How do you train and mentor your staff or team members on contract management skills and knowledge?

Contract is a subset of Purchasing/Procurement. The contract agreed between the supplier and the Purchaser should specify what is agreed to be delivered, by when, where, how, all technical parameters to prove and payment terms. It should be a legal document binding on both the parties, including penalties, documentation etc. One part of Contract can be a 'standard part' for the Company which will be applicable generally to all contracts. Another will be specific to the Purchase order. This specific part of the contract will depend on the requirements of the procurement.

The avenues for training are many if we are very passionate about what we take on as a profession. More so with a tool called internet/google. Just google a topic and you will find so many best practises out there. In addition, in a office set up, we can 1. Procurement can look at the contracts we accept from our customers, contracts signed by the regional/global procurement team with with suppliers. 2. Talk to key stakeholders on what are the must have and nice to have as output of the procurement process. Cover them in the contracts that you are drafting. Just putting a 30days payment term is not sufficient. A payment term of 30days from date of physical receipt of invoice is more effective and Finance will love you for it.

Es esencial, herramientas como encuestas y entrevistas proporcionan información valiosa sobre habilidades y preferencias de aprendizaje. Ejemplo, mediante pruebas se mide la comprensión de cláusulas contractuales. Con estos resultados, se identifican áreas de mejora específicas, permitiendo asignar recursos de manera efectiva. Este análisis informado facilita el dise?o de programas personalizados, garantizando una capacitación eficaz y alineada con los objetivos del equipo. Un enfoque estratégico para maximizar el impacto del aprendizaje en gestión contractual.

In my experience, contracts management is learned like a puzzle and it needs to be put together piece by piece. For instance, you may start new buyers on simple items such as task/delivery orders from an IDIQ, or small supply buys (if available) to get their feet wet. I personally run introductory/fundamentals training that cover broad topics and best practices with relevant examples to the team. Then I dive deeper as the training progresses and conduct one-on-one training with the buyers to get an idea of their gaps/areas of confusion in a safe environment. Some people need more training, self-motivated personnel generally learn much quicker. However, that's not always the case, buyers come in all shapes and sizes (mentally).

Sou a favor de que a equipe que irá gerenciar o contrato seja envolvida na elabora??o da especifica??o a ser contratada, que as pessoas conhe?am as necessidades da demanda. A partir daí podemos identificar áreas onde observamos as deficiências e podemos agir, agora em caso de substitui??o de pessoas durante o processo, ter a certeza de contratar profissionais com as competências adequadas a aquele contrato.

A sense of ownership and thrust to achieve knowledge and skill are the basic ingredients. Also, build a purpose in your team, which should be beyond KPIs and other parameters. One can learn and achieve excellence in any field.

What I have shared with my team or clients are : Reach out for the sky and give your best. If we take this approach, then we need not have to bother the right format as these days, we just have to go along with what suits us best. What is key to note that the days of saying my manager does not send me for training is not going to work for our self development. All the training tools are in the Internet - we just need to google them, take it on as most training materials are FOC and available on the internet. Unless you want some certs/diploma etc, we would then have to pay for it.

In contracting hands-on training and on the job training with a competent mentor are the best tools. Many online courses or week long classes teach fundamentals with no 'why do we do this' included. It is presented as fact when in reality contracts allow for multiple approaches to bridge gaps and apply problem solving. This isn't to condemn all the tools available, only you need to ensure that the person has the base understanding and knowledge level to have the tool be useful. Senior buyers, in my experience, are the most valuable tool and if they are not mentoring effectively it leads to low morale and confusion. Gauge your buyer's knowledge base one on one and then review the course to see if it will be an effective tool.

Contracts are to be stored centrally so that it is accessible to the team. Beginners should go through some relevant contracts( done earlier)and familiarize themselves with the terminologies, terms and conditions, standards. This helps in standardization too.

I do remember that we repeatedly ask our employees to get to know the business, get to know our internal/external customers. This is simply for us to know the challenges being faced, and how we overcame them or trying to overcome them as a business. From this interactions, you will find the so call experts that knows the business that we are in. This should be a good start for most of us in a specific business.

1. Ignite Interest: The first step is to ignite interest within the team about the importance of contract management skills in the construction industry. 2. Assess Current Skills: Conduct an assessment of the team’s current skill sets. Identify any gaps in contract management skills that need to be addressed. 3. Conduct Training: Involve experts and peers to conduct comprehensive training sessions. Use real-life examples to make the learning process more relatable and effective. 4. Engage the Team: After the training, engage the team in reviewing contract management details from past completed projects. 5. Review and Evaluate: Periodically review and evaluate the outcomes of the training.

Training or mentoring are two different aspects of Contracts Management. Training involves education of the field, educating a staff with regard to contracts procedures and policies whiles as mentoring acts as role model for the same. However, a staff needs attention of both aspects, train them well under proper guidance which may include, Right planning, better opportunity, official support, transparency, agreed terms and conditions and much more. Attend skill development seminars, be proactive and encourage the new ideas they come with.

Ongoing support is for subsequent contracts. Revisiting contracts will be for checking or for corrections if need be. Change request management will cover this.

I always emphasize on the fact that Training is a must for each and every employee whatever his job description is. Depending on his skills and tasks, Training should be applied. When working on new skills and knowledge, we should make sure to implement this in the company and evaluate the result accordingly.

The best way of evaluating the outcome is : - Having face to face meet (of a teleconf call if parties are in remote locations) and sense if the training has made a impact. Tweak the training based on the feedback. Asking people to fill up questionnaire is a waste of time as most of us just fill up to get out of a class. - If there are related KPIs to a training, observe if the KPIs improve and stay at improved levels, or just a flash in the pants. A flash in the pants results imply the trainee could not apply the training tools in other scenarios. For need refresher training and reinforce the concepts.

I would encourage Procurement professionals to be very passionate about the function. Hopefully move across industries and use the transferable Procurement skills and challenge the givens. In my view, no fun staying within the same industry and trying to cut and paste what you did in company A into company B both from the same industry. The fun is when you try to challenge the givens in one industry to another industry - the ride will be bumpy but it will be an enriching experience, and we may end up changing the assumptions that we have made in the past.

To feel empowered to challenge our requestors and the market, maintain transparency, listen, accept input, and limit gray matter. Most importantly treat as if your own money and risk. And always have fun!

Training and mentoring on contract management involves workshops, role-playing, and real-world case studies. In renewable energy projects, staff learn negotiation skills for vendor contracts in subsea wind installations. Grid code compliance studies require understanding contract clauses for regulatory compliance. Manufacturing teams are trained on supplier agreements for component procurement. Battery storage system teams learn about warranty terms and performance guarantees in contracts with technology providers. Practical training enhances contract management proficiency for project success.