Supply Chain Management Associate Degree
Purchasing Major
International Commerce Major
International Commerce Certificate
Purchasing Certificate
Supply Chain Management Certificate
 

Supply Chain Management encompasses the planning and management of all activities involved in sourcing and procurement, conversion, and all logistics management activities. It also includes coordination and collaboration with channel partners, which can be suppliers, intermediaries, third-party service providers, and customers. In essence, Supply Chain Management integrates supply and demand management within and across companies, both domestically and internationally. The greater Columbus metropolitan area is home to many distribution operations including centers for Limited Brands, Spiegel, Eddie Bauer, JC Penney, Kraft, Consolidated Stores Corporation, and McGraw-Hill Companies, and it is home to the only “Free Trade Zone” in the state of Ohio.

The Purchasing major is designed to provide focused skills in purchasing and negotiation to students interested in this field. This major is built upon a solid foundation in current supply chain management theory and practice included in the National Association of Purchasing Managers certification examination.

Supply Chain Management certificates can be earned in General Supply Chain Management, Purchasing, and International Commerce. Each certificate can be completed totally in a distance learning format. Courses for these certificates follow the guidelines and cover the content established by the Certified Logistics Managers Association (CLM), the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) and The North American Small Business International Trade Educators (NASBITE) respectively, in their certification exams.

Supply Chain Management graduates may expect entry-level, first-line management positions as supervisors and managers in such areas as traffic and transportation, inventory management, warehousing, export/import, purchasing, materials control, traffic and operations management.

Columbus State Community College is nationally accredited by the Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP) for the offering of its business programs that culminate in the Associate of Arts, Associate of Science and Associate of Applied Science degrees.

Upon completion of the Associate of Applied Science Degree in Supply Chain Management, the graduate will be able to:
• Describe the various functions that comprise supply chain management and describe the interrelationship between them and other functional areas within a company.
• Be able to make channel-related decisions to satisfy industrial and consumer wants in both domestic and international markets.
• Demonstrate knowledge of supply chain management terminology and technologies including inventory techniques, bar-coding systems, picking and delivery processes, and storage and sorting systems.
• Demonstrate knowledge of the function and operation of warehouses and distribution facilities.
• Explain the role of inventory control and management
• Describe the traffic management function and its role in carrier selection, rate determination and rate negotiation.
• Demonstrate knowledge of state and federal laws that impact the distribution function, including knowledge of common carrier obligations.
• Participate in the development of an integrated plan of action consistent with established supply chain management goals.
• Understand the analytical tools useful in supply chain management particularly as they relate to measuring and analyzing productivity.
• Possess a basic understanding of industrial safety issues particularly as they relate to the development of a basic safety program.
• Understand the principles of interactive management and how they apply to managing worker performance, retention/hiring procedures, and developing collaborative action plans.
• Possess fundamental supervisory skills including setting performance objectives, coaching and feedback, and conducting formal performance reviews.

Purchasing Major
In addition to the Supply Chain Management competencies, a graduate with a Purchasing major will be able to:
• Explain and implement a Lowest Total Cost plan.
• Explain and develop purchasing objectives.
• Explain how Policies and Procedures are utilized to affect purchasing plans.
• Explain how Purchasing Organizations should be utilized.
• Explain how use of specifications, descriptions and standards are utilized to help determine right quality.
• Explain how the industrial purchasing function operates.
• Explain how the not for profit purchasing function operates.
• Explain how and why "make vs. buy" and outsourcing decisions are made.
• Develop a supplier management plan that ensures development of, evaluation, and selection of the right supplier.
• Explain pricing principles and what methods are best utilized for determining the right price.
• Explain the different types of contracts and under what conditions and situations each works best.
• Explain how negotiations can help resolve nonprice issues that help support the lowest total cost principle.
• Explain how, why, and when international purchasing is best.
• Develop and present a purchasing strategic and tactical plan.
• Develop and present a buying plan and inventory management plan that ensures both right quantity and right time.
• Explain the ethical and legal issues that effect purchasing.
• Explain the what, why, and how of negotiation.
• To explain and develop negotiation strategies, tactics, and objectives.

International Commerce Major
As the sixth largest exporting state in the U.S., Ohio values international commerce. State capital, Columbus, and its environs are a hub for international shipping and commerce. Columbus is the USA’s third largest port of entry for textiles, home to more than 40 freight forwarding companies, and home to more than 132 internationally owned firms with over 26,650 employees. The International Commerce major is designed to respond to the need for an educated workforce at all levels of the career ladder within such organizations. Grounded in fundamental courses in supply chain management—transportation, global shipping, global marketing, etc.—this major also includes a three-quarter language sequence in Spanish or Chinese, as well as supplemental courses in business culture and economics to broaden and deepen student understanding of the complexities of international commerce. A travel-abroad component is part of the program, too.

In addition to the Supply Chain Management competencies, a graduate with an International Commerce major will be able to:
• Describe and discuss the nature of globalization in today’s world.
• Recognize the exponential growth of international trade and the economic impact of international logistics activities.
• Understand the importance of a country’s infrastructure to an international logistician.
• Identify the characteristics of the international transportation infrastructure.
• Understand how Incoterms are used to share responsibilities between exporters and importers.
• Understand the advantages/disadvantages of alternative terms of payment used in international commerce.
• Understand the risks that currency exchange rates pose for international traders.
• Identify and understand the basic purpose and function of the various required documents common to international trade.
• Explain cultural, social, economic, and political factors that impact organizations.
• Describe the roles of verbal and nonverbal communication in cross-cultural encounters.
• Evaluate strategies for effective negotiation and training of global managers
• Gain an awareness of the language of international marine insurance.
• Identify the types of air/ocean transportation services and aircraft/vessel sizes.
• Identify and understand the characteristics of intermodal transportation and the functions of international transportation forwarders and brokers.
• Converse at a basic business level in Spanish or Chinese
• Understand the significance and need for adequate packaging practices in international trade.