Contracts & Purchasing Masterclass

Introduction:

The utilization of best practices in the processes of Purchasing and Contracting has been recognized by world-class companies as essential to the success of modern organizations. Mercury Training Center is pleased to bring this fast-paced two-week seminar designed on providing high value-added activities to these critical functions. Included in the many topics covered in this training session, to move purchasing and contracts functions from the tactical to a more important strategic focus

Targeted Groups:

• Contract Administrators, Contract Professionals and Project Coordinators
• Specifiers, Buyers, Purchasing Professionals and Procurement Officers
• Contracts Managers 
• Project Managers
• Procurement Managers
• Purchasing Managers

Course Objectives:

At the end of this course the participants will be able to:

• Understand the essential requirements for purchasing and contracts management
• Review contract strategies
• Understand Team structures and roles
• Recognize the benefits of continuous improvement in purchasing and contracting
• See examples of important commercial contract clauses
• Implement changes within the team and with other departments
• Learn strategies and tactics for improved buying and contracting
• Explore the uses of tendering, negotiation and other approaches
• Define the essential elements of a contract
• Measure and improve purchasing and contracting performance
• Use key performance measures

Targeted Competencies:

• Developing the right organizational strategies for your team
• Roles and responsibilities of Purchasing and Contracting Personnel
• Negotiating with suppliers and contractors
• Cross-functional purchasing and contracting approaches
• Elements Of a good request for quote and tendering process
• Selecting the right contract type
• Important contract terms and conditions
• Contract management

Course Content:

Unit 1: Objectives of Contract Administration:

• Effective Contract Administration
• The Most Critical Elements
• Key Players In Contract Administration
• Post-Award Conference
• Analysis Of The Contract 
• Establishing Major Deliverables
• What Needs To Be Measured?

Unit 2: Outputs and Contract Types:

• Typical Outputs Of Contract Administration
• Monitoring Techniques
• Identify The Risk
• Responses To Risk
• Contract Types
• Administration In Cost Type Contracts
• Economic Price Adjustments

Unit 3: Maintaining Schedules & Contract Changes:

• Maintaining Contract Schedules
• Expediting Techniques
• Major Causes Of Changes
• Contract Price Changes
• Evaluating Price Changes
• Practical Considerations for Bonds & Guarantees
• Types of Bonds and Guarantees

Unit 4: Issues in Contract Performance:

• Contract Terminations
• Service Level Termination Event
• What Constitutes a Breach?
• Responding To A Breach
• Right To Cover
• Manuals And Drawings
• Supplier/Contractor Relations
• Subcontractor Issues

Unit 5: Acceptance and Close-Out:

• Warranties
• Forms Of Payment
• Progress Payments
• Claims and Disputes
• Negotiation Of Claims and Disputes
• Final Acceptance
• Close-Out Procedures
• Post Contract Review Meeting

Unit 6: Effective Purchasing in Modern Organisations:

• What is the role of Purchasing?
• What do other functions want from Purchasing?
• Essentials for Effective Purchasing
• Concepts and approaches in Purchasing Management
• Team Roles and responsibilities
• What do you want to achieve?

Unit 7: Tools for Effective Purchasing:

• Spend Mapping
• Supply Positioning
• Supplier Intelligence
• Supplier Selection
• Role of Distributors and Agents

Unit 8: Financial and Non-Financial Purchasing Measures:

• Pricing Mechanisms
• Value Analysis
• Cost analysis
• Total Cost of Ownership
• Capital Equipment Life Cycle Costing
• Early Involvement of other functions

Unit 9: Use of Appropriate Sourcing Techniques:

• Use of Tendering, negotiation, direct sourcing and e-commerce
• Tendering, RFIs, RFQs
• Negotiation preparation, strategy & Tactics
• Negotiation with other cultures
• E-procurement

Unit 10: Implementing Purchasing Improvements:

• Using Key Performance Measures to monitor and deliver improvements
• Metric hierarchies
• Implementing Change
• Planning Communications
• Planning for Action