ISCOM 361 All Assignments

Week 1

Individual Assignment Policies and Procedures Summary

Read the following scenario:

In todays business world, technology and new information create an atmosphere of constant, rapid change. To deal with these changes, every organization has a set of policies and procedures to help employees have a point of reference in dealing with various situations. The policies provide a set of accepted guidelines to follow when questions arise in certain scenarios. The procedures are a set of steps or details explaining how to complete job duties. A business professional must be familiar with policies and procedures in the workplace and how technology changes them. Use headers for each item please.

Define categories of purchasing policies.

Summarize basic procedural areas.

Explain how the e-supply chain affects the purchasing process.

Write a summary in 650 to 700 words.

Use a minimum of one reference and APA guidelines apply. Use headings for each bulleted requirement.

Week 2

Individual Assignment The Purchasing Cycle

Read the following scenario:

To be the best asset to its organization, a purchasing department must efficiently and effectively use the purchasing process. The process includes how the department identifies organizational needs, evaluates those needs, chooses suppliers who fulfill those needs, ensures prompt and accurate payment, evaluates the level to which needs were met, and facilitates improvement. The effectiveness a purchasing department displays in overcoming challenges presented by the process and the efficiency with which it streamlines day-to-day operations is vital to organizational success. For an employee to work in the process, he or she must understand it. Please use headers for each requirement below.

Choose a specific industry, such as transportation, food and beverage, or housing.

Conduct research into the purchasing process for the industry you choose.

Write a 1000 to 1100-word paper, addressing the following:

Summarize purchasing objectives and responsibilities.

Explain steps of the purchasing cycle.

Determine what elements of the process could be improved. Provide three to four examples of how you would improve the process and how they improve it.

Describe how the purchasing process is different for capital goods. Provide specific examples of the difference between capital and non-capital goods.

Illustrate how an organization may gain a competitive advantage by improving their purchasing process.

Use a minimum of one reference and APA guidelines apply. Use headings for each bulleted requirement.

Learning Team Assignment Organizational Design at Caterpillar

Resource: pp. 148149 of Purchasing & Supply Chain Management

Write an 1100-word paper addressing the topics below.

Consider how the organizational design in the example affects purchasing. Please remember to use headers for each requirement clearly identifying your responses.

What personnel duties and responsibilities make this relationship possible?

How were organizational decisions made and communicated?

Is Caterpillars purchasing authority centralized or decentralized?

What are advantages of this type of authority?

How may Caterpillar continue to ensure their organizational structure meets future needs?

How does Caterpillars organizational structure compare to that of your current organization, or one you worked for in the past? If you have no organization to compare to, chose one you are interested in off the internet and use its organizational structure for comparison purposes.

Use a minimum of one reference and APA guidelines apply. Use headings for each bulleted requirement.

Week 3

Learning Team Assignment Caterpillar Example

Resource: pp. 148149 of Purchasing & Supply Chain Management

Write a 1100 to 1250-word paper, addressing the topics below using headers to identify each requirement.

Explain how an organization develops working relationships with supplier groups.

What is the advantage of integrating groups or people for a common purpose?

What is meant by internal integration? How is this accomplished?

How is external integration accomplished in the example? With whom could Caterpillar build a relationship in the future?

Describe how the deal between Caterpillar and Delco was beneficial to both organizations beyond a normal supplier/purchaser relationship.

How did this deal provide each organization with a competitive advantage?

What long- and short-term goals do each organization want to achieve?

How do Caterpillars supply management goals relate to its corporate objectives?

Use a minimum of one reference and APA guidelines apply. REMEMBER -> Use headings for each bulleted requirement.

Week 4

Individual Assignment Eaton Corporation

Resource: pp. 264267 of Purchasing & Supply Chain Management

Write a 1,050- to 1,200-word paper addressing the topics below.

Illustrate how a purchaser would evaluate a supplier.

What are steps in the selection process? Briefly describe each step and its function in the process.

How do purchasers evaluate suppliers? What criteria must a supplier use?

How are supplier evaluations and surveys effective for a purchaser?

Analyze how an organization may reduce costs.

What cost analysis techniques may an organization utilize to manage costs?

Why is reverse price analysis necessary? What advantages does it provide to purchasers?

When is a break-even analysis used? What information does it provide? How is this useful to an organization?

Explain challenges of purchasing commodities and resale goods.

What are price stabilization techniques and what effect do they have on the commodities market?

What are some commodity buying techniques? What are some risks of these techniques?

What are some challenges faced when purchasing for resale?

Why is merchandise planning important?

Use a minimum of one reference and APA guidelines apply. Remember: REMEMBER: Use headings for each bulleted requirement.

Learning Team Assignment FedEx Supply Chain Management Philosophy

Select one team members organization and in 1050-1100 words, explain their supply chain management philosophy.

How does your organization interact with suppliers?

Does your organization do site visits?

If not, what does it do to evaluate and monitor supplier performance. What challenges does your organization face within supply chain management?

What sourcing issue challenge does your organization face?

What is the reporting structure of your supply chain department(s).

What are some risks you recognize?

What improvements would you recommend to your organization?

Can you relate your organization to a successful organization you have read about?

Use a minimum of one reference and APA guidelines apply. Use headings for each bulleted requirement.

Week 5

Individual Assignment Accent Industries Example

Write a 1,050-to 1,400-word paper, addressing the topics below.

Determine how laws that affect supply chain management influence the evaluation of and

relationship with suppliers.

Define concepts of purchasing and supply measurement systems.

What are pros and

cons of measuring performance?

Summarize five to six purchasing and supply chain performance measures you feel are most

important. Explain why they are important.

Describe how you would develop a performance measurement and evaluation system.

How would ethics influence the system?

Choose two purchasing and supply strategy trends.

How will these trends affect supply chain strategies in the future?

What are some changes that may affect purchasing and supply professionals?

Create a balanced scorecard for purchasing and supply chain management, and decide how

ethics and ethical decision affect the scorecard.

Learning Team It Takes Two to Tango Response

Resource: It Takes Two to Tango in

the Electronic Reserve Readings

Research a third-party logistics provider.

Create a negotiation strategy for doing business with a new provider.

What objectives do you have for this negotiation?

What are some strengths and weaknesses of your organization and the third-party logistics provider?

What information must you research about this provider?

What are your needs? What are the providers needs?

What are some potential issues?

What negotiation strategy do you want to use?

Write a summary of no more than 1,400 words, addressing the following:

What role does third-party

logistics play in an organization?

Who benefits by employing a

third-party carrier?

Why have third-party carriers become more popular?

What trends do you see in the future for third-party carriers?