GRA 6717 Purchasing: Managing Supply Relationships and Networks
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APPLIES TO ACADEMIC YEAR 2014/2015
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GRA 6717 Purchasing: Managing Supply Relationships and Networks
Responsible for the course
Lena Bygballe
Department
Department of Strategy and Logistics
Term
According to study plan
ECTS Credits
6
Language of instruction
English
Introduction
Companies increasingly focus on their core competences and outsource activities based on other competences to suppliers. 60-80 per cent of total costs of goods sold are often uesd on purchased goods and services. As a result, purchasing and supply management have become paramount for companies’ competitiveness.
Students participating in this course will gain an understanding of the role of purchasing and supply management in a company. Emphasis will be on purchasing as a boundary spanning function, and the students will learn to handle the challenges related to organising and operating a competitive supply base and utilising network effects for efficiency and effectiveness.
Learning outcome
Acquired knowledge
(i) To understand what purchasing involves in terms of roles, functions and processes
(ii) To understand and appreciate the differences in the operational, tactical and strategic levels involved in purchasing, SCM and supply networks
(iii) To gain knowledge of and the ability to critique central purchasing models, e.g. segmentation, insourcing/outsourcing, sourcing, and negotiation models
(iv) To gain knowledge of contemporary supply network models and frameworks, e.g. the ARA-model and the network approach to purchasing
Acquired skills
(i) To be able to explain and conduct the purchasing function: specification, search, negotiation, supplier relationship handling, and evaluation
(ii) To be able to compare, critique and make use of key purchasing models
(iii) To be able to communicate in the range of purchasing professional roles, e.g. negotiation skills
Reflection
(i) To understand and appreciate the consequences of modern purchasing choices, e.g. global/local, green/environmental, SCM, etc.
(ii) To appreciate and understand multiple perspectives in purchasing
(iii) To be able to be a reflexive purchasing professional
Prerequisites
A bachelor degree qualifying for admission to the MSc Programme
Compulsory reading
Books:
Gadde, Lars-Erik, Håkan Håkansson, Göran Persson. 2010. Supply network strategies. 2nd ed. Wiley
Weele, Arjan J. van. 2014. Purchasing & supply chain management : analysis, strategy, planning and practice. 6th ed. Cengage Learning
Articles:
Cases and additional articles will be handed out throughout the course
Other:
During the course there may be hand-outs and other material on additional topics relevant for the course and the examination.
Recommended reading
Course outline
The role of purchasing: definitions, trends and challenges
The purchasing process
Purchasing strategy
Organizing for purchasing
Managing suppllier relationships and networks
Computer-based tools
It's learning
Learning process and workload
A course of 6 ECTS credits corresponds to a workload of 160-180 hours. Students are expected to actively participate through discussions and presentations.
Please note that while attendance is not compulsory in all courses, it is the student’s own responsibility to obtain any information provided in class that is not included on the course homepage/It's learning or text book
Examination
The course grade will be based on the following activities and weights:
(1) A 3 hour written exam (individual) accounting for 40% of the final grade.
(2) An essay over a chosen topic from the course (group work) accounting for 40% of the final grade.
(3) Class participation 20%.
To get a final grade in the course, students need to complete and achieve a passing grade in all parts of the evaluation.
In this course class attendence is mandatory. Absences can result in a lower score. Specific information regarding student evaluation beyond the information given in the course description will be provided in class. This information may be relevant for requirements for term papers or other hand-ins, and/or where class participation can be one of several elements of the overall evaluation.
This is a course with continuous assessment (several exam elements) and one final exam code. Each exam element will be graded using points on a scale (e.g. 0-100). The elements will be weighted together according to the information in the course description in order to calculate the final letter grade for the course. You will find detailed information about the point system and the cut off points with reference to the letter grades on the course site in It’s learning.
Examination code(s)
GRA 67171 continuous assessment accounts for 100% of the final grade in GRA 6717
Examination support materials
N/A
Examination support materials at written examiniations are explained under examination information in the student portal @bi. Please note use of calculator and dictionary in the section on support materials.
Re-sit examination
It is only possible to retake an examination when the course is next taught.
The assessment in some courses is based on more than one exam code.
Where this is the case, you may retake only the assessed components of one of these exam codes.
Where this is not the case, all of the assessed components of the course must be retaken.
All retaken examinations will incur an additional fee.
Additional information
Honor Code
Academic honesty and trust are important to all of us as individuals, and represent values that are encouraged and promoted by the honor code system. This is a most significant university tradition. Students are responsible for familiarizing themselves with the ideals of the honor code system, to which the faculty are also deeply committed.
Any violation of the honor code will be dealt with in accordance with BI’s procedures for cheating. These issues are a serious matter to everyone associated with the programs at BI and are at the heart of the honor code and academic integrity. If you have any questions about your responsibilities under the honor code, please ask.