Advanced Diploma in Purchasing and Supply. Management in the Purchasing Function L5-01 LEVEL 5. Senior Assessor s Report

Transcription

1 Advanced Diploma in Purchasing and Supply Management in the Purchasing Function L5-01 LEVEL 5 Senior Assessor s Report November 2009

2 SECTION A Question 1 Evaluate the key roles and functions required to make SI s purchasing function fully effective. This question required candidates to consider the key roles and functions that the new purchasing and supply manager (and wider team if mentioned) at SI needs to make the necessary improvements and changes to make the department a success. Candidates were expected to not only consider the traditional and more technical roles and functions of purchasing and supply but to explore the various ways that the department can offer expertise and guidance across the whole organisation. This would involve the manager in roles such as advisor/consultant, line manager, working with internal and external customers, suppliers and advising at a more strategic level. Candidates gave a variable response to this question. Many candidates focused on roles and functions but only offered a description rather than an evaluation of them. Some candidates either did not identify that the question asked about the purchasing and supply manager s roles and functions (or spotted it in the case study) and answered by considering the department s (team) perspective. In many ways the answers should be very similar and hence the assessors were flexible in giving appropriate marks. Unfortunately many candidates answered the question in general but there were enough issues in the case study for candidates to focus on e.g. complacency, formal procedures not adhered to, waste, lack of quality control and problems with stock-holding for candidates to write about. The range of roles and function also varied in the answers from more traditional to wide spanning aspects. Question 2 (a) (15 Marks) Propose a systematic approach to training and development that will equip SI s purchasing team with the required skills. In this question candidates were expected to propose a systematic approach to training and development that would enable the purchasing team at SI to be effective. This required candidates to outline the key steps needed to do this which includes considering the future skills needs of the organisation, identifying skills gaps, surveying the range of training and development available with each individual and deciding whether to use inhouse resources or outsource the provision of training and development and then monitoring the results or improvements (as a result). This question was again answered in a variable fashion from candidates either focusing on the training and development side or from an identification of training and development needs. L5-01 / SA report/ Nov

3 Some candidates focused their attention on appraisals but the identification of training needs is much more widespread than that and can include a training needs analysis (TNA), use of a competency framework, skills gap analysis and maybe other diagnostic tools. Candidates also varied in the range of training and development routes that they offered to employees which included workshops, accredited purchasing and supply courses, coaching and mentoring, job shadowing and secondments. All these are relevant and better candidates justified their use and benefits. Better answers blended both the identification of training and development needs and the sourcing of the most appropriate training and development methods to meet those requirements. Question 2 (b) (10 marks) Explain the benefits of empowering members of the purchasing team within SI. This part of the question requires candidates to focus on the impact that empowering team members has on the purchasing department. These include the benefits from a delegator, delegatee and to a lesser extent from an organisational perspective. Surprisingly for what seemed a straightforward question few candidates scored well for this question. Candidates either focused on the organisational benefits or mentioned limited benefits for the individual or manager delegating. The few better answers gave a good definition of what empowerment is and then went onto outline the benefits from a manager, individual and organisational perspective. L5-01 / SA report/ Nov

4 SECTION B Question 3 Evaluate FOUR different types of structure that are used within organisations, and assess their implications for the purchasing function, with the use of relevant examples. This question required candidates to evaluate the different types of structure used within organisations and link them back to the impact they have on the purchasing function. If the candidate could relate it to company examples or real scenarios (maybe from experience) this would attract higher marks. Candidates can choose from a whole range of organisational structures which include centralised, decentralised, tall, flat, matrix, hybrid etc. As well as showing an understanding of the organisational structure they were expected to address the implications of these structures in terms of speed of decision making, communication, power, authority and levels of motivation. This question was answered reasonably well with most candidates able to cite four types of organisational structure. Some candidates did get confused with the different structures, their strengths and weaknesses, and mentioned limited purchasing and supply implications. Many candidates also used diagrams to develop their responses which providing they were clear and well labelled were awarded with marks. Answers also varied in the detailed links back to the purchasing and supply function. Unfortunately a limited number of candidates used their own experiences or drew on real company examples to reinforce their understanding of the question. Question 4 (a) (15 Marks) Discuss, with reference to relevant theories, how a group of individuals might develop into a team. This part of the question required candidates to apply the models of Tuckman and Jensen and Belbin to show the considerations when developing a group into a team. It was also expected that candidates would appreciate the differences between a group and a team. A popular question but unfortunately often poorly answered. Many candidates were all too aware of the theories but merely cited them without considering how the models may be applied to assist the process of team development. Some candidates managed to mix up the theorists and models. Other candidates cited Theory X & Y and Herzberg but these are more suited to motivational type questions (such as in part b). Better answers not only used the models well but appreciated how they could be used to build a team e.g. offering support, organising events, sourcing training and development, giving praise when needed etc. L5-01 / SA report/ Nov

5 Question 4 (b) (10 marks) Explain TWO techniques which might be deployed to motivate group members and build an effective team. In this part of the question candidates were expected to explain different ways a manager can motivate a team. There are many ways that a manager can do this by either using theories and models or by a range of management techniques. Although this was a relatively straight forward part of the question many candidates struggled in answering it. Candidates could find limited ways of motivating a group of members into a team. Often they cited away days or training and development or referenced Maslow or Herzberg without giving a detailed explanation of how they could be used. Candidates could have used project work, delegation/empowerment, praising team members or offering rewards, to name but a few. Some candidates needed to be a little bit more creative in response to this question and maybe think what would motivate them as a team member this would have given them good clues as how to answer this question. Question 5 A contract with a supplier is coming to an end and the purchasing manager of the organisation has been asked to decide whether to continue with the supplier or to change to another. Explain, with reference to relevant decision-making tools, how the purchasing manager might evaluate this situation and make an effective management decision. In this question candidates were expected to explain, using a range of decision making tools, how they could decide whether to stay with an existing supplier or move to a new one. Many candidates answered this question well by exploring a range of decision making models which included decision making trees, Pareto Analysis, Ishikawa diagram and cost/benefit analysis. Unfortunately from the detail in some of the answers (especially with the cost/benefit analysis) some candidates had limited practical knowledge of using these management techniques. Some candidates described instead of explaining in their responses showing a limited knowledge and understanding of the question. Better answers not only understood the decision making tools but were able to apply them to the scenario and suggest the types of information that would be needed to make an informed decision. L5-01 / SA report/ Nov

6 Question 6 Analyse the causes of organisational change with the use of examples and relevant theoretical models. In this question candidates were expected to analyse the causes of organisational change using theories (such as PESTLE and SWOT) and with the use of real company examples to reinforce their understanding. A popular question and generally well answered by most candidates. Some candidates spent too long exploring the types of change evolutionary and revolutionary and not enough time on the causes of organisational change which was the main thrust of the question. Many candidates explored the causes of change using PESTLE and SWOT although some did not cite the models but used most of the factors for analysis. Other candidates showed a really good general knowledge of business issues and global concerns by using recent company examples and the recent recession in their answers. This showed the marker that they had been taking a keen professional interest in current affairs and reading the Supply Management journal which is all good practice when taking examinations. Some candidates did mention the Kubler-Ross model and explored reaction to change which wasn t really asked for in the question. On the whole though this question was answered well. General Comments There seems to be a generally higher standard this year although a large number of candidates are still not reading the questions attentively enough or addressing the command words used. Still a lot of passes rather than credits and distinctions. With wider reading, better examination technique and more attention paid to current affairs candidates can attain better grades. It is certainly a good idea for candidates to practise responding to examination questions through past papers or mock examinations. Candidates also need to get more confident with the meaning of command words. L5-01 / SA report/ Nov

7 APPENDIX: Matrix indicating the learning objectives of the unit content that each question is testing SECTION A SECTION B Question No Learning Objective a b c a b c a b c a b c a b c a b c 1 The challenges of management X Organisation structures and culture X Management decision making 3.1 X Managing work groups and teams 4.1 X 4.2 X X X 5 Managing change 5.1 X L5-01 / SA report/ Nov