Strategic Sourcing: 7 Steps for Better Procurement Value

The procurement department is often viewed and managed as an administrative function, with sourcing activities executed at arms length. Strategic sourcing addresses this issue by providing a strategic approach towards optimizing and continuously improving sourcing activities using a proven 7-step methodology. In this course, we describe the steps entailed in the strategic sourcing process. We outline an approach for developing product categories via an analysis of organizational spend. We then discover six go-to-market strategies and describe how each can be matched with different product categories. Finally, we identify the appropriate Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) required for the continuous improvement of sourcing activities.

This course uses a variety of individual and team exercises, case studies, questionnaires and videos.

By the end of the course, participants will be able to:

• Analyze internal spend and supply market dynamics to provide a foundation for sourcing plans
• Execute different sourcing strategies to optimize savings and ensure supply security
• Identify appropriate suppliers for effective execution of sourcing plans 
• Develop operational and strategic procurement processes for better value
• Implement different purchasing methods to streamline procurement operations
• Apply supplier integration techniques for sustainable supplier relations
• Manage performance of procurement processes for continuous improvement

Purchasing and supply chain professionals at all levels of the organization as well as other company personnel who are involved in the purchasing process.

• Integrating vendors
• Managing vendor performance
• Applying sourcing strategies
• Analyzing markets
• Thinking strategically
• Improving performance