CPSM Exam 1 Part B2 and B3

Task 3-B-2: Lead or participate in cross-functional and/or multifunctional teams.

groups of individuals from various organizational functions who are brought together to achieve clear, worthwhile, and compelling goals that could not be reached without a team. Teaming leverages organizational resources while using the expertise of team members”

Cross-functional (multifunctional) teams

a process that trainers, team builders, meeting leaders, managers, and communicators use to add content, process, and structure to meet the needs of an individual, group or team”

Facilitation

the process of coordinating the organization, planning, scheduling, controlling, monitoring, and evaluating of activities so that the objectives of a project are met”

Project management

ome potential disadvantages to using cross-functional teams include

team process loss, negative effects on individual team members, and poor team decisions resulting from phenomena such as groupthink

Any team endeavor may be expected to reveal a diversity of ideas, motivations, and expectations.

Consensus building

occurs when group members attempt to avoid the discomforts of critical and original thinking. It arises out of a wish to minimize conflict and criticism, even when the conflict and criticism would be constructive and beneficial.

Groupthink

Synergy refers to “the phenomenon that occurs when multiple entities are able to achieve more than the sum of all individual efforts

Synergy

Phases of Team Building

forming, storming, norming, performing, and adjourning.

in this phase, teams work to understand their charter, set governance policies and timelines, assess skills and personalities of participants, and generally work to ensure a smooth flowing work environment.

forming

in this phase,team members may challenge the goals and objectives of the team, and individual agendas may come into play as the team members begin to develop consensus.

storming

in this phase,team efforts are devoted to channeling group resources toward the main goals, and to increasing the momentum of the team.

norming

in this phase,the work group is clearly focused and moving toward the completion of the project. Its concerns are to craft the final project, and identify alternative means of presenting the group’s work. The team is both efficient and effective.

performing

in this phase,team members come to what may be sobering conclusions about the essence of their work, and whether they have accomplished what they were chartered to do. This phase also may include planning specific means of follow-up, and possibly allow for implementation of the recommendations.

adjourning

capital equipment

concensus building

cycle time reduction

groupthink

market intelligence

revenue enhancement

sourcing team

supply chain management

team

synegy

The BEST reason for forming a cross-functional team is because it is: 

A. A way to motivate people.

B. A good way to build consensus.

Correctly selected

C. A good way to foster team spirit throughout the organization.

D. A method of sharing the credit and the blame.

Which one of the following is a true statement about the phases of team building?

A. Staffing the team is known as the forming phase.

B. The storming phase is when the team discusses the main goal(s) of the team.

C. During the norming phase, the team establishes goals and objectives and prioritizes them.

Correctly selected

D. During the adjournment phase all teamwork stops.

The organization can collect information through:

Surveys (email, website, social media, mail) Gather broad feedback

Interviews Obtain detailed insights

Random sampling Reduce bias

Management feedback Understand leadership perspectives

Review of current training programs Identify weaknesses

Measures that show whether policies and procedures are being followed.

compliance metrics

Give examples of common supply management policy areas.

Bidding, requisitioning, contracting, supplier negotiations, inventory management, transportation, ethics, social responsibility, and legal compliance.

Why is bidding compliance easier to measure than ethics compliance?

Bidding produces clear documentation (quotes, bids, awards), while ethics behavior is harder to document.

What are three methods to monitor compliance?

• Document reviews

• Employee discussions/interviews

• Noncompliance reporting

How can organizations ensure real-time compliance tracking?

By requiring documentation for each transaction and integrating it into IT systems.

What is the correct cycle of supply management compliance?

Create policies → Train employees → Measure compliance → Monitor results → Improve continuously.

What is the main goal of supply management internal control systems?

To align with organization-wide risk management and help ensure objectives are achieved effectively, efficiently, and ethically.

What does success of internal control systems depend on?

• Strong internal partnerships (legal, audit, CFO, CIO, CEO)

• Strong policies, procedures, and documentation

• Ethical, engaged supply management professionals

What is COSO?

The Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission, which provides frameworks for enterprise risk management and internal control.

What is the purpose of the COSO Internal Control Framework?

To help organizations design and maintain effective internal control systems that improve achievement of objectives and adapt to change.

What are the five components of COSO internal control?

• Control environment

• Risk assessment

• Control activities

• Information and communication

• Monitoring activities

The foundation of internal control that provides structure, discipline, and organizational culture.

control environment

The process of identifying and analyzing risks that could prevent the organization from achieving its objectives.

risk assessment

Policies, procedures, and practices that ensure management objectives are achieved and risks are managed.

control activities

Systems that ensure employees receive relevant information and understand their control responsibilities.

information and communication in internal control

Ongoing oversight of internal controls by management or independent reviews to ensure controls are working properly.

monitoring activities

Controls that require conscious human action to operate (e.g., reviewing reports and making decisions).

active controls

Automated controls that operate in the background without human intervention (e.g., automatic purchase orders).

passive controls

A passive control that alerts users only when something unusual or outside limits occurs.

exception reporting

Why must passive controls be reviewed over time

Because changes in business conditions can make them outdated or ineffective.

What are the three timing types of controls?

• Before the fact (preventive)

• During the fact (real-time)

• After the fact (detective)

Before-the-fact controls examples

Budgets
Plans
Business continuity
Forecasts
Policy and procedures manuals

During-the-fact controls examples

Structured processes
Adherence to policy and procedures
Specifications
Industry standards

After-the-fact controls examples

Reports
Reviews
Audits and customer surveys

An organization that continuously learns from experience by challenging assumptions, improving thinking, and adapting processes—not just reacting to change.

learning organization

Who developed the concept of the learning organization

Peter Senge

: What are the five disciplines of a learning organization?

A:

1. Systems thinking

2. Personal mastery

3. Mental models

4. Shared vision

5. Team learning

A way of understanding how parts of a system interact, helping identify patterns and improve organizational performance.

What is systems thinking?

Continuous self-improvement, strong personal vision, patience, and realistic self-assessment.

personal mastery

Deeply held assumptions and beliefs that shape how people understand and respond to the world.

mental models

A common organizational goal or future direction that guides decisions and motivates employees.

shared vision

Collaborative learning where individuals suspend assumptions and think together to generate better ideas.

team learning

What defines a learning-oriented supply management organization?

Continuous improvement, adaptability, strong purpose, and readiness to respond to challenges.

What is a shared vision in supply management teams?

A collective understanding of how supply management contributes to organizational success.

How do learning organizations use conflict?

They treat conflict as constructive because it encourages reassessment and innovation.

How do learning organizations view creativity?

As essential for innovation, flexibility, and improved problem-solving.

What is perceptive risk-taking?

Taking calculated risks based on knowledge and analysis, while learning from outcomes.

What are intrapreneurs?

Employees who act like entrepreneurs inside an organization by developing new ideas and improving processes.

What tools support learning organizations in supply management?

Knowledge management systems, data warehouses, environmental scanning, and decision dashboards.

A clear statement of how supply management adds value to the organization beyond just purchasing goods.

value proposition

Q: How can supply management improve its value proposition?

A:

• Show big-picture impact

• Use data for risk and visibility

• Work with other functions

• Market its capabilities

• Get involved in cross-functional teams

• Educate executives

• Reframe savings as efficiencies

• Highlight non-cost benefits

Q: What are common supply management mission goals?

A: Cost savings, supply continuity, efficiency, supplier performance improvement, and innovation sourcing.

Q: How does supply management support business strategy?

A: By reducing costs, improving quality, increasing flexibility, and enhancing operational performance.

Q: What are the three main activities a leader must do to align people behind a vision?

• Clearly communicate the vision to all stakeholders

• Build credibility through consistent actions

• Empower others to take ownership and act on the vision

Q: What does “decoding demand-driven customer value” mean?

Understanding customer needs (cost, speed, service) and converting them into supply chain priorities.

What is the first step in aligning supply chain strategy?

A: Refine the strategy by balancing trade-offs among cost, speed, and service.

Q: What is the second step in supply chain alignment?

A: Link supply chain attributes (cost, speed, service) to functional capabilities (e.g., efficiency, agility)

Q: What is the third step in the alignment process?

A: Use capabilities to map and configure processes to optimize supply chain design and working capital.

What is the fourth step in alignment?

Align internal stakeholders through communication and collaboration to execute value-creating processes.

What is the fifth step in alignment?

Align external stakeholders (suppliers, partners) to deliver customer value based on cost, speed, and service expectation

What role does the supply management leader play in communicating the vision?

The leader acts as a chief advocate, communicator, and “salesperson” of the new supply management vision and strategy.

What is the first question a leader must answer when communicating the vision?

A: Who are the target audiences or stakeholder groups?

Q: What is the second question a leader must answer?

A: What are the underlying interests of each stakeholder or stakeholder group?

Q: What is the third question a leader must answer?

A: How can the supply management vision and strategy be linked to stakeholder interests? To increase buy-in, alignment, and support for supply management initiatives.

What are the 4 main ways training and policy information can be disseminated?

Through technology, one-on-one meetings, shadowing, and written documentation.

What additional tools can enhance online training?

Instructional videos and digital learning materials.

Learning by observing an experienced employee performing real job tasks.

shadowing

Formal written instructions that define the best and most consistent way to perform tasks.

standard operating procedures (SOPs)

Training designed to ensure employees can perform specific, measurable skills.

competency-based training

What are the three key questions in competency-based training design?

• What skills should trainees acquire?

• How will the skills be taught?

• How will results be measured?

What makes a learning objective effective in competency-based training?

It clearly describes observable and measurable behaviors.

a weak objective?

understand total cost analysis”

a strong objective?

identify cost components and evaluate data

What are the major training methods in supply management?

Orientation, on-the-job training, mentoring, rotation, classroom training, online learning, self-development, and certification.

Training on supply management policies, processes, and systems for new employees.

functional orientation

What tools support orientation training?

Employee manuals, SOPs, intranet resources, and supervisor guidance.

Learning by doing while performing real work tasks.

on-the-job training

What is a limitation of on-the-job training?

It may lack structure and consistency.

Q: What is a disadvantage of mentoring programs?

A: They may limit exposure to only one perspective or job area.

A: Younger employees mentor senior leaders, often on technology and modern trends.

reverse mentoring

Training employees by rotating them through different departments.

functional rotation

Structured learning sessions taught by internal or external experts.

classroom training

What are the two types of online learning?

Synchronous (live) and asynchronous (self-paced).

Why is classroom training valuable?

It combines theory, practice, and networking with other professionals.