Presidents Corner

By Pete Petersen
For anybody who is been in the purchasing profession for any length of time probably has noticed, that the purchasing department is one of the most scrutinized departments in the organization. Our profession calls for us to be agents for the organization with the authority to spend their money. It is for this reason that our actions, and how we conduct our business must be ethical and without reproach. NAPM. approved in January 1992 " 12 principles to which NAPM subscribes and from which the NAPM standards of purchasing practices are derived they are as follows:

1. Avoid the intent and appearance of unethical or compromising practice in relationships, actions, and communications.
2. Demonstrate loyalty to the employer by diligently following the lawful instructions of the employer, using reasonable care and only authority granted.
3. Refrain from any private business or professional activity that would create a conflict between personal interests and the interests of the employer.
4. Refrain from soliciting or accepting money, loans, credits, or prejudicial discounts, and the acceptance of gifts, entertainment, favors, or services from present or potential suppliers that might influence, or appear to influence, purchasing decisions.
5. Handle confidential or proprietary information belonging to employers or suppliers with due care and proper consideration of ethical and legal ramifications and governmental regulations.
6. Promote positive supplier relationships through courtesy and impartiality in all phases of the purchasing cycle.
7. Refrain from reciprocal agreements that restrain competition.
8. Know and obey the letter and spirit of laws governing the purchasing function and remain alert to the legal ramifications of purchasing decisions. Encourage all segments of society to participate by demonstrating support for small, disadvantaged, and minority-owned businesses.
9. Discourage purchasing�s involvement in employer-sponsored programs of personal purchases that are not business related.
10. Enhance the proficiency and stature of the purchasing profession by acquiring and maintaining current technical knowledge and the highest standards of ethical behavior.
11. Conduct international purchasing in accordance with the laws, customs, and practices of foreign countries, consistent with United States laws, your organization policies, and these Ethical Standards and Guidelines.

At our last dinner meeting there was and interest expressed in the C.P.M. review workshops presented by Ralph Long C.P.M. We are currently working on setting up workshops and we will get information out as soon as we get the details worked out.

In December our dinner speaker will be Kirk Hunt from Honeywell in Tucson talking about strategic procurement and it's value and limitations in the Procurement function.

On behalf of the Board directors and your committee chairs I want to wish you a very happy Thanksgiving to you and your families. I hope to see you at our November 14th dinner meeting.

MISSION STATEMENT The National Association of Purchasing Management Southern Arizona serves the needs of its members and the profession by providing quality learning opportunities through educational forums, career broadening experiences and mentoring opportunities.

DINNER MEETING NOTES

The end result adds value to both you and the company you work for and saves your company money from material, labor and/or expertise.

On Wednesday November 14 at 7:00 pm at our new permanent meeting location at the Viscount Hotel at 4855 E. Broadway; NAPM-SA is proud to present Frank Callom C.P.M. C.P.I.M., President of Calcore Consulting International from Las Vegas, Nevada. Frank is an accomplished authority in Supply Chain Management where his company provides services in Purchasing, Contracting, Negotiations, Strategic Sourcing, Warehousing, Distribution, Logistics and Cost Reduction Techniques. In addition to his job, Frank is currently the President of the Southern Nevada APICS Chapter, teaching APICS Certification courses at the University of Nevada Las Vegas and adjunct Business Professor for the University of Phoenix. In addition to his busy schedule, Frank has published articles in Purchasing, NAPM, APICS and Cost Engineers; then found time to be a speaker to NAPM Conferences, APICS and IIE.

In his past Frank has been the President of the Southern Nevada NAPM, APICS and IIE local chapters. Frank also has a strong education background with an MBA in Marketing from Lehigh and Wilkes Universities and a BS in Economics and minor in Business and Engineering from Pennsylvania State University. Besides being C.P.M. and C.P.I.M. certified, Frank is a certified QES instructor for TQM total quality management.

Be it domestic, international, service or manufacturing; you will have the outsourcing question sooner or later. Here is your chance to really learn about outsourcing and where the trends are going in our expanded purchasing and supply chain management roles. Don�t you be outsourced, but learn outsourcing techniques to add value to your job.

Global Resources

TURNING ON TO GLOBAL PURCHASING
COMPETENCY SKILLS

By Elliott Chaitt
I recently was browsing through a copy of "The NAPM Resource Catalog" which listed a wide variety of seminars designed to help the purchasing professional develop skills in their areas of interest. What caught my eye was the description of a seminar entitled "Global Competency Skills for Purchasing"

The list of what the attendee would learn was impressive and it occurred to me that it could be useful as a checklist for those of us involved in global sourcing. You may find it enlightening (as I did) to go through this list and ask yourself how well versed you are in each of these areas. Here is the list of what "you will learn" by attending this seminar:

• Selecting and implementing successful global sourcing strategies
• Negotiating mutually beneficial global business relationships
• Building and managing ongoing cross-border supply relationships
• Using effective communication linkages
• Implementing, developing and fostering supply relationships on an international level
• Identifying causes of existing difficulties in international supply situations
• Seeking synergies with cross border supply
• Building a core skill set for global competency
• Anticipating challenges in the wired world of global supply relationships

WELCOME NEW MEMBERS

Dana J. Smith. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Purchasing Agent
Arete Associates

Jimmy W. Elkins. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Purchasing Manager
Eurofresh

Clifford V. Cast. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
GoodDirections LLC

Julie C. Garlow. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Buyer/Planner
Honeywell, Inc.

Diffusion indexes have the properties of leading indicators and are convenient summary measures showing the prevailing direction of change and the scope of change. A PMI reading above 50% indicates that the manufacturing economy is generally expanding; below 50%, that it is generally declining. A PMI over 42.7%, over a period of time, indicates that the overall economy, or Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is generally expanding, below 42.7%, that it is generally declining. The distance from 50% or 42.7% is indicative of the strength of the expansion or decline. With some of the indicators within this report, NAPM has indicated the departure point between expansion and decline of comparable government series, as determined by regression analyses.

The Manufacturing NAPM Report on Business� and the PMI have earned immense recognition over the years from the economists and forecasters in government and business because of the report's early and accurate reflection with the manufacturing sector of the economy and the PMI's close correlation with the entire economy.

EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES

By Myles Zimmerman C.P.M.
In November we will present a video on "Adding Value Through Effective Outsourcing." This will be a warm-up for our dinner speaker, who will also address Outsourcing. When appropriate, Outsourcing can have many benefits for both manufacturing and services. This is a growing business sector, with new companies using the Internet so suppliers can receive projects and view suitable leads and download documents. Buyers can register and post RFQ�s; RFP's online and track progress of projects, while accessing information on the suppliers who have received details. If you are new to Outsourcing or are experienced, this is going to be a great meeting to review skills and learn new ideas. Please plan on attending on Nov. 14.

Affiliate Briefs

We are currently in the process of collecting e-mail addresses of all our members for the purpose of being able to e-mail information on upcoming events
Please contact:
Joe Herber at ([email protected])
or you can call him at (520) 648-8738

We the Board are also looking at possibly sending out the newsletter electronically at the start of next year. This has been tried by other affiliates and has been very successful We would like your input on this idea. Please contract Pancho Hernandez (Communications Chair.) at ([email protected]) or call (520) 733-1733

God Bless America

Strategic Supplier Partnering (SSP) is a cooperative and collaborative way in which buying firms and a few of their key supplying firms intensively interact with each other to achieve mutual, win-win, and long-term competitive benefits.

According to the study, world-class firms are seeing the advantages of this approach and philosophy in supplier development and relations and are "pairing up" with world-class suppliers, both large and small. Firms who are not positioned culturally, technically, and operationally to take advantage of this competitive strategy may be at a disadvantage. J.B. (Jack) Porter, manager, Central Purchasing-Direct, Caterpillar Inc., agrees. "Strategic alliances are a natural evolution of relationships with quality core suppliers and are vital to the customer firm. In leading companies, the alliances are deliberately planned and fostered because of their importance."

Key Findings: When "typical" successful SSP relationships were examined, they shared the following characteristics:

• The SSP initiative has the full, hands-on support of top management. Top management realizes that this strategic initiative ranks high with other key strategies.
• Typically, the relationship is oriented around the supply of a specific direct material, or material class, that is an "A" item. However, maintenance, repair, and operation; capital; and services are also the target of successful, though less prevalent, SSPs.
• The relationship did not develop rapidly but typically went through an extended period of "dating and courtship" before achieving (common-law) "marriage," an analogy often used to describe SSP relationships.
• Once begun, a joint multidiscipline team is typically in place to assure that the relationship stays fresh and pursues a "continuous improvement" philosophy toward quality, service, and total cost of material acquisition and ownership.
• As for economic and operational benefits achieved from the typical SSP relationship, the prices received from suppliers are below market price.

In spring 1991, a survey instrument was sent to targeted buying firms with instructions to focus their responses on their relationship with a particular supplier and a particular item or commodity purchased from this supplier with whom they had either a formal partnering relationship or a close cooperative- collaborative association. In addition, the buying firm was asked to send the accompanying supplier survey to the chosen supplier with a request to complete it and return it directly to CAPS.

CAPS received 98 usable "pairs" of completed questionnaires from buying firms and their chosen supplier firms.

Additionally, site visits and telephone interviews were performed by the researchers in order to provide insight beyond the questionnaire research. In the Far East and Europe, the firms interviewed were identified through CAPS contacts and through contacts with the European Institute of Purchasing Management.

A complete copy of this study or any other CAPS studies or benchmarking reports is available by written or faxed request to: Center for Advanced Purchasing Studies, P.O. Box 22160, Tempe, AZ 85285-2160; or 602/752-7890. Members may receive a free copy by providing their membership identification number with the request.

By Carol Ketchum, senior program coordinator, Center for Advanced Purchasing Studies. January 1, 1993, NAPM Insights�, p. 17

THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF PURCHASING MANAGEMENT-SOUTHERN ARIZONA AFFILIATE SERVES AS A CENTER OF EXCELLENCE IN ESTABLISHING AND MAINTAINING PROFESSIONAL STANDARD OF COMPETENCY AND CONDUCT FOR ITS MEMBERS AND THE PROFESSION IN MATTERS PERTAINING TO PURCHASING AND MATERIALS MANAGEMENT