Strategic Purchasing with Business English

The course first takes you through operational and strategic purchasing, supply chain management and process management. The topic of CIP rounds off the course with the help of DIN EN ISO 9001. You will also expand your English language skills and be able to use artificial intelligence in your job.
  • Certificates: TOEIC® certificate (Test of English for International Communication)
    Certificate "Strategic Purchasing"
  • Additional Certificates: Certificate "Purchasing Management 4.0 with TÜV Rheinland certified qualification"
    Certificate "Process manager with TÜV Rheinland certified qualification"
    Certificate "Process optimization with Lean, Kaizen and CIP"
  • Examination: Praxisbezogene Projektarbeiten mit Abschlusspräsentationen
    TOEIC®-Test (Test of English for International Communication)
    Einkaufsmanagement 4.0 mit TÜV Rheinland geprüfter Qualifikation
    Prozessmanager:in mit TÜV Rheinland geprüfter Qualifikation
  • Teaching Times: Full-time
    Monday to Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 3:35 p.m. (in weeks with public holidays from 8:30 a.m. to 5:10 p.m.)
  • Language of Instruction: German
  • Duration: 16 Weeks

Business English

General language part (approx. 4 days)

Basic structures of the English language

Tenses (simple, continuous, perfect), questions

Active/passive voice

Adjective/adverb

Modal verbs

Conditional

British and American English

Important idioms

Presenting in English


Communicative part (approx. 5 days)

Establishing and maintaining customer contacts, telephone calls, correspondence

Presentation of business visits

Dealing with complaints

Describing products

Writing letters and emails using common phrases on topics such as orders, quotations

Communicating the hierarchical structure of the company


Artificial intelligence (AI) in the work process

Presentation of specific AI technologies

and possible applications in the professional environment


Business English (approx. 6 days)

Writing business correspondence

Influencing

Professional discussion of topics such as company structure, marketing and sales

Reporting on market analyses, discussion of financial trends

On a business trip: At the reception, in the hotel, in the restaurant

Appearance in meetings

Describing processes and procedures

Conducting negotiations and reaching agreements

Developing and communicating plans/projects

Preparing presentations

English-language job descriptions

Anglo-Saxon application process

Writing the CV

Interview: confident presentation of experience and qualifications


Project work, certification preparation and TOEIC® certification exam (approx. 5 days)

Purchasing management 4.0 with TÜV Rheinland-certified qualification

Purchasing 4.0: What is it and where is it going? (approx. 1.5 days)

Change in procurement in the digital age

Digitalization in purchasing

Centralized vs. decentralized purchasing

Back door selling

Maverick buying

Procurement marketing

Structuring the supply chain

Analysis methods


Basics of supply (approx. 1 day)

Target triangle of modern purchasing within the value chain

Purchasing cards, bullwhip effect

Advanced/Autonomous Procurement


Supplier Management 4.0 - eProcurement (approx. 0.5 days)

Introduction of e-procurement and Procure2Pay, e-invoicing


Strategic analyses (approx. 2 days)

ABC analysis: Procedure and possible applications

XYZ analysis: selection of inventory strategies

Supply strategies: single, global or unit sourcing

Basic data for the development of supply chain and purchasing strategies

Early Involvement

Volume bundling

Supply Chain Reference Model (SCOR)

Balanced scorecard and strategy maps


Artificial intelligence (AI) in the work process

Presentation of specific AI technologies

and possible applications in the professional environment


Inquiry and tender (approx. 2 days)

Inquiries for goods and services

Inquiry strategies: Price inquiries

Service description

Rules for handling inquiries and tenders

Offer analysis: composition of costs

Simple, partial or weighted multi-factor comparison


Supplier selection and supply chain management (approx. 2.5 days)

Strategic 360° supplier selection

SCOPE supplier selection process

Segmentation of the supplier portfolio

Risk assessment

Supplier certification

Supplier audits

Supplier classification and evaluation

Supplier policy

Supplier homepage

Portfolio analyses/portfolio matrices

Interface management

Supply chain management

Process optimization and design

E-procurement solutions

Electronic catalogs

Electronic order management

Product Information Management (PIM)

Electronic Data Interchange (EDI)


Basics of procurement strategies (approx. 0.5 days)

Make-or-buy analyses


Price structure and value analysis (approx. 2 days)

Composition of a price

Price calculation with the "50-25-25" formula

Cost accounting methods

Performance management

KPI

Performance evaluation

Partial cost accounting (contribution margin)

Break-even analysis

Price regression

Best practice

Price structure analysis in the supply chain

Valuation and methodology

Value management, value engineering, value analysis


Contractual agreements (approx. 2 days)

Use of price escalation clauses

Learning curve and bonus agreements

Quality management

Agreements with suppliers

Supplier rating system


Legal issues in purchasing and data protection (approx. 1 day)

Sustainability in the supply chain

Supply chain due diligence law

DSGVO

IT cybersecurity


Agile purchasing organization (approx. 0.5 days)

Strategic and operational purchasing

Lead buying in the supply chain


Purchasing controlling (approx. 1.5 days)

Objectives and tasks of purchasing controlling

Methods for developing key figures

Professional service in the supply chain

Service providers

Hard savings vs. soft savings

Success in purchasing

Design of purchasing reports

Supplier and supply chain controlling


Project work, certification preparation and certification exam "Purchasing Management 4.0 with TÜV Rheinland certified qualification" (approx. 3 days)

Process manager with TÜV Rheinland-certified qualification

Basics of process management (approx. 3 days)

Understanding and terms in process management

Advantages of process management

Basic principles of process management

Benefits of process management

Components/characteristics of processes

Types of business processes (primary and secondary)

Structural/process organization

Strategic and operational process management

Overview of the most important process management methods: Six Sigma, Lean Management, BPR, Balanced Scorecard, PDCA and Kaizen


Artificial intelligence (AI) in the work process

Presentation of specific AI technologies

and possible applications in the professional environment


Operational process management (approx. 8 days)

Operational process management cycle (process life cycle)

Methods of process identification and recording

Methods of identification such as SIPOC and IAO

Process landscape/map/process model

Structuring options for the process model

Methods of process mapping (from interviews to workshops) and storyboarding

Creativity in process management (e.g. mind mapping)

Methods and tools for process analysis

Methods and tools for process modeling and documentation

Modeling of flowcharts

Deriving operational process goals from strategic goals

Overview of management methods for optimization

Developing target processes from optimization

Change management during process rollout

Dealing with resistance and conflicts

Executing, controlling and monitoring processes

KPIs for process control and monitoring

Introducing CIP


Strategic process management (approx. 2 days)

Define corporate strategy

Determine goals and derive need for action, plan measures

Use KPIs

Define business model and structure

Use balanced scorecard

Plan and control processes strategically

Integrate strategic and operational process management


Process-oriented organization (approx. 4 days)

Challenges in the design and management of the process-oriented organization

Setting up BPM governance

Elements of BPM governance - from roles and documentation to process audits

Making the process model known

Aligning technology with processes

Roles in process management

Introducing and implementing role concepts for process and line

Leadership in the process-oriented organization: leadership skills, defining management processes, establishing learning organizations, promoting a process-oriented culture


Project work, certification preparation and certification examination "Process manager with TÜV Rheinland certified qualification" (approx. 3 days)

Process optimization with Lean, Kaizen and CIP

What is CIP/Kaizen/Lean? (approx. 0.5 days)

Definition, goals, benefits (CIP vs. Kaizen vs. Lean)

Principle of small steps


Historical development of the CIP (approx. 1 day)

Supply/demand orientation

Japanese corporate culture

Toyota Production System

Development of modern quality and management systems (e.g. TQM)

Overview of maturity level and assessment models (EFQM)


Framework conditions for successful CIP (approx. 0.5 days)

Role of management

Communication and transparency

Employee participation

Corporate culture and motivation

Interface and team management

Quality management principles (e.g. ISO 9001)


Philosophy of CIP/Kaizen (approx. 1 day)

The five central principles

Internal customer/supplier principle

Interaction of innovation, standard and kaizen

Tasks of management and employees


Customer requirements and satisfaction (approx. 1.5 days)

Market and stakeholder analysis

Kano model

Requirements and wishes

CTQ methods (Translation Matrix, CTQ Tree)

Vuca and agility

Integrated management systems


Process optimization: Efficiency for the benefit of customers - Lean management: Value and waste (approx. 1 day)

Philosophy: Focus on customer requirements

Productivity - Quality - Availability - Flexibility

Value creation and non-value creation

The 7 types of waste (TIMWOOD)

3 MU: Muda, Mura, Muri


Implementation of Kaizen and CIP (approx. 1 day)

Prerequisites for Kaizen in the company

Development of a continuous improvement culture

5S method/5A campaign

Kaizen as a management system

Kaizen roadmap


Synchronize processes (approx. 0.5 days)

Production in the customer cycle

Cycle time, cycle time, throughput time

Cell logic

One-piece flow

Pull principle (supermarket) and push principle

Just-in-time logistics [JIT]


Value stream analysis (approx. 0.5 days)

Value stream mapping (actual and target value stream)

Value added quotient [WQ]

Visualization: benefits, symbols, data box


Level production/Heijunka (approx. 0.5 days)

Heijunka vs. series

Heijunka box

Batch size 1

Application example

Increasing the number of cycles

Kanban flow system (material and information flow)


Improve production facilities (approx. 0.5 days)

Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) incl. autonomous maintenance

Key process indicators (KPIs, OEE)

Minimization of set-up times (SMED)


Standardize processes (approx. 1 day)

Quality policy standardization

Advantages of standards

Standards in the company

Questions about the standard

Defining processes, from the process landscape to the process description

Visualization

3 process states

Worker self-check


Controlling processes (approx. 2.5 days)

ISO 9001 requirements (4.4, 8.1, 8.5.1): Customer key figures (Cpk/Sigma level)

Process management

Process analysis

Standard tools: Q7 and M7

Process efficiency analysis

AI-supported data analysis, statistical process control [SPC]

SPC in series production: interpreting quality control charts [QRK], automation (Jidoka)


Evaluation models (approx. 1 day)

PDCA: Improvement of improvement

Self-assessment maturity level ISO 9004 and EFQM

Management assessment according to ISO 9001

6-W questioning technique

4-M/7-M checklists

Benchmarking and best practice

Balanced Scorecard (BSC)

Hoshin Kanri, X-Matrix

AI-supported evaluation of trends, key figures and assessments

Measurement of customer and employee satisfaction


Error prevention and systematic problem solving (approx. 2 days)

Development according to customer requirements

Risk management: risk landscape, matrix [FMEA]

Poka Yoke, error classification, error culture/Hansei

Internal audits

Customer communication: complaint management, 8D report

10 steps to problem solving with tools (Q7, M7)

Root cause analysis: 5 Why, 6 W (Root Causes)

A3 problem solution sheet

AI-based pattern recognition for error and quality data


Empowering employees (approx. 1 day)

Ownership and entrepreneurship

Roles of managers and employees

Change management

Promoting employees (TWI)

Employee satisfaction

Competence and awareness, knowledge management (ISO 9001)

Idea management (BVW)

Teamwork in a lean context

Quality Circle [QC]

Agile methods

Community of Practice (CoP)

Coaching Kata and Improvement Kata


Visual Management and Shopfloor (approx. 0.5 days)

Principles of visual control

Visual process control, Andon (traffic light)

Store floor management

Digital dashboards and AI-supported process visualization


Quality controlling - finances (approx. 0.5 days)

Quality cost model, conformity/defect costs, rule of 10 (as a mental model)


Project work (approx. 3 days)

To consolidate the content learned

Presentation of the project results



Changes are possible. The course content is updated regularly.

Prerequisite for participation in the course is previous knowledge of English (secondary school level).

After this course, you will have knowledge of operational and strategic purchasing tools, as well as in the areas of price analysis, costing and negotiation. You will also be familiar with supply chain management, supplier selection and methods for price analysis and calculation. You are familiar with approaches, process models and systems to make processes even more successful and can recognize the permanent opportunity for improvement. You have the necessary expertise to implement these improvements and the right understanding of a functioning lean philosophy in the company.

You will also improve your English language skills in a practical way so that you can be successful in the international workplace. The course concludes with the internationally recognized TOEIC® test, which provides you with the best possible proof of your acquired knowledge.

The course is aimed at purchasing employees who wish to work in strategic functions or in strategic purchasing.

The additional English qualification is useful for anyone for whom a solid command of the English language is important for their professional tasks.

Specialists in the field of Strategic Purchasing are in demand at modern companies in all sectors. Your new skills will open up career opportunities in a wide range of fields.

The informative TOEIC® test gives you a detailed insight into the language skills you have acquired, making it easier for you to enter and advance in your career.

Didactic concept

Your lecturers are highly qualified both professionally and didactically and will teach you from the first to the last day (no self-study system).

You will learn in effective small groups. The courses usually consist of 6 to 25 participants. The general lessons are supplemented by numerous practical exercises in all course modules. The practice phase is an important part of the course, as it is during this time that you process what you have just learned and gain confidence and routine in its application. The final section of the course involves a project, a case study or a final exam.

 

Virtual classroom alfaview®

Lessons take place using modern alfaview® video technology - either from the comfort of your own home or at our premises at Bildungszentrum. The entire course can see each other face-to-face via alfaview®, communicate with each other in lip-sync voice quality and work on joint projects. Of course, you can also see and talk to your connected trainers live at any time and you will be taught by your lecturers in real time for the entire duration of the course. The lessons are not e-learning, but real live face-to-face lessons via video technology.

 

The courses at alfatraining are funded by Agentur für Arbeit and are certified in accordance with the AZAV approval regulation. When submitting a Bildungsgutscheinor Aktivierungs- und Vermittlungsgutschein, the entire course costs are usually covered by your funding body.
Funding is also possible via Europäischen Sozialfonds (ESF), Deutsche Rentenversicherung (DRV) or regional funding programs. As a regular soldier, you have the option of attending further training courses via Berufsförderungsdienst (BFD). Companies can also have their employees qualified via funding from Agentur für Arbeit (Qualifizierungschancengesetz).

We will gladly advise you free of charge.

0800 3456-500 Mon. - Fri. from 8 am to 5 pm
free of charge from all German networks.

Contact

We will gladly advise you free of charge. 0800 3456-500 Mon. - Fri. from 8 am to 5 pm free of charge from all German networks.