MSc. Procurement and Supply Chain Management (DL)

Global Sourcing and Procurement Managment 

Course Title: Global Sourcing and Procurement Management

Course Overview:
This course provides a comprehensive exploration of the strategic role of sourcing and procurement in today's globalized and complex supply chains. It moves beyond the traditional view of procurement as a tactical, cost-centric function to position it as a critical driver of competitive advantage, innovation, and risk resilience. Students will learn to design and implement global sourcing strategies that optimize total cost of ownership (TCO), ensure quality and sustainability, and manage geopolitical, operational, and financial risks.

Key Learning Objectives:
Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

• Analyze the strategic impact of procurement on corporate performance and value creation.

• Develop effective global sourcing strategies tailored to different categories of spend.

• Apply rigorous supplier selection, negotiation, and relationship management (SRM) techniques.

• Evaluate and mitigate risks inherent in global supply chains.

• Calculate Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) and understand cost management techniques beyond price negotiation.

• Integrate principles of sustainability, ethics, and digital transformation (e.g., AI, Blockchain) into procurement processes

Course Contents / Module Outline

The course is typically divided into thematic modules, as follows:

Module 1: The Strategic Role of Procurement

• Topics:
• Evolution from Purchasing to Procurement to Strategic Sourcing.
• Understanding the Supply Chain link: Procurement's impact on ROI, profitability, and agility.
• The Strategic Sourcing Process: A phased overview.
• Aligning procurement strategy with overall business strategy.

Module 2: Category Management and Spend Analysis

• Topics:
• Conducting Spend Analysis: Identifying what, where, and with whom money is spent.
• ABC Analysis / Pareto Principle.
• The Kraljic Matrix: Classifying spend into Strategic, Leverage, Bottleneck, and Routine items.
• Developing tailored strategies for each quadrant of the Kraljic Matrix.

Module 3: The Supplier Selection Process

• Topics:
• Developing a Sourcing Strategy: Make vs. Buy, Single vs. Multi-Sourcing.
• The Request for Information (RFI), Proposal (RFP), and Quotation (RFQ) processes.
• Supplier Evaluation Criteria: Quality, Cost, Delivery, Financial Health, Innovation, Sustainability.
• Supplier Audits and Due Diligence.

Module 4: Cost Management and Total Cost of Ownership (TCO)

• Topics:
• Moving beyond Unit Price: The concept of TCO.
• Components of TCO (e.g., acquisition cost, logistics, storage, quality failures, maintenance).
• Cost Breakdown Analysis and Should-Cost Modeling.
• Cost Reduction techniques: Value Analysis/Value Engineering (VA/VE), standardization, bundling.

Module 5: Negotiation and Contract Management

• Topics:
• Preparation for a Global Negotiation (using a toolkit approach).
• Application of negotiation psychology and techniques (e.g., Harvard Principled Negotiation).
• Understanding leverage and power dynamics in buyer-supplier relationships.
• Key Elements of a Contract: SLAs, KPIs, Liability, Termination clauses.
• Managing contract compliance and performance.

Module 6: Global Sourcing and Risk Management

• Topics:
• Drivers and Challenges of Global Sourcing.
• Incoterms 2020: Defining responsibilities for shipping and risk.
• Identifying Global Risks: Geopolitical, currency fluctuation, logistics disruption, quality control, intellectual property.
• Developing a Supply Chain Risk Management Framework: Assessment, Mitigation, and Contingency Planning.

Module 7: Supplier Relationship Management (SRM)

• Topics:
• Differentiating between transactional and strategic suppliers.
• The SRM continuum: From adversarial to collaborative partnerships.
• Performance Management: Developing and tracking Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).
• Joint process improvement and innovation with strategic suppliers.

Module 8: Sustainable and Ethical Procurement

• Topics:
• The Triple Bottom Line: People, Planet, Profit.
• Implementing Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) criteria.
• Ensuring ethical sourcing: Labor practices, human rights, and anti-corruption.
• Circular Economy principles in procurement.

Module 9: The Digital Future of Procurement

• Topics:
• Digital Procurement Tools: E-Sourcing, E-Procurement, and Procure-to-Pay (P2P) systems.
• The role of Data Analytics and Spend Visibility.
• Emerging Technologies: AI for predictive analytics, Blockchain for provenance and smart contracts, Robotic Process Automation (RPA) for routine task
• Resources 
  1)Raj, R., Kumar, V., Mittal, A., Verma, P., Lai, K. K., & Singh, A. (2025). Practices and strategies for global sourcing and supply chain management: a Pareto analysis and MOORA, a mixed method approach. Journal of Global Operations and Strategic Sourcing, 18(3), 447-470.
  2)Jain, N., Girotra, K., & Netessine, S. (2022). Recovering global supply chains from sourcing interruptions: The role of sourcing strategy. Manufacturing & Service Operations Management, 24(2), 846-863.
  3)Adebayo, V. I., Paul, P. O., & Eyo-Udo, N. L. (2024). The role of data analysis and reporting in modern procurement: Enhancing decision-making and supplier management. GSC Advanced Research and Reviews, 20(1), 088-097.
  4)Cooper, M. (2025). A Study of Decision-Making Processes in Multinational Supply Chains: Challenges and Opportunities in Global Procurement.
  5)Lin, N. (2020). Designing global sourcing strategy for cost savings and innovation: A configurational approach. Management International Review, 60(5), 723-753.
  6)Jiang, Y., Jia, F., Blome, C., & Chen, L. (2020). Achieving sustainability in global sourcing: towards a conceptual framework. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, 25(1), 35-60.
  7)Jain, N., & Wu, D. (2023). Can global sourcing strategy predict stock returns?. Manufacturing & Service Operations Management, 25(4), 1357-1375.
  8)Wang, Y., Niu, B., Guo, P., & Song, J. S. (2021). Direct sourcing or agent sourcing? Contract negotiation in procurement outsourcing. Manufacturing & Service Operations Management, 23(2), 294-310.
  9)Dube, N., Li, Q., Selviaridis, K., & Jahre, M. (2022). One crisis, different paths to supply resilience: The case of ventilator procurement for the COVID-19 pandemic. Journal of Purchasing and Supply Management, 28(5), 100773.
  10)Palit, S., Hora, M., & Ghosh, S. (2022). Global buyer–supplier networks and innovation: The role of technological distance and technological breadth. Journal of Operations Management, 68(6-7), 755-774.

This course provides an in-depth understanding of strategic decision-making processes in supply chain management. Students will explore the strategic role of supply chain management in contemporary business, including strategic sourcing, logistics, inventory management, and the integration of supply chain processes