L4M6 Sample Questions Answers

Explanation

CIPS state the following reasons for the end of supplier relationships; the contract comes to a natural end, the contract is re-tendered, a material breach or the supplier becomes insolvent (p.15) In this case the only valid option is 'the contract has ended'.

Explanation

This question is very, very similar to a real exam QUESTION NO: and is a really mean one. The CIPS study guide describes stages of team development as forming, storming, norming and performing. Of those listed in the book only forming is listed above. What the textbook fails to tell you is that some people add on two additional stages to this model which are mourning and adjourning. I strongly recommend doing some further reading on this (it’s called the Tuckman Group Development Model) as it comes up a lot in the exam and the study guide doesn’t really go into enough detail.

Explanation

The correct answer is ‘keep satisfied’ because the stakeholder is high power and low interest. This is the top left corner of Mendelow’s Stakeholder Matrix – see p.81

Explanation

Barriers to entry are economies of scale (in the air travel industry you can't just start off small and grow), access to capital (you need to already have a lot of money to buy airplanes) and licences and permits (you need to ensure you have the correct licences to fly planes). These are listed on p.41. Other barriers include; strong brand identity already dominant in the market, high switching costs for buyers, access to distribution networks and government policy.

Explanation

Pareto is the 80:20 rule- this can be adapted to talk about supplier relationships, where instead of having 2 categories there are now 3 (A B and C). CIPS use the terms Pareto and ABC interchangeably. See p.16 for further information

Explanation

The correct answer is ‘reduced product life-cycles’. In this example the reason for entering a partnership is to be able to produce new models of phones more quickly- this is likely because consumers are wanting to change mobile phones more often than they did in the past, so in order to keep up with demand, Phone Maker Incorporated need to produce more phones, more quickly. Drivers of Partnership Sourcing is a key topic in the exam – you can revise these by looking at p.127 in the Study Guide

Explanation

The correct answer is ‘no-the contract is not of significant value’. CIPS state that competitive tenders should only be used when ‘the item or service is of significant value’ p.73. Debbie could continue using the same supplier, but she should organise a contract extension or a new contract if she does.

Explanation

The Kraljic model "plays a key part in category management" p.19 of the textbook. Category Management = the spend in an organisation, broken down into categories of related products (e.g. IT, facilities management, marketing). Each of these categories could be plotted on the Kraljic Matrix.

Explanation

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.

Explanation

This is based on a real exam question- it's looking to see if you can remember Carter's 10 Cs. These are; cash, cost, consistency, culture, clean, communication, competency, capacity, commitment and control. (p.12 in the text book)

Explanation

In an oliogopy, supplier power is strong. Sometimes regulators are required in the market to prevent the group of suppliers conspiring together to artificially increase prices. See p.40 for more information on Oligopy markets.

Explanation

The correct answer is ‘Yes- joint innovation projects are often a strong motivation for entering into a partnership’. The other options are simply not true statements. A lot of the questions on the ‘Partnerships’ chapters of the book are common-sense questions like this. It involves reading the QUESTION NO: and using logic, rather that relying on your knowledge of procurement. If you found this QUESTION NO: easy – that’s a good sign for the exam.

Explanation

The correct answer is ‘They are hard to measure’ p.103

Explanation

The four categories are; Minimal effort, manage closely, keep informed, keep satisfied. You can see the Matrix on p.81. An easy way to remember this is there are 2 Ms and 2 Keeps. And these sit on opposite sides of the matrix.

Explanation

The correct answer is ‘An unexpected incident has occurred beyond anyone’s control’. A good example of this would be the Covid-19 pandemic- neither the buyer nor supplier could have predicted this, and if this means that the contract can’t be completed – then the contract can be terminated (in the UK at least). A way to avoid this would be to include a Force Majeur clause listing possible circumstances that could occur. When there’s a Force Majeur clause, these eventualities are now classed as foreseen rather than unforeseen. See p.108

Explanation

Using an external supplier always comes with increased risk, as you become dependant upon them, and have less control over their performance (compared to an in-house team). In this example Harry will have the increased risk that the contract cleaners turn up late to their shifts, or don't do a good job. However, there is no reason to believe that the supplier will not perform as well as an internal team- we don't have enough information from the QUESTION NO: for this to be true. What is true is the RISK is greater. The other answers are incorrect; the QUESTION NO: doesn't indicate whether outsourcing the cleaning will be more or less expensive for Harry. Allowing staff to focus on other areas is an advantage not a disadvantage. See p.4 for more information on 'External Suppliers'

Explanation

The correct answer is ‘accommodating’. This QUESTION NO: is based on the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict model on p.87. This comes up quite a bit in the exam. It is comprised of 5 techniques for dealing with conflict; competing, collaborating, compromising, avoiding and accommodating. In this instance, the supplier should have a high degree of co-cooperativeness and a low degree of assertiveness as the long-term relationship is very important- more important than the outcome of the disputed invoice.

Explanation

This is based on a real exam question- it's looking to see if you can remember Carter's 10 Cs. These are; cash, cost, consistency, culture, clean, communication, competency, capacity, commitment and control. (p.12 in the text book)

Explanation

The correct answer is ‘Sudden changes in the marketplace’ – this is a reason a buyer would be reactive. Reactive is when something happens to you and it forces you to act in a certain way. The other options would be strategic rather than reactive. P. 163

Explanation

Intellectual Property Rights include; Patents, Copywrite, Trademarks and Trade Secrets. P.114

Explanation

Fred should hold a competition as this is a ‘key way of achieving value for money’ p.67. Fred shouldn’t put a business case together to make the product in-house without doing a make vs buy analysis, and that analysis showing make is the way to go. As the firm buy in 100s of components, it’s very unlikely that making the component in-house would bring ‘value for money’. He should also be careful of only looking at current suppliers or known suppliers- the best supplier of this new component might be unknown to the engineering firm at present.

Explanation

The 5 Rights of procurement are; place, quality, quantity, time, price. (Price and Cost are not the same thing). See p.38

Explanation

This is 'cost focus' - Kinky Boots is both focusing on being a cost leaser (by providing the cheapest products) and focusing on a niche market (drag queens). When these two strategies are combined it is called 'cost focus'. There's a couple of questions on Porter's Generic Strategies in the exam- there's a useful diagram of this on P.13

Explanation

In an adversarial relationship "the outcome of the deal… is more important than maintaining the relationship over a long-term period" p.7. They can be characterised by poor communication and can be used for one-off purchases but be careful for words in answers such as 'only' and 'always', as these can be misleading; adversarial relationships aren't always for one-off purchases, and communication isn't always poor. The other answer is incorrect (price is more important) because it doesn't describe the relationship, which is what the question asked.

Explanation

A PIN is a ‘prior information notice’ – it is sent out before the ITT to let suppliers know that an opportunity is coming up and they should look out for it. See p 72 “supplier identification- public sector” for more details.

Explanation

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 the question 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.

Explanation

The definition of value mapping is given on p.69 this is; ‘a process in which value is created through the elimination of waste and operational inefficiencies’. It ties into JIT / Lean.

Explanation

Supplier relationships can result in value for money in the reduction of waste and in innovation developed as part of collaborative projects. Remember that in CIPS waste doesn’t necessarily mean physical waste (as in stuff you don’t want any more). There are 7 types of waste including waiting, inventory, transportation etc. So when you develop a relationship with a supplier, this can reduce waste (e.g. you may be able to get deliveries quicker by integrating your ordering system with the supplier’s, or you might reduce transportation by agreeing a Consignment stock). Having a good relationship with a supplier isn’t necessarily going to get you a reduction in cost or better payment terms. See p.70 for more details on this- there’s a short list of ways in which good supplier relationships can bring value for money to a business.

Explanation

As the component is vital to their business, ABC should seek a collaborative relationship with the supplier. There are three types of collaborative relationship (co-destiny, partnership and strategic alliance). Of these only strategic-alliance is given as an option. Remember - strategic purchase = collaborative relationship with supplier. There are many questions on the Relationship Spectrum on the exam. See p.5 for more details

Explanation

Jenny should consider whole life costing. Ensuring value for money means considering a combination of price and quality throughout the lifetime of the product. See p.65 for more on ‘Achieving Value for Money’

Explanation

Partnerships require the most investment out of those listed. The only relationship type that requires more investment than Partnerships is Co-Destiny. See p.9 for more information on this

Explanation

Value for money in the private sector is about achieving shareholder profit and busines benefit (p.66). In the public sector it is about ensuring taxpayers’ money is spent wisely. Value for money is a mixture of price and quality.

Explanation

The correct answer is ‘Reduced waste in the supply chain’ – this is not a risk, this is a benefit P.134