Professional Development Archives - Page 14 of 21

Entrepreneurs are often unaware of big-company expectations

Leave a Comment / Enterprise Development, Professional Development, Supplier Management, Supplier Partnerships, Supplier Selection / Editor

While key subjects such as marketing, finances and business processes are fundamentally important to business success, ‘professional development’ (corporate communication skills, corporate expectations and personal branding/image) poses a greater obstacle when breaking into the first-tier economy, says The Hope Factory’s Sean Krige in this months’ SmartProcurement. More than any one thing, presenting an unprofessional […]

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Absa SME Index shows an improvement in self-employment levels

Leave a Comment / Change, Enterprise Development, Professional Development, Supplier Management, Supplier Partnerships / Editor

The Absa SME Index rose by 1.4 index points in the last quarter of 2012, up from its low of 92 reached in Q2 2012. Self-employment grew by 1.1% over the last quarter and 2% over the last year in South Africa. The index presents data extrapolated from Statistics South Africa’s information on various

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Recruit ‘Best Sourcing’ skills for 2013

Leave a Comment / Change, Professional Development / Editor

The ever-changing and sometimes unstable working environment in which companies find themselves is increasing the demand for supply chain professionals that can conduct data analysis; manage business and continuous improvement; implement best practice methodologies and effectively manage change. In this month’s SmartProcurement, Greeff Moolman of supply chain recruiter TechPro Personnel discusses the facets that

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Logistics skills gap hampering SA’s ability to trade

Leave a Comment / Change, Education, Professional Development, Service Outsourcing, Supply Chain Management SCM / Editor

Research shows the supply chain skills gap has widened considerably, even over a short time span, severely impacting the competitiveness of the South African economy. According to the 2012 Supply Chain Skills Gap Survey, conducted by University of Johannesburg researchers Rose Luke and Gert Heyns, “employers have indicated that, although operational positions are relatively

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B2B procurement print magazine launch

Leave a Comment / Preferential Procurement, Procurement Strategy, Professional Development, Public Sector Procurement, Supply Chain Management SCM / Editor

SmartProcurement is launching a local business-to-business (B2B) procurement print magazine – the SmartProcurement Review – “World class procurement in your hands”. While SmartProcurement remains an online portal for procurement and supply management professionals and executives in South Africa, we’ve had numerous requests over the years for a printed magazine, which is still a preferred reference

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CPOs with board ambitions must aim to become Chief Supply Chain Officers

Leave a Comment / Procurement Leaders, Procurement Strategy, Professional Development / Editor

Without doubt, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and other C-Suite organisational leaders (Chief Financial, Operating, Information, Marketing Officers) recognise the strategic value in procurement. However, the global dilemma these decision-makers face is whether current Chief Procurement Officers (CPOs) are equipped with the right strategic and board-level skills to officially be admitted into their high-level discussion

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Next week’s annual procurement networking event attracts 600 attendees

Leave a Comment / Enterprise Development, Preferential Procurement, Professional Development, Public Sector Procurement, Supply Chain Management SCM / Editor

Smart Procurement World 2012 has attracted more than double the participation it enjoyed last year. Smart Procurement can this week confirm that more than 600 procurement and supply chain professionals will gather en mass at Gallagher Convention Centre on 13 November to attend the multinational procurement networking event. “They’re coming because they want to be

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Who is to blame for Procurement’s poor representation at executive level?

Leave a Comment / Commentary, Procurement Leaders, Procurement Strategy, Professional Development / Editor

Almost twenty five years on, CEOs, Government officials and policy makers are still skeptical about procurement’s formal representation on the executive and senior policy development committees In the first of four articles, Dr Douglas Boateng, SmartProcurement Editorial Board Member and CIPS Fellow, asks who is to blame for this? In 2011, Transparency International UK published

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Procurement database can now pin-point most suitable individual

Leave a Comment / Professional Development, Talent Watch / Editor

CIPS Africa and the Database of Procurement professionals have combined their recruitment efforts and created the CIPS Database of Procurement Professionals™ (The Database). The Database leverages the CIPS Competency Evaluation process and the Database of Procurement Professionals™, database operator André Basson told SmartProcurement. “The Database of Procurement Professionals™ has for the past 15 months placed

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CIPS Study Centre Commerce Edge Academy launches SCM faculty at The Da Vinci Institute

Leave a Comment / News, Professional Development / Editor

The collaboration will make it possible for students of the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS) studying through its international study centre Commerce Edge Academy, to further their qualification with a B.Com through The Da Vinci Institute. In its capacity as CIPS Study Centre, Commerce Edge Academy, a division of Commerce Edge South Africa,

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Professional Development