Free CIPS Supplier Relationships L4M6 Exam Questions

This is an example of poor-communication. The information was not passed from the person who signed the contract to the staff on site who were to do the cleaning. See p.158 on communication issues.

The logistics risk can be reduced by 'Sharing up-to-date information'. If the Pub tells the supplier when it's running low, they can then time the deliveries more accurately. P. 136. A lot of the questions on the 'Partnerships' chapters of the book are common-sense questions like this. It involves reading thequestion and using logic, rather than relying on your knowledge of procurement. If you found this question easy -- that's a good sign for the exam.

Using technical jargon can lead to misunderstandings if not all parties understand the jargon. See p. 158 on communication issues

In stakeholder management,Negative leadersandPromoterspossess high influence over others:

Negative leaders: Individuals who oppose the project and can sway others against it due to their influence.

Promoters: Advocates who support the project and can positively influence others.

Understanding these dynamics is crucial for effectively managing stakeholder resistance.

As highlighted in the CIPS study materials:

'Overcoming resistance- Promoters - They have a high influence on other stakeholders and support the project. They support and empower.'

The correct answer is 'Yes-partnerships do not have end dates because they involve significant investment'. This is explained on p.126. Partnerships can involve contracts -- so the other 'yes' answer is incorrect.

Legitimate reasons for contract termination under CIPS guidelines include failure to perform duties and serious breaches of contract terms. Ordering errors or changes in stakeholder needs are not valid termination grounds unless explicitly stated in the contract. This protects both parties from unjustified termination risks.

Comprehensive and Detailed

Partnership sourcing is most appropriate for products that are critical to the buyer's business, involve high spend, and are technically complex or require innovation. The chocolate brownie cake is the company's most popular product, indicating high sales volume and strategic importance. Establishing a partnership with suppliers for this product can lead to benefits such as improved quality, innovation, and supply chain efficiency.

CIPS L4M6 Study Guide

Friendly Flour Ltd is a strategic supplier; this is a critical supplier, responsible for core products. They represent a high risk impact and a high cost impact. This is the top-right hand corner of the Kraljic matrix. There are lots of questions on Kraljic in the exam - do revise this topic and ensure you understand each of the four quadrants of the matrix (see p.20)

The housekeeping team have low power and high interest. According to Mendelow's stakeholder matrix, this puts them in the bottom right corner which is 'keep informed'. See p.81 for more information

Open Tender processes are a one-stage process which issues and ITT. It has no PQQ (selection) stage. P. 77

ABC / Pareto is a 'Portfolio Analysis Technique to assess the relationships in a supply chain'. This, along with the Kraljic Matrix are two examples of 'Supplier Positioning Models'. See chapter 2.1 p.17 for more details on this

Comprehensive and Detailed

In the Kraljic Matrix, a 'Bottleneck' item is characterized by low financial impact but high supply risk. These items may be sourced from a limited number of suppliers or involve complex logistics, making them susceptible to supply disruptions. Managing bottleneck items requires strategies focused on risk mitigation, such as developing alternative suppliers or holding strategic stock reserves.

CIPS L4M6 Study Guide

Comprehensive and Detailed

For one-off, low-value purchases that are readily available from multiple suppliers, anadversarialrelationship is often appropriate. This type of relationship is transactional, with minimal collaboration or long-term commitment. The focus is on obtaining the best price and terms for a specific purchase without investing in developing a deeper relationship.

'Adversarial relationships are typically used for low-value, one-off purchases where there is little need for collaboration.'--- CIPS L4M6 Study Guide

This would reduce inventory (holding stock). Inventory is considered a business waste because it costs money to store stuff (e.g. paying the rent on a warehouse, electricity to light it up etc). If you can reduce the need to store materials and components on site- you reduce costs. You also save time because you get deliveries when you need them- you don't need to allow for staff unpacking things, storing them away, then going back to them later when they need them. For more information on the 7 Business Wastes see p.70. This comes up in a couple of modules, so it's worth remembering.

The seven wastes (as defined by Taiichi Ohno) can be remembered as Tim Wood; transportation, inventory, motion, waiting, over-processing, over-production, defects. Some people add an S onto the end of Tim Wood to make Tim Woods (the s is for skills). In some modules of CIPS, they refer to 8 wastes and include skills, but in M6 they've only put the 7 on p.70.