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Mike Zerby

CSCP

Please tell us in which company and position you started your APICS certification(s)? What was your motivation to complete the certification(s)?
"I started my APICS certification while assigned as Purchasing Manager at Volvo Construction Equipment, Germany’s largest continental Europe production site. I originally organized this training for my purchasing team to learn supply chain fundamentals, and after sitting in on a session to assess the value of the course, I decided to take the CSCP level training myself. Originally planning to just ‘absorb’ the training, I passed the exam and became certified in 2013."

How did your certification(s) help you to achieve the position you are currently in?
"My certification helped me better communicate and share my supply chain knowledge and management principles with my local team and regional colleagues."

Please give us a concrete example, where you have applied the APICS knowledge in your career.
"I use my APICS training every day, educating team members and external suppliers to use APICS terminology when fighting the daily supply chain battle. In addition, keeping the APICS ‘big picture’ of overall supply chain, is essential for managers and leaders to keep their organization moving in the right direction. Key APICS concepts of collaboration, continuous improvement up and down the supply chain, and customer focus are especially important when working in a purchasing role. I teach young buyers and supplier development engineers APICS principles and terminology every day (“‘3V’s”, striving for supplier integration, using the right metrics, process thinking, etc.) to equip them with the knowledge to enhance relationships with key partners in the supply chain."


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