Professional Development in Supply Chain Management - Coursework Example

Professional development in supply chain management Student’s Name Name of Institution Introduction Professional development is not a single-time operation. Rather it forms a continuous part of an individual’s career. Deeming it a precedence to evaluate and improve one’s skill set tends to enhance the person’s value to the organization as well as enhance future career aspirations. Professional development is a way of supporting persons within the place of work to understand the working environment, the tasks, and the means of performing the tasks better. Work places use professional development to ensure that employees continually fortify their practice all through their career (Mizell, 2010). Professional development opportunities offer means of keeping abreast of the changes, broadening individual skills, and enhancing effectiveness in work. Therefore, professional development remains part of a person’s professional and personal ambition, enhance career prospects, become confident in their work, and deem the job more fulfilling. Whilst professional development is a critical aspect of working lives, it as well provides a way of employers to endorse their workforce (Walden, 2010). The working milieu is rapidly changing with the economic, social, and legislative developments affecting the environment, and the technological advances providing drastically diverse ways of performing tasks. Life-long learning is becoming increasingly vital with the swift introduction of novel technologies as well as advances in practices and standards within supply chain. Accordingly, professional development remains principal to optimization of career opportunities within management of supply chain. It enhances the practice of improving, broadening, and maintaining an individual’s knowledge within the field. Rationale of professional development among supply chain managers A vast majority of professional fields necessitate that members partake in constant learning as a prerequisite to maintain their jobs. Professional development offers educational experiences allied to a person’s work. People within a broad array of businesses and professions take part in professional development with the aim of acquiring and applying novel skills and knowledge to improve their job performance. Professional development provides a strategy for work places to strengthen the performance levels of employees. It provides the means by which employees learn, eventually becoming competent in improving their performance as well as a way to raise employee achievement. Besides, professional development proves vital in enabling professionals develop the skills and knowledge needed to address work place challenges. Objectives of professional development of supply chain management in XX Company XX Company encourages its employees to seek out and participate in professional development. The professional development activities aim at enhancing qualifications at diverse levels to attain excellent skills. Subsequent to reflecting on where the XX organization is and where it aspires to be, there appeared to be a need for professional development for supply chain managers. The professional development activities aim at improving cultural awareness. Since the supply chains have expanded and become global, there emerges a necessity to understand the cultures allied to the workforce within all regions. Possible professional development opportunities for supply chain managers Effective professional development necessitates thoughtful planning as well as careful implementation and feedback to make sure it responds to the professional needs of the work force. At XX organization, the professional development activities endeavor at achieving corporate and personal ambitions is flexible, varied, and diverse. The professional development activities can range from development of practical skills through focused courses to theoretical knowledge aimed at providing a deep understanding of working practices. Professional development can be delivered by means of work-based learning, presentations and lectures, tutoring, teaching, monitoring, and coaching, seminars and conferences, group sessions, on-line designed programmes, work-based programmes, certificates, trainings, college degree programmes, or individual continuing education classes. Certification Provision of proficient certification is an efficient pillar of management of supply chains. The certification program consists of lectures, interactive exercises, projects, and discussions. Given that there is a plethora of certification programs, supply chain professionals may choose to either take particular modules or complete a sequence of them. Accordingly, the certification programs equip the supply chain experts with specialized skills and knowledge. Similarly, they can attain certificates and diplomas, thus enhancing professional recognition. Professionals in supply chain may acquire professional certification via a certification examination designed by a third party, predominantly a non-profit entity. Certification of supply chain experts is valued by both the recruiting organizations and the individuals since it guarantees given expertise level on the field of supply chain. The numerous certification examinations for supply chain experts include IOSCM, ISM, ISCEA, IIPMR, CPSM, CSCM, CSCP, CPSM , IOSCM, and APICS (Walden, 2010). The knowledge required to do well in the certification exams of supply chain may emanate from various learning experiences of individuals, which may vary from one specialist to another. While a small portion of the entire knowledge body may emerge from college courses, most of emanates from a blend of acquiring best practices from peers, reading articles and books, attending industrial events, and on-the-job experiences. The utmost, fastest, and easiest means of mastering and fully understanding knowledge in supply chain may be attending certification workshops that are designed in affiliation with certification entities. APICS CPIM The APICS CPIM program endows professionals with the capability to comprehend and evaluate inventory and production activities within an organization’s global operations. APICS CPIM remains beneficial to global designees. It deems viable to all supply chain experts ranging from operations assistants, senior manufacturing experts, to vendor managers. In this context, APICS keeps provides supply chain experts with industry savvy and current events and news. Moreover, it does not solely enhance their skills in supply chain and operations management but also equips them with the leverage required in advancing their careers. It enhances mastery of essential concepts, strategies, and terminology allied to continuous improvement, supplier relationships, master scheduling, quality control, performance measurements, demand management, supplier planning, capacity planning, procurement management, and sales planning. Ultimately, APICS remains vital in making valued leaders within the sector of supply chain (Walden, 2010). The certification program of APICS CPIM deems ideal for candidates seeking accreditation or validation for prospective career growth. The candidates ought to have not less than two years of experience within the field of supply chain. However, the certification program does not necessitate any bachelor’s degree qualification. The certification of APICS CPIM has been proven to be industry standard, and thus numerous employers are applying it within their organizations. The certification program has benefitted from a strong repute lasting for forty years. This repute owes top the program’s ability to cover everything within the four walls of an organization. APICS CSCP Another APICS certification is the CSCP program. The CSCP ensures that professionals attain the critical skills and knowledge within areas, which include risk compliance, finance, management of supplier relationship, and global strategy organization. The program helps professionals demonstrate their organizational skills and knowledge with the aim of developing streamlined operations. The program, which was launched in 2006, has attained effective repute with at least 13,000 professionals within 77 nations acquiring its designation. Indeed, the CSCP designation proves to be the utmost broadly accepted educational program among supply chain and operations management experts all through the globe. Hence, numerous recruiters and employers are seeking it. The program does not merely equip individuals with best practices pertaining to management of supply chain but also distinguishes supply chain managers as industry professionals with expertise, high-level skills and knowledge. Within an organization like XX, CSCP deems indispensable as it deals with global issues. CSCP proves essential in professional development for individuals seeking to increase their expertise and knowledge in managing worldwide supply chain, predominantly within the sectors of international trade, physical logistics, customer relations, and technology enablement. In this context, the program offers a striking opportunity for XX Company that is expanding globally. Moreover, CSCP enables the supply chain experts to create a common standard of vocabulary, understanding, frameworks, and resources within the organization, which makes it easy to address the supply chain opportunities and challenges. CSCP enhances mastery of the requisite tools to efficiently manage activities allied to supply chain at a global level, including distributors, customers, and suppliers. Besides, the program equips individuals with the skills required in creating consistency and fostering collaboration by means of corporate communication, best practices, and common terminology. Ultimately, CSCP caters for the future of both the individual and the organization because it maximizes the organization’s investments and as well boosts a person’s professional value. Training workshops The contemporary market requires trained practitioners to endorse management of the multifaceted supply chains. Training workshops deem competent in meeting these requirements owing to their sequence of tactical seminars and courses intended to form a firm skills base. The training programs are designed to endow supply chain practitioners with the requisite skills and expertise to endorse supply chain tasks as well as the allied business skills vital in advancing their careers. The training workshops cater for all individuals within the field of supply chain, whether junior buyers, individuals working outside the field of supply chain management but possess some logistics, procurement, operations, and transportation responsibilities, or persons who influence a company’s procurement decisions (Slone, Dittmann, & Mentzer, 2013). The training workshops prove vital in improving the competitiveness of a given business. The challenges affiliated with globalization, technology, and environment pose direct implications on how effectively businesses can handle their supply chains. Businesses within the globe have garnered the gains associated with effectual management of supply chains through training workshop programs. These benefits comprise of improved quality and productivity, strengthened collaborations and affiliations within supply chains, reduced lead times and costs, and streamlined processes. The training programs are well equipped to ensure they meet the premeditated objectives. Incorporated within the programs are supply chain toolkits, course books, multimedia learning equipment, and trainer materials. Other products encompass of games, role-plays, cases, and how-to checklists. Where necessary, the content is localized, incorporating local language and pertinent case examples. The SCMA MB, an association for management of supply chain in Manitoba, is among the leading sources of education, professional development, and training for management of supply chains. The association offers training programs consisting of preliminary technical courses, extended education, business seminars, and soft skill seminars. Participants may attend a single training program or complete a serried of them, after which they acquire certificates. The training program proves effective to intermediate and junior supply chain practitioners who require specialized expertise in supply management. Similarly, the training is beneficial to individuals seeking knowledge in management of supply chains at a preliminary level. The most acknowledged training programs within the sector of supply chains is MLS-SCM program. The program is generated to respond to the needs for continuing professional improvement of supply chain managers within the globe. The MLS-SCM program bases on a business framework whereby local trainers acquire soft support and quality materials from ITC (International Trade Center) to establish and initiate local courses while offering global exams locally. Through the training programs, executives learn the art of managing the sourcing, storage, and movement of products from production point to consumption point. Moreover, enterprises acquire realistic solutions to triumphing over challenges allied to demands of export markets. Furthermore, local trade associations attain excellent in-class training in supply chain as well as direct support and guidance, which they can pass on to the local markets. The training workshops represent a comprehensive modular instruction program for both present and future professionals responsible for the management of supply chains and purchase operations within enterprises as well as business directors at distinct stages of professional careers. Besides, the training workshops do not overlook people who are new to the supply chain field. In this context, the training forums endow the new members with a comprehensive variety of courses. Similarly, the training workshops offer specialized courses to professionals who wish to sharpen or refresh their skills within the sector of supply chain. Hence, participants have the option of choosing among the various modules. Ultimately, the training workshops allow participants to take exams as well as attain globally acknowledged professional certification. Conferences and Seminars CSCMP The ultimate means of connecting with professionals within a given field is via conferences. CSCMP is the principal association for professionals in management of supply chains (Morana, 2013). Owing to the universal nature of supply chains, CSCMP has embarked on means of reaching out to professionals within the sector of supply chain in their designated localities. This is achievable through hosting conferences within diverse regions in the universe. CSCMP aims at helping professionals in their companies and careers. Participants emerge from every discipline within the sector of supply management, such as demand planning, transportation and logistics, procurement and purchasing, real estate, warehousing, consulting, manufacturing operations, and sales among others. CSCMP conferences do not solely bring together practitioners but also offer case studies to converse best practices within supply management. The global conferences enable CSCMP to tour the planet while expanding their professional contacts and industry expertise. For instance, every year, they host conferences within India, Europe, Australia, Middle East, and South Africa. Moreover, CSCMP provides roundtables, which offer a basis for career development, networking opportunities, and educational attainment. Roundtables deem it easy for participants to link with their professional colleagues. CSCMP offers a supreme location to learn as well as interact with people from all over the globe whose principal interest is management of supply chains. These individuals represent diverse professions and industries within the supply chain arena. CSCMP holds a meeting that takes three and a half days, hosting numerous professionals of unparalleled networking opportunities and educational experiences. The events feature a distinctive blend of business-focused presentations and practical sessions. Participants have a broad extent of sessions to select from, including hot topics, industry research, and best practices among others. The conferences offer unmatched opportunities to attain practical info and top strategies on contract drafting, negotiations, global sourcing, vendor development, logistics, and risk management. CSCMP has a special forum known as Educator’s Conference. This conference endows students and academics with a medium to acquire the latest development and discoveries in logistics research and supply management. The conference remains open to every interested attendee and academics. It offers interactive and edifying sessions while granting a brilliant setting for networking with partners from all over the world. Besides, during this esteemed event, researchers and academics get a chance to tender their recent research for presentation and consideration. Ultimately, conferences provide an effective opportunity for professional development of supply chain managers because they grant individuals practical knowledge, shared experiences, bounce ideas as well as a chance to extend their group of supply chain peers. Conclusion The development toward professionalization of supply management is gaining much significance within the current globalizing world. Initially, procurement and management of supply chains appeared as merely processes as opposed to professional functions. However, with time, organizations are realizing that effective management of supply chains plays a considerable task in ensuring that funds are used efficiently, money value is achieved in service delivery, and accountability and transparency is assured. Subsequent to this realization, companies have assumed a core interest in professional development of supply chain managers. Indeed, there are numerous possible professional development opportunities. The most acknowledged ones within supply management include conferences, trainings and seminars, and certification. These activities ensure that professional capacities maintain pace with the present standards within the field of expertise. Similarly, professional development ensures that individuals maintain pertinent and up-to-date knowledge, which enable them cope with the changing trends in the field of supply chains. References Mizell, H. (2010). Why professional development matters? Oxford: Learning Foreward. Morana, J. (2013). Sustainable supply chain management. New York: John Wiley & Sons. Slone, R., Dittmann, P., & Mentzer, J. (2013). The new supply chain agenda: The 5 steps that drive real value. Massachusetts: Harvard Business Press. Walden, J.L. (2010). Modeling and benchmarking supply chain leadership: setting the conditions for excellence. Boca Raton: CRC Press. Read More