Since the beginning of 2020, we have enjoyed our partnership with the Maschinenbau-Institut, a company of the German Engineering Federation (VDMA), with whom we jointly offer the „Strategic Purchasing Manager“ certification course. We would like to express our sincere thanks for the last two years and the two, Covid-19 adversity, successfully completed courses.

In 2022, a new series of courses will take place in the period from 01.06. to 09.11., which will consist of four modules and will be held in a present format in accordance with the objective.

Contents of the certification course at VDMA

Particularly in mechanical and plant engineering, where the procurement department is usually responsible for more than 50 percent of the total costs and the external share of the total value added continues to increase, procurement plays a decisive role. Our certification course therefore focuses on the purchasing manager as a strategist, negotiator and shaper:

1. Basics of strategic procurement: you will learn the most important methods for defining goals and strategies in procurement and develop concrete commodity group maps for implementing and further developing your commodity group strategy.
2. Cost transparency in procurement: you will receive concrete guidance on total cost analysis and cost structure analysis in procurement. The methods and tools you learn will enable you to build up cost transparency in the procurement process and to communicate this in a comprehensible way – a competence that is expected of every good purchaser.
3. Prepare and lead negotiations: Using modern methods and techniques, you will learn how to prepare negotiations in a targeted manner and conduct discussions with confidence. Templates for application to negotiations of all kinds support you in your daily practice. As a result, you can achieve excellent negotiation results as a procurement professional and sustainably secure your negotiation success with the help of appropriate follow-up.
4. Digitization in procurement: You will gain an overview of the individual potential for digitization in your company and receive step-by-step instructions for the successful implementation of digitization projects. The course provides the necessary skills to properly prioritize, evaluate and implement digitization projects – which are often not initiated by procurement itself – in a structured manner.

General conditions and registration

The target group for the certification course is employees from the procurement and materials management departments who are in the process of developing into strategic buyers and would like to systematize and expand their knowledge, as well as career changers and junior management staff in procurement.

The course is aimed at both VDMA members and non-members, who will receive a certificate from the Maschinenbau-Institut upon successful and complete completion of the course. Information on participation fees, event dates and venue as well as registration can be found on the Maschinenbau-Institut website at  https://www.maschinenbau-institut.de/lehrgang/zertifikatslehrgang-strategischer-einkaufsmanager/.

We are looking forward to another successful year with the joint implementation of the certification course „Strategic Purchasing Manager“, thank the Maschinenbau-Institut for the partnership and hope for a lively interest also in 2022.

 

Sinja Krauskopf

Consultant. ADCONIA GmbH