Graham

Procurement is now recognized as a profession and there a number of organizations around the world providing specialist training. Central and core would be what Naomi referred to as well as the following:

1. Membership to SAPICS - The Association for Operations Management of Southern Africa (e-mail: mail@sapics.org.za)

2. APICS Certified Supply Chain Professional, visit www.apics.org and about the CSCP exam email to: cscpexam@apicshq.org. This is the certification you need to be recognized as a true Supply Chain Professional. There are mandatory requirements though.

3. UNISA has the Certificate programme called Advanced Sourcing and Supply Chain Management of which the credits can be used for the Bcom specializing in Strategic Supply Management which is I think a 3-years degree course.

Supply Chain disciplines comprises the following key technical areas:

- Procurement
- Inventory
- Logistics
- Content
- Systems
- Repair control

An additional means of keeping your technical knowledge and expertise up to date would be to regularly view up to date publications and journals covering the above-mentioned fields.

Journals and Publications - Inside Supply Management, Procurement Professional, Supply Management, Journal of Enterprise Resource Management and Journal of Supply Chain Management. If you run a checklist on www.refdesk.com or www.altavista.com it should bring up these journals.

The International Chamber of Commerce based in Paris, France has a number of good guides in terms of the Terms of Sale (Incoterms) for international business across frontiers as well specific publications on Arbitration, Dispute Resolution and Commercial Contracts, so too does the International Trade Center based in Geneve, Switzerland.
Websites:

- www.cips.org (Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply [CIPS]
- www.ism.ws (Institute of Supply Management)
- www.capsresearch.org (Center for Advanced Purchasing Studies)
- www.apics.org (American Production and Inventory Control Society)
- www.ifpmm.org (International Federation of Purchasing and Materials Management
- www.cipsa.com.au (Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply Australia)
- www.ipsera.com (International Purchasing and Supply Research Association)

Recommended reading:

- Total Materials Management by Eugene L. Magad, John M. Amos
- Effective Negotiating by Dr. Chester L. Karras
- Understanding Financial Statements by Errol C. Velleman
- Business Logistics Management by Ronald H. Ballou
- Management Business Logistics by John C. Coyle, Edward J. Bardi, C. John Langley
- Strategic Purchasing & Supply Chain Management by Malcolm Saunders
- Contract Law for Decisionmakers by Jurgerns Bekker - Center Africa


Having said that, a good dose of practical experience in the key disciplines is imperative because technical areas 2 - 5 underpins technical area 1. There are no substitutes.

Hope you find this insightful and will help you to prepare your career in Supply Chain Management.