Certificate in Purchasing and Supply. Purchasing In Action L3-05 LEVEL 3. Senior Assessor s Report

Transcription

1 Certificate in Purchasing and Supply Purchasing In Action L3-05 LEVEL 3 Senior Assessor s Report May 2007

2 INFORMATION FOR CANDIDATES The senior assessor s report is written in order to provide candidates with feedback relating to the examination. It is designed as a tool for candidates both those who have sat the examination and those who wish to use as part of their revision for future examinations. Candidates are advised to refer to the Examination Techniques Guide (see the following link as well as this senior assessor s report. The senior assessor s report aims to provide the following information: An indication of how to approach the examination question An indication of the points the answer should include and how marks are allocated An indication of candidate performance for the examination question APPENDIX A syllabus matrix for the examination is included as an appendix. It highlights the learning objectives of the syllabus unit content that each question is testing. The unit content guides are available to download at the following link: ADDITIONAL SOURCES OF INFORMATION The Supply Management magazine is a useful source of information and candidates are advised to include it in their reading during their study. Please see the following link to the Supply Management website

3 SECTION A Q1 (a) Q1 (b) Q1 (c) Identify two internal and two external stakeholders of Tarrant County Council (TCC) Explain, using the purchasing cycle, how other functions of TCC should be involved in procurement Explain the factors of the external environment that could impact on Andrea s department (4 marks) (9 marks) (12 marks) The question centres around stakeholder managers and was there to test knowledge of typical stakeholders, both internal and external that you might expect in a public sector organisation. This question is about the impact of internal working relationships between procurement and other functions and tries to test understanding on how procurement can best integrate all the interested parties in a common direction. This is looking at the impact of PEST and the external environment and the part it plays in determining how well procurement can be successful in light of the cards it is dealt. Generally this question was well answered, however those candidates who did not pick up all the marks either didn t cite 4 examples or forgot the implication of the public sector. The purchasing cycle was the biggest clue in the question clearly when analysing a typical purchasing cycle it is immediate see the need to interface with other functions such as stores, finance etc. Those candidates who began by drawing a purchasing cycle and then mapped out the relationships that might be expected gained full marks. Where it began to cause concern was when a few candidates failed to link the cycle to the question and wrote too generically. Acknowledging PEST was the right way to tackle this question and it was for 12 marks so those candidates who cited practical examples lifted their answers tremendously it is a point worth noting that practical examples where appropriate are very useful in lifting a mediocre answer to a very good one. Political and social considerations will be prominent given the public sector nature of the case so it was important to see that this had been recognised. Overall the answers given to question 1 were good, very good in some cases, and well done to all those candidates who scored high marks here. However a word of caution where candidates failed to gain marks it was because the case scenario was not fully explored. It is very important to balance answers to that of the storyboard presented otherwise answers will lapse into generality. L3-05 May07/SA Report/FV 3

4 Q2 (a) Q2 (b) Explain how Andrea s team should select TCC s suppliers (Informal Report format) [Explain the benefits of working with a supplier to develop service level agreements as part of an outsourcing contract for TCC (Informal Report format) (10 marks) (15 marks) In this first part of question 2 it is all about managing suppliers; the first phase being how suppliers are selected appropriately. Key points that were looked for included sources of information on potential suppliers, supplier appraisal as an appropriate tool and then particular to this case, to have a specific set of evaluating criteria for potential service related outsourcing. Key to this question was Service Level Agreement so any answer needed to explain its purpose and value in a situation as outlined in the storyboard. It needs to be further developed then into the key role procurement can take in driving valuable service level agreements and the need to interface well with both internal colleagues and the external supply chain. Finally differentiation needs to be highlighted between the service elements and management elements in the Service Level Agreement. Overall the answers were good however again the common weakness was the lack of clarity stemming from answering in a general way rather than a specific answer for the storyboard key here was outsourcing. Another weak area was supplier appraisal and how it can be used here. Most people were able to define a Service Level Agreement the remainder failed to define it and failed to gain valuable marks. Another useful point is when given a specific term like this, always define as it gives an anchoring point to develop or build an answer. Many candidates failed to write in the style called for and failed to gain 2 marks right away. If asked to write in a particular style, it is key that candidates do so. Another observation is linked to the mark allocations for part (b). It carried the most marks that should have been reflected in the depth and breadth of answer. It is important to be mindful of mark allocations and write answers appropriately. Q3 (a) Explain the benefits for TCC of a programme of standardisation on maintenance repair and operating (MRO) (10 marks) L3-05 May07/SA Report/FV 4

5 items Q3 (b) Identify four problems associated with holding stock (8 marks) Q3 (c) [Discuss how a stockless system could help reduce TCC s costs (7 marks) This question tested the candidate s knowledge of the term standardisation, so a suitable definition is called for. Then explaining the term MRO was needed and then candidates could properly develop the link between the two and what the benefits were. The question was looking for four typical problems with MRO supplies and could have included duplication, preferences of end users, technical arguments, proactive reviewing of stock and so on. All appropriate suggestions gained marks. The key word in the question was discuss and candidates have scope in that sort of question to look at the pro s and con s. But once again it did require the defining of the term stockless system. Defining the terms was poor in some cases and as a result, the answers became a bit muddled. 10 marks are on offer so candidates needed to write appropriately 1 side at least, although this was not always the case. The key issue here was that four points had to be given and it was the problems associated with MRO items. Not everyone gave four examples, some gave four responses but they were not all connected with MRO items. It is important that candidates try and balance their answers as detailed above. Where candidates did this, they received good marks. This question was reasonably well answered, but this question highlighted the important point that this is the Integrative Unit and although it has its own syllabus it links back to the other four in the series in this case Securing Supply is important. Thus the timing of doing the integrative unit is important to truly reflect the integrative nature it should come last in the study sequence. Q4 (a) Q4 (b) Explain the elements of a legally binding contract (Briefing Notes style) Describe the difference between tactical and strategic negotiation (Briefing Notes style) (15 marks) (10 marks) Here the knowledge and understanding of contract formation was being tested full explanation of Offer, Acceptance, Consideration, Capacity; and Intention to create legal relations was all required. L3-05 May07/SA Report/FV 5

6 There are 5 elements so the depth of answer needed to be appropriate to pick up marks. This also needed to be tied into the storyboard and where it was, full marks were awarded. This question poses the difference between tactical and strategic negotiation and candidates should remember they always need to relate their answers to the storyboard. From the strategic perspective, looking at how there needs to be a common understanding and desire of common goals between the organisation and that of any outsource provider. This demands open and transparent lines of communication both ways. From the tactical perspective, the need to sharpen skills and attributes of staff who had faced many difficult negotiations the aim being to reduce spend for TCC. The majority of candidates answered this question poorly for two reasons. Firstly, not all the correct elements of contract formation were cited. Secondly, links to the story and the mapping of events was not given. Most candidates could talk sufficiently well about the tactical negotiation but few correctly talked about the strategic and again, there was a clear lack of links to the storyboard. Unfortunately many candidates didn t perform strongly on this question and many failed to write their answer in the format required. APPENDIX: Syllabus matrix indicating the learning objectives of the syllabus unit content that each question is testing L3-05 May07/SA Report/FV 6

7 L3-05 PURCHASING IN ACTION Paper Ref May07 'Tarrant' Question No Learning Objective a b c a b c a b c a b c 1 Understanding the key components of the end-toend purchasing process: the purchasing cycle 1.1 x 1.2 x 1.3 x 2 Working with stakeholders towards supplier selection and implementation 2.1 x 2.2 x 2.3 x 3 Working with suppliers to ensure implementation and secure supply for the long term 3.1 x x x x L3-05 May07/SA Report/FV 7