5 Rigorous Online Courses
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Strategic Planning in Public Procurement
- This represents an introductory course that will provide students with an encompassing overview of the fundamental requirements for successful strategic planning – and will provide a framework to guide students developing effective strategic plans for public sector acquisition and procurement programs. It will provide students with an understanding of why public plans seldom meet expectations by identifying the most common mistakes. The course’s main scope is to familiarize students with the background of public sector strategic planning initiatives, the general processes employed, and and approaches that will ensure relevance, utility, and value of government strategic plans - with an emphasis on support programs in general and procurement programs in particular. By the completion of the course students will become familiar with basic strategic planning terminology (e.g., mission, vision, strategic direction, goals/outcomes, strategies/outputs, logic models, and critical success factors), will be able to delineate the main differences between public and private sector strategic planning processes, and will understand how to avoid the obstacles that often diminish the effectiveness of public sector strategic plans. Formerly Fundamentals of Public Procurement.
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Public Procurement Process, Ethics and Law
- This course introduces students to the processes and legal and ethical frameworks within which public procurement operates. It focuses on the ethical and legal implications of decisions made during the procurement process and places them within the greater context of democratic governance. The course targets the development of a foundational understanding of the basic and general legal principles that guide procurement processes. Among others, students will learn about the dangers of unethical procurement practices, liability exposure, contestation and arbitration procedures and the best practices associated with ensuring that procurement practices are simultaneously legal and ethical. Above all, students will learn about the ethical, legal and democratic responsibilities of public procurement professionals.
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Project Management in Public Procurement
- This course provides the conceptual and theoretical framework for project management within the context of public procurement. Currently, public procurement professionals are expected to simultaneously engage in a number of complex projects. Within context project management skills become a very valuable asset. Students will learn the need and rationale behind the use of project management in public procurement. In particular, students will be introduced to the fundamental role played by planning, setting and enforcing deadlines, personnel management, developing clear nodes of responsibility and developing performance management processes.
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Best Value Analysis and Negotiation
- Unlike private sector procurement, public sector procurement has to account for numerous other variables beyond the “bottom line.” This makes public sector procurement that much more complicated. It makes the determination of what represents the “best deal” – also extremely difficult. This course will introduce students to the tools and approaches employed in public procurement for purposes of determining best procurement value. It also offer the operational and theoretical frameworks of effective negotiations (e.g., conflict resolution, role assignment, positioning, negotiation tactics).
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Contract Formulation and Administration
- This course introduces students to the principles of contract formulation and administration in public procurement. With a growing significance of contracting out and outsourcing in the public sector – it becomes crucial that procurement specialists are educated and comfortable with best practices in contract underwriting and administration. Students will learn about the scope, language, practices and management approaches associated with effective contracting relationships between the public and private and nonprofit sectors. Among others, students will learn about the most common techniques employed for purposes of ensuring contractual performance and avoiding costly litigation.
Certificate Entry/Eligibility Requirement
To enroll in the Management Certificate in Public Procurement (MCPP), a student must hold a Bachelor’s degree from an accredited university or have 5 or more years of experience in public procurement or a related field.
Certificate Completion Requirement
To earn the Management Certificate in Public Procurement (MCPP), a student must complete all five courses with an overall grade point average (GPA) of 3.3 or better.