Purchasing and Procurement Basics Online Course

The Purchasing Procurement Basics online course gives you a right-based theory for acquiring the right product of the right quality, in the right quantity, from the right source, at the right time, and at the right price. The Purchasing Procurement Basics online certificate course gives you a right-based theory for acquiring the right product of the right quality, in the right quantity, from the right source, at the right time, and at the right price. This course gives you the ability to implement a purchasing strategy that includes supply chain functions and building strong, collaborative relationships within and outside the organization.

Our Purchasing and Procurement Online courses will teach you the basics of purchasing and procurement. You'll receive an introduction to the supply chain, the purchasing cycle, and basic purchasing tools. You'll also learn about the competitive bidding process, how to manage supplier performance, risk management techniques, and ways to build relationships.

Key Learning Objectives

• Define what a supply chain is
• Identify your procurement department’s role within the organization
• Learn the principles of the purchasing cycle
• Create a process for successfully managing a competitive bid, starting with the request for proposals through negotiating the Contract
• How to create a competitive bid for a contract
• How to objectively choose a supplier based on a solid evaluation strategy
• Enable purchasing and procurement officers the ability to manage supplier performance, maintain quality, and implement monitoring standards
• Use PC-based applications and cloud-based solutions for purchasing and procurement

Purchasing and Procurement Basics Online Course – Requirements

This course is designed for people with little or no prior experience in the purchasing and procurement sector who would like to start a career as a professional purchasing and procurement officer. The Purchasing and Procurement Basics online course is delivered 100 percent online 24/7 and only takes 3 to 6 hours of study to complete. 

To successfully complete this course, a student must:

• Have access to the internet and the necessary technical skills to navigate the online learning resources
• Have access to any mobile device with internet connectivity (laptop, desktop, tablet)
• Be a self-directed learner
• Possess sound language and literacy skills

Quick Course Facts

1. Course content is structured for easy comprehension
2. Approximately 6 to 8 hours of study is needed to complete the course
3. Registered students gain unrestricted lifetime access to the Purchasing and Procurement Basics Online Certificate Course
4. All course material is available online 24/7 and can be accessed using any device
5. Study online from anywhere in your own time at your own pace
6. All students who complete the course will be awarded with a certificate of completion

Purchasing and Procurement Basics Online Course Outline

Session 1: Course Overview

Purchasing and procurement are more than establishing a supply chain. The discipline should also involve creating strong, collaborative relationships with suppliers. It is increasingly becoming more important in a global economy that requires sourcing products from other countries. This is no small feat. It requires a professional procurement manager with strong capabilities.

The demands of today’s purchasing and procurement skills cannot be simply learned on the job, these need to be taught. With procurement considered an invaluable component of cost control in an organization, the need for a professional purchasing and procurement officer is critical.  

This course provides you the basics of procurement and an overview of what a supply chain looks like. You will also learn about purchasing cycles, essential tools, and strategies for developing purchasing relationships, managing bids, and more.

In the purchasing and procurement basics online course, we will show the importance of procurement managers in contributing to a company's success. This course will also show how a procurement manager can help solve common problems such as:

• Not enough products to fulfill customer demand
• Missed opportunities for bulk orders that could save money
• Lack of consistency in communication to suppliers
• Poor information management, which can lead to poor decision making
• Money wasted on rush orders and expedited shipping

Session 2: Supply Chain Management Basics

Supply chain management is a continuously evolving system. It is a highly-skilled discipline that requires many parts working perfectly. It has evolved from the simple "mom and pops" shops of moving products and services. In this part of the course, you'll learn the basics of supply chain management, purchasing, and procurement. 

Process Areas

These are the five primary processes involved with supply chain management:

• Inbound logistics
• Operations
• Outbound logistics
• Marketing and Sales
• Service

Session 3: The Purchasing Cycle

Creating a structure makes it easier to implement processes while avoiding unexpected delays or product shortages. The purchasing cycle helps you create a process while making room for changes. In this session, we discuss the purchasing cycle and how it can help you achieve your business objectives.

Purchasing Cycle:

• Recognize, define, and describe a need
• Communicate the need
• Investigate and select the supplier
• Receive and inspect material
• Follow-up, including expediting order
• Prepare and issue a purchase order, Contract, or agreement
• Audit the invoice, packing slip
• Close the order

Session 4: Purchasing Toolkit

The purchasing toolkit gives you a method for calculating costs and pricing and moving into supplier evaluation. It helps you accurately determine needs and which supplier best meets your requirements. In this session, you will learn the basics of the toolkit, negotiation, and conducting an interview.

Six Categories of Costs

The price of a product is mostly determined by the cost and profit. To give you a more accurate determination of what goes into the cost of production, we give you the six cost categories:

• Variable manufacturing costs
• Fixed manufacturing costs
• Semi-variable or Mixed manufacturing costs
• Total production costs
• Direct costs
• Indirect costs (overhead)

Session 5: Managing Competitive Bids

The bidding process enables the procurement manager to select the best supplier available for the job. Competing bids give you the option of selecting from a variety of suppliers and insight into what is currently available in the marketplace. This part of the course gives you a better understanding of the strengths of using requests for proposals and how to make the best decisions based on competing bids.

When to use Competitive Bidding

Setting up a proposal or bidding process takes time and money for both you and the bidder. We help you determine if a bidding process is an excellent idea by giving you these five criteria:

• Is the Contract (monetary value) significant enough to attract bidders
• The description of the product or service should be detailed enough to be understood by both parties
• There must be a significant number of suppliers to make bidding more competitive
• The bidders must be qualified and are actively searching for opportunities to bid
• There must be enough time from planning to the actual bidding process

Session 6: Improving Efficiency and Accuracy

Implementing a professional procurement system helps reduce operating costs and helps maximize the organization's resources, and this should also hold true for your supplier. This part of the course teaches you the basic elements of managing supplier performance, controlling quality, and ensuring consistent delivery standards.

In the purchasing and procurement basics online course, you will learn these concepts:

• Managing supplier performance
• Aggregate evaluations
• Categorical evaluations
• Weighted evaluations
• Controlling quality
• Taking corrective action
• Setting and monitoring delivery standards
• Shipment tracking
• Checking the Contract for breaches
• Expediting orders
• Creating good working relationships
• Monitoring supplier performance
• Developing performance requirements

Session 7: Analyzing and Reducing Risk in the Supply Chain

We analyze potential risks and how to reduce these. We will help you become more confident in making calculated risks and determine what makes a good decision. You will also discover that risks come both sides of the coin, the supplier, and the purchases. This part of the course will also introduce you to the concept of agile procurement.

Risk Management, Categories of Risk

We identify the different risk categories and how to assess each properly. This part of the course lets you efficiently monitor changes, create contingency plans, and create strategies for an overall risk management plan.

• Legal (anti-trust violations, contracts, etc.)
• Financial (price volatility factors, supplier financial health, surcharges, and penalties, etc.)
• Operational (distribution, transportation, quality assurance, etc.)
• Regulatory (trade agreements, environmental and customs issues, etc.)
• Business environment (economies, security issues, competition, technology advances, and challenges, etc.)

Session 8: Managing Internal Relationships

The procurement department plays an important role in any organization. A professionally managed procurement department can help the organization save valuable financial resources. This session explains the importance of managing internal relationships with different teams/departments to achieve organization-wide goals.

The Different Roles of a Purchasing Specialist

We identify the role of a purchasing specialist and how this affects the overall organization.

• Purchaser
• Buyer
• Capital equipment buyer
• Inventory control analyst
• Tool crib technician
• Raw materials manager
• Purchaser
• Commodity manager
• Traffic specialists
• Sourcing expert

Session 9: Tools of the Trade

Technology has made it possible to reduce costs, eliminate repetition, make tasks simpler, and makes the whole procurement process more efficient. In this session, we discuss the development of helpful tools and its importance in improving your department's efficiency and success. To equip you with the much-needed tools of the trade, the purchasing and procurement basics online course provides you with:

Digital systems

Procurement and supply chain management has grown in complexity over time. This has given rise to the need for computer and logistic systems that can handle a large amount of data simultaneously.

Debit, credit, and virtual terminals

Debit and credit card transactions is an everyday reality. These financial transactions have made it easier for organizations to make and track payments. It improves turnaround times by making purchase orders seamless.

Supplier stores

To improve efficiency and delivery times, suppliers often open small stores within your location, especially if you are a consistently large volume purchaser. This also makes it easier for customers to gain access to the supplier's different products and helps facilitate payments.

Supplier delivery systems

This involves setting a delivery system that considers purchase requisitions, delivery dates, specific product delivery, and batch requisitions. These delivery systems are ideal for suppliers who make daily or twice weekly deliveries.

Electronic data interchange (EDI)

Electronic data interchange is advanced systems that facilitate electronic transfers of customer and supplier information. These systems are designed to improve the flow of orders and provide highly advanced point-of-sale (POS) systems.

E-commerce

The internet provides unequaled connectivity between organizations and suppliers with the use of ERP systems. This service is provided through Supplier Relationship Management (SRM) and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) processes.

The always-on marketplace

Technology has made it easier for all parties in the supply chain to collaborate seamlessly. Point-of-sale systems, product life cycle software, bid optimization, and computerized negotiation tools can now be performed 24/7 from anywhere in the world.

E-sourcing

E-sourcing refers to all technology tools and software that is used to procure goods and services. These tools enable faster cycle times, improve efficiency, and increases competitive advantage by reducing redundancies or duplicated efforts.

The role of social networking

Originally developed to connect people socially, social networking has become indispensable in everyday business operations. Social networking makes it possible for procurement managers to connect with other professionals.

Tools of the Trade

We look at the tools you are currently using and identify which are the most effective.

Seeking feedback

Regular reports make it possible for stakeholders, management, and internal departments to monitor the  procurement department. It helps assess the current state of the delivery system and identify possible areas for improvement.

• Annual report checklist
• Annual report tips
• Drawing conclusions

Personal Action Plans

After completing the purchasing and procurement basics online course, it is now to implement these concepts by creating a personal action plan. In this part of the course, we will help you develop your short-term and long-term goals.

• Starting point
• Where I want to go
• How I will get there

Recognition & Accreditation

The courses offered by Courses For Success are unique as they are taught in a step by step process enabling students to complete them quickly and easily, so that you can obtain your qualification sooner. All students who complete the course receive a certificate of completion. Courses For Success is committed to high completion rates and therefore 100% student satisfaction.