Introduction of supply chain related certification.

Professional certification of supply chain management In China, it is only in recent years that supply chain management has been set up in universities. Therefore, many supply chain professionals are half-way monks. They have done it systematically, but they have not learned it systematically. They always feel that there is something lacking in the overall knowledge framework of supply chain management. As a remedial measure, professional certification of supply chain management can be considered.

supply chain management includes three functions (procurement, operation and logistics), covering the whole process of material procurement, processing and distribution, and improving the overall efficiency of the supply chain by integrating all links as much as possible. In real work, few people can cover these three aspects, and everyone's responsibilities are more or less concentrated in one piece. For example, when I was a supply chain business manager, I was mainly responsible for supplier management, so I focused on procurement and supply management. There is a customer who has a supply chain manager. In fact, this person is mainly responsible for the operation plan. That's why if someone says he does supply chain management, I will definitely ask, do you focus on procurement, operation, logistics or planning?

in the field of certification, although some certifications are nominally "supply chain management", they actually focus on one or several functions of the supply chain, either procurement, operation and planning or logistics. Here we focus on the certification that focuses on procurement and operation.

Certification focusing on procurement management

In North America, procurement management mainly includes the Certification of Supply Management Professionals (CPSM), which is issued by institute for supply management (ISM). This certification consists of three courses, namely Fundamentals of Supply Management, Supply Performance Management and Leadership in Supply Management [1]. These three courses correspond to three books written by my professors at Arizona State University. A few years ago, when the exam syllabus and three books of CPSM were translated into Chinese, I took some parts and proofread them. The overall translation quality is quite good, but you know, no matter how good the translation is, there will always be bumps in the reading. However, I want to explain that most of the translators are senior people in the domestic procurement management field. They are basically voluntary translators, and I admire their dedication.

Chinese certification of CPSM was introduced into China several years ago, and there are test centers in China, which can be tested in both Chinese and English. Interested parties can contact China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing or ISM China in institute for supply management.

CPSM is a higher-level certification, aiming at training professionals in supply management. In addition to passing three exams, it also requires a bachelor's degree plus three years of professional experience in supply management. If you don't have a bachelor's degree, you need 5 years of professional experience in supply management. Note that administrative secretarial and supportive roles cannot be counted as professional experience. For example, as the secretary of procurement, you have sent a three-year order to a supplier, which cannot be counted as a professional experience in supply management. Therefore, the requirements of CPSM are quite high. Personally, I feel a bit like graduate-level certification. Of course, like most American exams, the exam will not be too difficult. The key is to master the concept.

in Europe, chartered institute of purchasing and supply has CIPS certification, which is recognized by the countries of the British Confederation and many other countries around the world. Different from CPSM, CIPS certification is divided into six grades (213 edition), which are aimed at grass-roots personnel, managers and senior managers respectively [2]. CIPS is a high-quality certification with a complete knowledge system. They cooperate closely with domestic universities. The certification examination can be conducted in China and can be applied in both Chinese and English.

CIPS level 1: Basic Certificate of Purchasing and Supply Operation

CIPS level 2: Certificate of Purchasing and Supply Operation

CIPS level 3: Advanced Certificate of Purchasing and Supply Operation

CIPS level 4: Diploma of Purchasing and Supply

CIPS level 5: Advanced Diploma of Purchasing and Supply

CIPS level 6: Professional Diploma of Purchasing and Supply. It's hard to say. I passed CPSM's predecessor, American Certified Purchasing Manager Certification (C.P.M), and I am familiar with CPSM. I am a certified lecturer of CPSM, but I have not passed CIPS certification, so I can't make a comprehensive evaluation. A few years ago, I met the CEO of institute for supply management (the certification body of CPSM) and talked about CIPS. He spoke highly of it, and said that CPSM and CIPS recognized each other, which means that one passed, even if the other passed. In my opinion, CPSM is a North American certification, which is more recognized by enterprises in North America. CIPS is a British certification, and its recognition in European enterprises should be higher. According to your target company, you can consider the corresponding certification.

In addition, CPSM has only three courses and only one certification, which requires higher basic requirements; CIPS has many courses, which can be studied step by step according to different foundations. If the foundation is not good, CIPS seems to be a good choice. However, there is a * * * similarity between the two: the certified training courses are mainly crammed. For example, CPSM training lasts for 9 days and each course lasts for 3 days, so much content is still quite tight. For professionals, concentrated teaching is also good, at least it can force you to finish learning at once. You know, learning and certification are important but not urgent. If you don't force them, many people will put it off again and again.

certification focusing on operation management

operation management is another area of supply management. In the field of operation management, American Operation Management Association (APICS) is the main professional organization. The association originally focused on production and inventory control. With the development of supply chain, it gradually transitioned to broader operation management. In 214, it merged with the Supply Chain Council, and in 215, it merged with the American Institute of Transportation and Logistics Management, taking a big step towards supply chain management.

Production and Inventory Management Certification (CPIM) is a classic certification of APICS and one of the most extensive certifications in the supply chain field. The certification began in 1973, and more than 1, people around the world have the certification. In terms of content, CPIM focuses on the demand forecast, production planning, production control and implementation within the company, that is, how to transform the sales plan into the production master plan, and then further refine it into the material supply plan (MRP), and then to the progress planning, production implementation and control of each production workshop and production line in the factory. CPIM certification includes five modules, including master plan, detailed plan and schedule, operation implementation and control, which are closely related to manufacturing, and also includes supply chain management foundation and strategic resource management, which comprehensively expounds inventory, production plan and operation management.

generally speaking, CPIM certification is the certification of basic knowledge of production and inventory management. It does not require the certifier to have relevant work experience, and some American universities also recognize the credits of certification courses, which can be used to meet the requirements of undergraduate degrees in related majors. Strictly speaking, CPIM focuses on the management of materials rather than personnel, and its training goal is more focused on production management technicians. It can also be seen from its name: it uses Management instead of Manager. I haven't seen the salary level of CPIM certification holders. According to personal experience, the overall salary of CPIM is lower than that of CPSM, perhaps because CPSM certification requires a certain number of years of work experience, and the starting point of personnel quality is higher than CPIM; Perhaps the overall professional salary of production and inventory management is lower than that of supply management. It should be pointed out that I have passed the CPIM myself and the predecessor certification of CPSM, and I have no intention of favoring one over the other.

In 26, APICS launched Supply Chain Professional Certification (CSCP). Since its launch, more than 19, people have passed the certification worldwide. Similar to CPSM, this certification includes three modules, namely, supply chain design, supply chain planning/implementation, and supply chain improvement/best practices. In contrast, CPSM focuses on procurement and supply management, focusing on business and performance management; CSCP focuses on operation and planning, focusing on the whole supply chain from end to end, which can be said to be the first certification for supply chain management. However, in these three modules, there is not much space to talk about procurement and supplier management. We should know that about 7% of the value-added activities of procurement in managing the supply chain are the highlights of the three major executive functions of the supply chain. Without purchasing management, it is not a complete supply chain management certification.

CSCP downplays the procurement part, I think it's because institute for supply management (ISM) already has a CPSM certification. I don't think APICS wants too much overlap in this field. Of course, this is also related to the audience of APICS: traditionally, APICS mainly affects the fields of production, operation and planning, institute for supply management (ISM) mainly affects procurement management, and American Institute of Supply Management (CSCMP) mainly focuses on the field of logistics management. In the near future, this situation will not change profoundly. Therefore, it will be some years before we see the real end-to-end supply chain certification.

In China, some international certifications have emerged from time to time, which I am not familiar with. To verify their gold content, a simple way is to go to the recruitment websites of corresponding countries, such as Monster.com, and check the jobs with this certification. For example, I entered CPSM and found more than 5 jobs with this field; And CIPS, there are more than 3. If you enter some low-profile certifications, you won't find many related jobs.

China has been developing its own certification system in recent years, and some provinces even have their own certification. These are all good attempts, but there is still a long way to go from the systematic perspective of knowledge framework, training and certification. Of course, compared with CPSM in the United States and CIPS in the United Kingdom, these local certifications are lower in cost, and some provinces have government subsidies, so that more people can afford them. Opening books is beneficial. If you ask my opinion, is it worth getting such certification? My answer is that you don't go to these classes, you just play games and WeChat there, or wander around, wasting your time. It's better to take these certifications, and you can always learn something without spending much money. Why not?

which certification is worth getting?

so the next question is, which certification is more worth getting? It depends on what you want to do. If it is procurement and supply management, CPSM is the first choice; If it is production planning and inventory control, CPIM is the first choice; If it is end-to-end management of supply chain, CSCP is a good choice. In fact, there are many intersections between these certifications. In many enterprises, especially in manufacturing, CPSM and CPIM can be used in many cases. For example, some positions require one of the two certifications. Note: in the United States, these job requirements will indicate that these certifications are preferred, but they are not necessary. This also shows that these certifications are not necessary to enter related occupations and become excellent practitioners. For example, there are millions of people engaged in purchasing, supply management, production management and other occupations in the United States, and only a few of them have these certifications. However, in the United States, these certifications are signs of entering the industry to some extent. If you have them, you will be regarded as having a knowledge system in the corresponding field and a good foundation. This is especially helpful for people with little practical experience in the industry. In recent years, many China students have studied in the United States, focusing on the supply chain field, and it is difficult for them to find jobs just after graduation. One of my suggestions is to obtain such certification.

Like any professional certification, these certifications only provide the overall knowledge of the relevant profession. For beginners, these certifications can be used as a stepping stone to enter related occupations; For those who have some experience, vocational certification can help them to a higher level. My experience is that although the relevant employees of a company have good overall work experience, they may not all have basic professional knowledge and skills. Systematic professional certification is helpful to improve the overall professional quality of the organization. This is especially important for the transformation and promotion of the whole department. For example, in a company where I used to work, for the transformation of the procurement department, all employees have undergone systematic vocational certification training: supply chain business managers and buyers have participated in C.P.M certification (the predecessor of CPSM), and supplier engineers have participated in CPIM certification. This system has improved the quality of the whole organization and successfully completed the transformation of the department.