Every parent stresses the importance of education in the lives of their children. This is a key component of a successful adult life. The same can be true about a corporation and their sourcing professionals. Successful corporations support, foster and continually educate their sourcing teams with rigorous training requirements. In a recent article entitled “Reaching Sourcing Excellence, Part 3: Sourcing Skills Go Straight to the Bottom Line” they talk about the areas in which education can make a significant difference in a company’s bottom Line as it relates to procurement.
The example they highlight in the article is the world famous Heinz Company. They have one of the most educational and support focused training regiments in the business. Their program requires the following:
1. Mandatory certified purchasing management (CPM) status
2. 60 to 80 hours a year to enhance CPM capabilities
3. Six Sigma training
4. Seven-step sourcing process training
5. Negotiation training and business process alignment training
The article goes on to state the effects that were quantified from their program. “To date, the company realized $80M in cost savings and 14 days of raw material inventory were recovered, significantly affecting working capital, margins, and expenses.”
This strategy or outline may not work for your company, but there are numerous opportunities available to educate and nurture the talent of your team. Here are just a few suggestions on things to consider in implementing new programs.
• Force-ranking employees based on skills
• Providing complete sourcing business process training for all employees
• Establishing continuous sourcing training and education programs
• Establishing recruiting programs with leading supply chain schools
• Removing employees that would not meet the vision
• Hiring more advanced skill sets to fill the gaps
If you are lagging in what you believe your success and savings marks should be, take a look at your talent, your training programs and how you develop your team’s abilities.
