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ISM CORE - Supply Management Core Exam

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Total 312 questions

A supply manager Is planning for negotiations with a sole-source supplier of an essential part. The buying firm is already one of the supplier's top customers, and will need even larger quantities of the part to expand its product line in the near future. The supply manager learns that the supplier may experience some financial risks over the coming year, and that the supplier is anxious to solidify its relationships with major customers to mitigate that risk. Which of the following Is the BEST way for the supply manager to gain a deeper understanding of the supplier's position?

A.

Perform a SWOT analysis

B.

Perform a Porter's Five Forces analysis

C.

Determine the supplier's bottom line position

D.

Determine the buying firm's bottom line position

A manufacturing company signs a cost-reimbursable contract with a new customer that needs a large volume of its product manufactured in a short period of time. The product is difficult and time consuming to fabricate. The contract provides generous flexibility for cost but has severe consequences if the deadline is missed. To ensure the timely completion of the contract, the manufacturer plans to negotiate with a lower-tier supplier for a critical sub-component.

Given this situation, which of the following negotiation objectives is MOST closely aligned with the interests of the manufacturing firm?

A.

Expediting fabrication and delivery of the sub-component

B.

Implementing enhanced quality inspections prior to shipment

C.

Achieving a 10% reduction in price

D.

Providing a 5% discount for prompt payment of invoices

ABC, Inc. Is a large accounting partnership with member firms In 120 countries. ABC's international sourcing team is responsible for establishing contracts with the company’s suppliers around the world.

While the quality of negotiated and executed contracts remains impeccable, the sourcing team has received numerous complaints about delays in processing contracts. The delays primarily occur at the contract execution stage, when the assigned sourcing specialist must obtain internal approvals from multiple parties, including international suppliers and member firms. Because of these delays, suppliers must wait until a contract is duly executed before they can start providing services, which has a significant impact on the member firms' commitments to their clients.

Which of the following is the BEST course of action for the sourcing team to take to address this issue?

A.

Allow suppliers to start the implementation of services as soon as they reach an agreement in principle, and formalize the paperwork later on

B.

Subscribe to a digital signature service and execute contracts online, rather than sending the paperwork overseas via courier

C.

Hire additional sourcing staff to manage the volume and reduce delays, and have the member firms cover the extra budget

D.

Allow member firms to execute contracts directly with their suppliers, in order to avoid processing delays

The ability to explain how and why decisions are made in support of business plans is important because it allows a supply manager to

A.

influence internal stakeholders

B.

reduce the amount of needed input from key stakeholders

C.

align goals to supply management's mission

D.

prevent supply chain disruptions

A firm becomes a publicly-traded company. To ensure compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley, the company must report what types of risks (if any) on the annual report to shareholders?

A.

No risks

B.

Operational risks only

C.

Financial risks only

D.

All major risks

Smith agrees to work for Acme Company for 12 months on a time and materials contract, with right of termination for convenience. Under the terms of the contract, Smith's fee is payable quarterly. After six months, Smith provides notice of termination. Smith was only paid for the first three months of the contract, and Acme Company is withholding payment of the outstanding balance. If Smith files a lawsuit to recover damages, Smith is MOST likely to be compensated for which of the following types of damages?

A.

Restitution

B.

Incidental

C.

Consequential

D.

Punitive

Consider the following supplier terms for the same product:

Supplier A:2%/15, Net 30

Supplier B:4°/o/5, Net 30

Which supplier's terms are more advantageous to the buying organization?

A.

Supplier B

B.

Cannot be determined based on the above information

C.

Supplier A

D.

The terms are equivalent

A supply manager works with engineering on an aerospace project. A request for quotation (RFQ) Is distributed to five potential suppliers, three of whom respond that they are not interested In the project. The two remaining suppliers say they are interested, but a high level of risk involving tight tolerances will force them to raise prices significantly, and neither will accept a firm fixed price contract. The supply manager arranges a conference with engineering and both suppliers. During this conference, it is determined that only three of the tolerances are truly critical. Based on this conference, a revised RFQ is issued.

This scenario is an example of which of the following aspects of supply management?

A.

Acting as a liaison between stakeholders

B.

Negotiating a contract award

C.

Facilitating value engineering

D.

Resolving conflicts between stakeholders

During a request for proposal (RFP) debriefing, a supplier provides clarification on some of the answers in the RFP that, had they been included, would have increased the supplier's score. In response to this, which of the following is the BEST course of action for the supply manager to take?

A.

Award part of the contract to the supplier

B.

Cancel the RFP and issue a new RFP

C.

Verify that the supplier understands the RFP process

D.

Regrade the supplier's submission and reevaluate the results of the RFP

GHI, Inc. is a manufacturer of batteries. GHI's supply manager reads an industry publication describing a new innovation from DEF Company that extends battery capacity, which could be of tremendous benefit to GHI. DEF happens to be a supplier to GHI, and yet DEF's sales representative has never mentioned the innovation to the supply manager. In order to strengthen the business relationship and enhance future collaboration between GHI and DEF, the supply manager should

A.

enter into a strategic alliance

B.

launch a joint process improvement program

C.

conduct comprehensive business reviews

D.

implement a supplier forum