Finally: A graduate degree in purchasing
By Kathryn Belyea -- Purchasing, 2/10/2000
In the fall of this year, St. John's University in New York City will be offering the first ever Master of Science degree in purchasing. Long overdue, the program will offer purchasing managers in the field the training and analytical framework necessary to manage the increasingly strategic demands of their profession and to fill in the gaps in their academic background.St. John's has offered certificate programs for years, where faculty members have taught on site at companies such as Nynex, American Express, AT&T and others. "But these programs do not include academic testing, so they don't result in a degree. They only certify that a participant has successfully completed the program," explains Eberard Scheuing, NAPM professor of purchasing and supply leadership at St. John's.
"Purchasing professionals of today have grown far beyond processing purchase orders," he continues. "Procurement officers are now in the upper echelons of their company and report directly to the chairman or CEO."
People have moved into these high-ranking roles from accounting, law, sales and other disciplines, while others have come with a background in a technical or scientific field. But most do not have a purchasing degree. "And they themselves feel this as a serious impediment in their professional career," says Dr. Scheuing.
The program is offered jointly by the management and marketing departments at St. John's and was developed by Dr. Scheuing, who has been a full-time member of the faculty since 1967. "It's interesting that it's jointly offered by marketing and management," observes Dr. Scheuing, "because purchasing has been looking for an academic home, and purchasing is on the opposite side of marketing. Yet marketers market to purchasers, and purchasers buy from the marketers."
The program consists of a basic curriculum, a professional purchasing and supply leadership curriculum, and course electives.
The basic curriculum, worth 12 credits, includes four courses: Economic Analysis for Business Decisions, Materials Resource Management, Marketing of Services and either Operations Research for Business Decision Making or Control of Industrial Processes for Business.
The professional purchasing and supply leadership curriculum consists of 18 credits and includes: Fundamentals of Purchasing and Supply Leadership, Legal Aspects of Purchasing and Supply Leadership, Analytical Tools for Purchasing and Supply Leadership, and either Integrated Purchasing and Supply Leadership or Systems Management of Operations/Production.
Two out of three available electives round out the program for a total of 30 credits. These electives are: Global Purchasing and Supply Leadership, Logistics and Transportation Management, and World Class Purchasing and Supply Leadership.
Educational requirements for entering the program are in keeping with the International Association for Management Education (AACSB). A prospective student has to have a bachelor's degree and have a passing grade in the graduate management admission test (GMAT). "We expect to recruit experienced purchasing professionals at the manager level and above," says Dr. Scheuing. "We are tailoring this program to them."
The program differs from an M.B.A., which is a "horizontal" degree covering a broad range of managerial disciplines and allowing only limited specialization. An M.S. is a "vertical" degree and involves a limited number of business disciplines, permitting strong specialization in a chosen field. Program themes focus on issues pertinent to the demands of the purchasing world. Financial analysis, taught by a department CPA, is covered so that a purchasing manager can understand financial statements of suppliers and assess their financial stability. All courses touch on e-commerce, and both purchasing of services and ethics are interwoven throughout the program. Legal, cultural and technical issues also are addressed.
As companies move more and more into the global arena, cultural awareness is becoming more important strategically. "As Americans, we tend to be too provincial," says Dr. Scheuing, who originally is from Germany. "Most Americans have not traveled overseas, and only 10% have passports. So, we have directors of global sourcing who do not have a passport."
Cultural savvy works both ways. In Germany, for example, German businessmen can attend seminars on how to buy in the United States. The costs in Germany are so high; companies are coming to the States to set up business. "Germans tend to be much more formal than Americans, so they can be uncomfoable in shirtsleeves at backyard barbecues, addressing others on a first-name basis," says Scheuing. "Americans who are too straightforward and outspoken clash with their German counterparts. This has happened in companies such as DaimlerChrysler."
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