E-learning for corporate purchasers

In the vital business area of procurement, continuous professional development is in greater demand than ever. According to the study "QUEST – Perspectives of Strategic Qualification in Procurement and Supply Chain" conducted by BrainNet Campus in 2007, procurement was unfortunately treated as a stepchild regarding further qualification up to that point – let alone e-learning for buyers: "The qualification budgets in procurement speak volumes. They amount to an average of only 876 euros per procurement employee. In comparison, the qualification budget for employees in sales is nine times higher." (See CHECKpoint eLearning)
What is the state of further education policy for procurement departments today? What requirements do the market and companies place on the further qualification of buyers? And what role does procurement play in the company?

Procurement is the interface between

• Suppliers and sales
• Suppliers and production
• Sales and customers

A strategic value-added function in procurement is therefore a fundamental prerequisite for internal corporate processes and the company's future viability.

Procurement and HR Development in the Age of 4.0 – Where is the trend heading?

The BrainNet study QUEST revealed a dramatic need for qualification in procurement: "There is a wide gap between the future requirements of the procurement function and the existing qualifications of the employees (…) Companies have experienced major changes in their competitive environment, technologies, and markets in recent years. This has not been without massive effects on procurement (…) When asked about the biggest challenges for their business area, CPOs mentioned globalization, the greater responsibility of procurement within the supply chain, and outsourcing first and foremost." (CHECKpoint eLearning) More than 40 Chief Procurement Officers (CPO) and HR managers of globally leading companies such as Coca Cola, Lufthansa, and Bombardier took part in the in-depth interviews of the study.
A company is only as good as its employees, according to CHECKpoint eLearning: "A central factor in this change process are the employees and their competencies, because they operate in increasingly international and complex value-added networks within and outside their companies (…) Buyers of tomorrow must recognize trends and risks as well as act in a process-oriented manner." (CHECKpoint eLearning)

Current State and Need for Improvement

Sabine Ursel, a journalist specializing in procurement and sales, interviewed former CPOs and BME board members Dr. Jürgen Marquard and Dr. Hugo Eckseler in August 2016 for "Beschaffung aktuell" on the topic of further education in procurement. Today, the field of activity for both procurement experts is the personnel consultancy Talent-net GmbH in Cologne. The interview draws a picture of the current further education situation in procurement departments. Marquard on the complex of procurement and Industry 4.0: "Many companies have implemented catalog-based ordering systems, e-sourcing tools, and interactive supply chain platforms. However, the use of Big Data is still in its infancy."
Both procurement experts saw progress and a need for improvement in the personnel development of companies. Since large companies, metropolitan areas, career opportunities, internationality, and economic security are primarily interesting for many applicants, it is important to retain them through special strategies, explained Eckseler. Flexible working hours are a proven means, especially to retain the know-how of female employees. The prospect of interdisciplinary projects and creative freedom makes the difference in the decision for an employer: "Especially in procurement, logistics, and supply chain management, there should be room and potential for this."
Do flexible arrangements of working hours and workflows not represent another hurdle for the HR development department when planning further education? The clear answer is: No, modern further education uses e-learning and blended learning measures precisely where flexibility is required.

E-Learning has arrived in everyday life

Are there e-learning concepts for training buyers in companies today that really meet all the requirements of the market and everyday business life? In 2011, "Einkaufsmanager" compared the beginnings of the e-learning age with the reality of further education in the present: "First came the hype. 10 years ago, e-learning, also known as blended learning (connected/integrated learning), was praised as the salvation of the West. Then came the disappointment. Neither IT technology, didactics, nor learners were ripe for this new type of electronic knowledge transfer at the time (…) Today, e-learning is an intelligent mix with high synergy effects of well-known learning methods and new, computer-based teaching procedures" (See Einkaufsmanager) E-learning developers are now in a position to respond optimally to the further education requirements of companies, learning groups, and individual learners.

Blended Learning: Impulses from outside

Teaching materials such as negotiation training are unsuitable for pure e-learning. The field of procurement is therefore predestined for blended learning, which combines the advantages of traditional and electronic learning:

• Classical: Face-to-face seminars during which content is conveyed and developed in lectures, exercises, group work, tutorials, and discussions.
• Electronic: Digital learning with texts and multimedia on e-learning platforms or via learning app, usually with the connection of forums, chats, and e-mail coaching.

As stated in the BrainNet study QUEST, 64 percent of training sessions in 2007 still took place in-house. Nicole Gaiziunas, Director of the Qualification Division at BrainNet, found this only partially sensible: "(…) cherished processes must be reconsidered and changed. This is only possible through impulses from outside and from management." (CHECKpoint eLearning)

E-Learning concepts for buyers checklist

Using the following checklist, you can plan further education for your employees in procurement:

1. What is the state of your employees' self-learning competence?
2. Which learning type do they belong to?

• Visual learner: Learns best with images, graphics, texts, sketches, videos.
• Auditory learner: Needs texts, audio files, conversations, videos to learn.
• Haptic learner: "Learning by doing" as well as videos and exercises with subsequent learning success checks.
• Intellectual learner: abstract-verbal learner, deepens knowledge independently. The learning medium is irrelevant.

3. Now develop learning objectives, learning strategies, and learning progression according to the learning type.
4. When should the further education end?
5. Which learning material must be mastered within a year/half-year/month?
6. What further education budget is available to you for procurement?
7. Are existing further education contents still suitable if product and market conditions change?
8. What is the personnel situation in your company (vacation, increased sick leave)?
9. Which forms of further education fit this (e-learning in the company premises, time- and location-independent online learning, mobile learning, blended learning)?
10. Are all involved parties positively disposed towards the topic of further education?
11. Can an employee not imagine learning independently in their free time at all?