Planning of annual demands, based on the sales forecast and experience as input for annual negotiations.

Material Requirements Planning / Advanced Planning and Scheduling / IT skills necessary to extract planning data from employed ERP system.

Being focussed on the internal customer or internal user group.

Being focussed on all internal and external stakeholders.

Pooling is to bundle the entire demands of the (group o)f organisation(s). Pooling requires careful planning, demand identification and the application of organisational solutions (lead buyer concept, centralisation, purchasing councils).

Analysing the supply market. Who are the possible suppliers? What is the competition level between suppliers and what is their market power?

Analysis and planning not only of the immediate supply market, but consideration of the entire supply chain.

Knowledge on a special purchasing domain, e.g. different industries, services, construction, purchasing of health etc.

Internal scan. This requires knowledge on the technological requirements of its own company.

External scan. This requires a systematic scan of the solutions available on the supply market.

Implementing suppliers innovations in the own organization.

Development of the sourcing strategy for a category or family of purchasing goods, including strategic analysis and category classification/portfolio management (e.g. Kraljic)

Choosing between manufacturing a product.

Knowledge on purchasing in an organisation, e.g. Systems, organisational agility and best practice knowledge.

The design of processes and the updating as well as reading and understanding processes.

Understanding the technical aspects of the own products and production processes.

Knowledge on the added value of purchasing to the organisation and the importance of purchasing to the organisation.

Strategic integration refers to the preparation of purchasers to work as a board member. Sourcing strategy development is covered is covered above in planning.

Knowledge on how organisations are governed, including board, role of advisory board, stakeholders etc.

Knowledge on how to ensure that purchasing plays an adequate role in the organisation.

Knowing basics about Production/Operations and knowing how to establish/maintain the relationships.

Knowing basics about Quality Management and knowing how to establish/maintain the relationships.

Knowing basics about Marketing Management (or Public Relations) and knowing how to establish/maintain the relationships.

Knowing basics about Logistics and Storage and knowing how to establish/maintain the relationships.

Knowing basics about Research & Development and knowing how to establish/maintain the relationships.

Knowing basics about Human Resources Management and knowing how to establish/maintain the relationships.

Knowing basics about legal aspects, like contracts, compliance and legal consequences and knowing how to establish/maintain the relationships.

Specifying the requirements and needs for supplies.

Request for Quotation (RfQ) / Proposal (RfP) / Information (RfI) - Inviting suppliers to submit a bid, which meets the requirements as laid down in the request.

Sourcing materials, processes, designs, technologies and suppliers from global market / acquiring new global suppliers.

E.g. the calculation of the total costs of ownership or other cost calculations.

Evaluating the offers and selecting a supplier (or more) with whom the delivery of the product will be negotiated, including the tendering process. Aspects needs to be taken into account: diversity, ethical issues, and cost/price.

A business model that requires active compliance with the spirit of the law, ethical standards and national or international norms.

Sustainable purchasing: considering environmental, social, ethical and economic issues in the management of the organization’s external resources.

Purchasing Process Improvement.

Negotiating considers all commercial and legal terms that need to be settled in a satisfactory way with the supplier.

Designing of contracts, application of standard vs. customised contracts.

Monitoring and enforcing the contracts after they have been signed.

Claims management is dealing with opportunistic suppliers who tend to increase their margin with extra work apart from the contract. The negotiated price is obviously too low and the suppliers' margin comes from subsequent extra charges.

The ongoing management of the suppliers after contracting / strategically planning for, and managing, all interactions with suppliers.

The implementation of strategies to manage both everyday and exceptional risks along the supply chain to deal with risks and uncertainties caused by, or impacting on, logistics related activities or resources in the supply chain.

Process of measuring and monitoring the performance of current suppliers.

Cooparation with suppliers to improve their processes and product capabilities.

Involving the supplier in the new product development process from a very early stage.

The process of becoming a preferred strategic business partner with your supplier.

Defining key perfomance indicators / objectives / targets and implementing them.

Continuous monitoring of target achievement, incl. project controlling (Performance of suppliers is part of supplier evaluation).

Applying statistical analyses methods.

Uncovering hidden patterns, correlations and other insights from large amounts of data using specific statistical big data analyses methods.

Analysing the purchasing portfolio, describing a classification of purchases, and supporting the portfolio management.

Act of cutting costs to improve profitability (e.g. by analysis and statistics).

Having knowledge on the working of a computerized designed e-procurement system.

Working on the automation of purchasing processes.

Research into alternative materials that are more sustainable, economical and readily available; analysing the possibilities of using recycled, bio-based or renewable materials (circular economy).

Competition between suppliers to consult/choose new ideas, technologies, processes, materials and trends.

Analysing the sources of emissions (CO2) and eliminating/reducing them; in the case of participation in emissions trading, direct costs can be avoided.

Analysing energy consumption; identifying possibilities for reduction through new production methods, new equipment, efficient use, waste reduction...

Optimisation of product design to reduce energy consumption during manufacture, use and disposal; implementation of energy-efficient components or systems to reduce operating costs.

Optimisation of the supply chain to reduce transport costs and emissions; suppliers who prioritise sustainability and offer economical and environmentally friendly materials or product parts.

10 Re-s (refuse, rethink, reduce, reuse, repair, refurbish, remanufacture, reuse, recover, recycle).

Optimisation to reduce water consumption during manufacture, use and disposal; identification of pollutants and their elimination.

Land use has negative effects on sustainability; reduced need for space, as a result of the superior organisation of the prothecess, saves land and costs.

Supplier and logistics design - for example, for pool transport operations and packaging optimisation.

Increased efficiency through better planning that leads to less consumption of resources, generating sustainability benefits.

Identification of consumables, but also maintenance / repair / overhaul and analysis of replacement with sustainable products.

Implementing circular economy principles, such as product take-back programmes and recycling initiatives; reusing waste materials and by-products to create new revenue streams.

Extending the useful life of installations/products avoids early replacement and the associated costs .

Exploitation of automation and robotics to increase efficiency, reduce labour costs and minimise manufacturing errors; implementation of predictive maintenance to avoid costly breakdowns.

Use of new 4.0 technologies (AI, blockchain, cyber-physical systems [sensors], 3D printing, digital twins).

Use of sustainable financial products for financing; portfolio review with possible cost reduction.

Implement mandatory regulations in a way that combines them with cost-saving benefits, e.g. ESG implementation together with risk management; continuous updating on environmental regulations and incentives.

Inclusion of sustainability targets as part of the supplier incentive system.

Partnership contracts with suppliers, establishing joint sustainability savings targets with proportional sharing of savings.

Establishment of sustainability measures as part of the quality system.

Collaboration between suppliers, e.g. joint use of measuring equipment, planning data, analysing the interfaces of their products... including n-tier.

Innovation week with sustainability goal, suppliers invited to work on ideas / start-up pitches.

Holding workshops on green leverage with individual suppliers, targeting their scope.

Establishing communication with suppliers as a "sustainability champion", attracting ideas from suppliers and becoming a preferred customer.

Auditing operational or manufacturing processes to identify areas where energy and resources can be conserved; identifying opportunities to reduce waste and improve efficiency.

Implementation of Lean Six Sigma (or similar) to optimise processes and eliminate waste; green manufacturing practices to reduce environmental impact and costs at the same time, training of suppliers' employees.

Collaboration with suppliers, research institutions and other organisations to explore new materials and technologies.

Assessment of the sustainability of the supply base, using the score to test the concentration of volume on sustainable suppliers, achieving volume savings and benefiting the environment.

Identifying related products and obtaining resources from more sustainable sources.

If your own sustainability efforts don't produce the desired results, this may be another reason to consider outsourcing processes and components to a greener supplier.

Evaluation of the sustainability of own product variants and elimination of those that cause the most emissions; gradual elimination of the respective suppliers.

Evaluation of the total cost of ownership of a component/service; modification for sustainability with a positive total cost.

Based on the possible final emission of a product/service, the possible scope of emission per component is determined, finding solutions with the respective suppliers to achieve.

Organisation of an electronic auction with sustainability scores included.

Assessing the sustainability of all suppliers, changing the supplier portfolio based on these criteria.

Identifying suppliers from countries that do not comply with environmental regulations or do not reduce emissions and systematically replacing them.

Identification of suppliers with functionally comparable products, but with more sustainable production .

Analysing whether this commodity could benefit from changes in other commodities/create sustainability cost benefits in them.

Data Analytics skills - In purchasing include handling, analyzing, and interpreting large amounts of data by using data mining and visualization to identify and solve problems.

E-Procurement Technology skills - Based on the growing functionality and scope of operational purchasing technologies, focus on working with these systems and define future system development requirements.

Digital Leadership skills - The ability to organize and manage people within a digital environment based on activities and performance indicators that are provided by digital systems.

Robotic Process Automation (RPA) skills - Using RPA in purchasing by configuring software bots to capture and interpret applications for processing a transaction, manipulating data, triggering responses, and communicating with other digital systems.

Supply Network Management skills - Relate to a coherent and integrated understanding of the vertical and horizontal supply chain of goods and services.

Digital Negotiation skills - Negotiating within a digital environment, e.g., E-Sourcing technologies and auctions, where Industry 4.0 negotiation focuses on machine negotiation and digital marketplaces.

Digital Contract Management and Legal skills - Implement legislative and other legal requirements into automated purchasing processes, utilizing, for example, blockchain technology and smart contracts.

Strategic Management skills - Include the up-to-datedness with current global trends, e.g., Industry 4.0, and assessing their contribution for competitive advantage.

Digital Partnership Management skills - Include personal communication to solve issues with internal and external stakeholders in the Industry 4.0 environment that goes beyond electronic system communication.

Active compliance with the spirit of the law, ethical standards and national or international norms.

Proficiency in the specific rules, guidelines, or characteristics established by consensus and approved by a recognized body that applies to a particular field or industry.

Possessing foundational knowledge in the natural sciences, which includes understanding principles from disciplines such as biology, chemistry, physics, and earth sciences.

The capability to analyze and apply economic principles to the evaluation and management of environmental resources, and to assess the economic impacts of environmental policies.

Understanding of resource economics, more specifically focusing on the efficient use and conservation of natural resources, balancing economic needs with environmental health, and understanding the value of ecosystem services—such as clean air and water—which are crucial for maintaining biodiversity and overall ecological balance.

Considering environmental impacts of each distinct part involved in creating and using products and services, such as energy used in production, fuel used in transport, and end-of-life ecological costs.