when they do it. It will also walk through the key steps in the procurement process and examine examples of procurement documents, such as the Statement of Requirement (also known as the Scope of Work).

Procurement Excellence is more than just operating a process. Skills in managing colleagues, potential suppliers and higher management are all necessary. But perhaps the most important ingredient is exercising judgement. Procurement involves making decisions, and that can be difficult. A good procurement manager needs to be able to set aside personal preferences for particular suppliers and operate transparently but in such a way that the organization for whom he works makes the right choices. These choices are based on a proper definition of needs and an assessment of how those needs can be met and by whom. This course explores these issues comprehensively.

The management of the procurement function itself – as opposed to the management by procurement staff of contractors and suppliers – can make the difference between having a purely administrative, internal service provider team that operates in the background, or a strategically important function that can help shape the success of the enterprise. If the head of procurement is a mid-ranking manager he or she may not have the ear of the chief executive. But if the company has a Chief Procurement Officer in the “C Suite”, working alongside his or her peers from Finance, Operations and Technology, then it’s fair to assume procurement is seen as key to delivering the corporate strategy. This course looks at aspects of procurement at its most influential and value-adding.

This course provides delegates with an in-depth:

• review of the critical success factors within Supply Chain Strategy from the Value Chain concept, through to establishing effective process and informational flows, and concludes with improving supply chain resilience in the face of global change and threats both current and future.
• exploration of the key elements within successful supply chain management including: forward demand planning techniques and approaches, effectively enhancing efficiency, managing bottleneck situations and concludes with the development and enhancement of effective risk management within the supply chain environment.
• understanding of global logistics management, from the impacts upon supply chain efficiency, through to the use of hub strategies, and fleet management whether in house or via a 3PL or 4PL outsource arrangement.

The course includes site visits to organizations relevant to the course so delegates can develop an understanding of how their contemporaries function in the real-world.

The course will wrap with a summary of the key learning points, followed by an action planning exercise with a view to apply the acquired knowledge and skills immediately upon your return to work. Post-course support is also available in relation to the implementation of your action plan, up to six (6) months following course completion.

Agenda

• Fundamentals of Procurement
• Global Procurement Processes
• Procurement Sourcing
• Procurement’s Support to the Organization
• Evaluating Suppliers and their Bids
• Negotiating the Best Deal
• Procurement and Business Strategy
• Managing Procurement Risk
• Procurement – Performance Measurement and Governance
• Understand Supply Chains and Value Chains
• Supply Chain Strategy – Process and Data Flow
• Supply Chain Strategy – Resilience and Efficiency
• Supply Chain Management – Enhancing Responsiveness
• Supply Chain Management – Improving Flow
• Supply Chain Management Techniques
• Role and Contribution of Logistics within the organization
• Managing Logistics Assets
• Global Logistics Management
• Site visits
• Action Planning

Target Audience

This course is suitable for:

• Procurement Officers, analysts and managers.
• Contract Engineers and analysts.
• Quantity Surveyors
• Commercial advisers
• Procurement team members
• General managers
• Executives tasked with managing contracts.
• Contract Administrators
• Anyone who wishes to have a good understanding and involvement in purchasing activities.
• Supply Chain Managers
• Risk Managers
• Quality Managers
• Business Improvement teams
• Logistics & Distribution Managers
• Freight Expediters

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, you will:

• Have an excellent grasp of the essentials of procurement processes and the justification for adopting one approach versus another. This will include:
• Selecting the best procurement strategy for your transaction, in the public or private sector.
• Writing the Statement of Requirement / Scope of Work.
• Learning how to attract potential suppliers, pre-qualify them for suitability and make a selection.
• Working with bids and tenders documentation.
• Consider “What good procurement looks like”.
• Understand the choices of available procurement methods a given situation.
• Learn how to carry out an evaluation of proposals from suppliers in a fair and transparent way.
• Practice negotiation skills.
• Comprehend the key issues around sustainability in purchasing.
• Learn about the value Procurement can bring to delivering the corporate strategy.
• Consider how to structure the procurement function, to make the biggest difference inside organizations.
• Acquire skills in important procurement activities, such as value chain analysis, purchasing portfolio management and category management.
• Practice techniques in benchmarking the performance of the procurement team.
• Appreciate and apply Value Chain concepts.
• Effectively establish and enhance process and data flows.
• Build and enhance Supply Chain Resilience and ability to meet current and future state changes and threats.
• Understand and apply effective forward demand planning techniques.
• Develop improved supply chain efficiency and continuous improvement.
• Effectively manage supply chain risk.
• Effectively manage global multi-modal logistics.
• Appreciate and utilize hub strategies to improve customer lead time and satisfaction whilst reducing the cost to serve.
• Utilize effective fleet management techniques.
• Develop and enhance effective inventory control and stock management/analysis techniques.
• Develop a practical perspective into contemporary work practices in your field.
• Implement an Action Plan at your workplace using the knowledge and skills acquired through the course.