Procurement People of Tomorrow: Higher and Further Education pack

Where does Procurement take place in your life?

You may not think about it like this, but when you are buying clothes, shopping for your first holiday with your friends online or buying food in a supermarket, you are already using procurement skills.

You don’t usually pick up the first thing you see, you look for options, compare prices and quality before making your final choice. That is the basic function of procurement! The skills you obtain in almost all Higher Education subjects, are the skills required for Procurement.

Business Studies
Commercial awareness supports good decision making; understanding supply chains, markets and international trade operates helps you to build your procurement strategy.

English
Effective communications supports stakeholder engagement and influencing; presentations, writing contracts, producing reports.

Accountancy and Finance
Support negotiation skills; numerical and quantitative skills; problem-solving and analytical ability; entrepreneurship, knowledge of global business challenges

Social Studies
Considering how public services and the impact on citizens needs to be addressed in procurement strategies; understanding different cultures and relationships

Project Management
Understanding digital standards when designing procurement specifications; enabling innovation and future-proofing solutions

Law
Ability to advocate, research using multiple sources; reasoning and critical judgement, lateral thinking; attention to detail and ability to draft formal documents; the ability to formulate robust arguments

Maths
Understanding pricing models; analysing the short, medium and longer term cost of solutions; developing business cases

Languages
Leading international negotiations; managing international supply chains