King Abdullah University of Science and Technology
Developing the talent to drive business improvements.
When King Abdullah University of Science and Technology opened, many of the new procurement team had little formal training and qualifications. CIPS training provided the knowledge and skills to help the department evolve from transactional to strategic.
Direct, Producrement & Financial Control,
King Abdullah University of Science and Technology
“Developing the talent to drive business improvements Leading global excellence in procurement and supply For us, CIPS is the international benchmark when it comes to procurement certifications. It gives us the confidence that our professionals have been trained using the latest standards and best practice. It is essential to help us stay at the forefront of procurement practice.”
CIPS Corporate Award
Why did KAUST choose the CIPS Corporate Award?
The Procurement Department manages an annual spend of $600m covering Construction, IT, FM, Research and Corporate. It's made up of three teams – Contracting who issue service agreements, Research who procure research materials, and General who buy all other goods.
The Contracting team was recruited with the necessary skills and experience to draft the contracts to establish KAUST in its early days. However, staff in the Research team, who are largely scientists by training, and in the General team, were recruited with little formal training and qualifications. As a result KAUST enrolled 20 candidates onto a Corporate Award programme, starting at Practitioner level and progressing to Advanced Practitioner.
The benefits
Savings
Assignments led to total cost savings of over $500,000, including category planning and chemic reuse.
Efficient
Process efficiencies have allowed a new departmental structure to be implemented.
Contracts
Contracts are drafted to a higher standard making contract management easier.
Training
The programme has helped the team to develop in-house training for contracted administrators.
Risk management
Risk management and business continuity processes have been strengthened.
Staff morale
Staff morale has improved in an environment where the team now acts as one.
With 60% of the team now full CIPS members – MCIPS or FCIPS – the department has evolved to take a more strategic outlook.
About KAUST
King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) is an international graduate research university, located on the shores of the Red Sea in Saudi Arabia. Established in 2009, the University was designed to serve as a catalyst for innovation, economic development and social prosperity in Saudi Arabia and around the world. Due to its remote location, KAUST has an end-to-end supply chain covering logistics, managing permits, customs clearance, warehousing, and site services. With a global supply chain, risk management and business continuity are essential to mitigate the areas of weakness.
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