Advanced Procurement Certificate
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(Re)Learn Procurement with the Latest Insights from Research and Current Best Practice
Today, most organizations consider the management of their suppliers and supply chains as a key strategic issue that requires top management attention – and highly skilled employees that can take on the expanded responsibilities to drive value in their organizations. Brush up your knowledge of the theoretical foundations and learn current best practices, techniques, and tools to generate value through strategic procurement and sourcing. The Advanced Procurement Certificate course is suitable for both experienced specialists and managers taking on responsibilities in procurement, but also procurement business partners involved in sourcing decisions.
Key Facts
Program Structure
One on site module, 3 days in total
Program Duration
Two course runs in 2026
April 22-24, 2026
Online Kick-Off: April 9, 2026, 3-4 PM CEST
October 5-7, 2026
Online Kick-Off: Sep 21, 2026, 3-4 PM CEST
Location
On site, Mannheim, Germany
Language
English
Course Fee
Regular: €3,240
Early-bird price: €2,950 (until February 24, 2026 for April 2026 course / until August 7, 2026 for October 2026 course)
20% discount for MBS and Mannheim University alumni and participants
Prerequisites
Experience in procurement, operations, logistics, marketing, supply chain, or new product development; good English language skills
Credits
Certificate awarded by Mannheim Business School
Reputation
Best ranked German business school
Key Benefits
Unique format: Cutting-edge industry practices blended with latest insights from academia
No nonsense: Deep dive into strategic procurement, sourcing, and negotiation
Excellence: Highest quality teaching at MBS standards
High intensity: Three full days on campus
Recognition: Document your professional development with a certificate from MBS and elevate your career
Carina Hoffmann, Regional Supply Manager for Car Fleet and Travel at Hilti Deutschland AG"I really enjoyed the exciting and informative training, and I always had the feeling that the participants felt the same way. It was great that we had the opportunity to exchange ideas with other companies and, above all, that these companies were similar in terms of size and perspectives."
Program Description
During the last decades, the role of the purchasing function has shifted from a clerical support role that merely drives cost savings to a truly strategic role that drives value creation and plays on the centerstage for pressing business challenges – from tackling sustainability and de-risking supply chains all the way to managing the digital transformation and AI side of business processes.
Advanced Procurement is an intensive three-day, on-campus program that focusses on the most critical aspects of modern procurement. Created from in-depth analysis of current research and practice in purchasing and supply management, this program addresses the realities of modern procurement, as well as current “hot topics”.
Teaching that inspires
Brush up your theoretical knowledge (“head”), see and discuss best-practices (“hands”), and receive new ideas (“heart”) – packaged in MBS quality.
Research that matters
Our Endowed Chair of Procurement is one of the preeminent labs for supply management research and is dedicated to shaping the future of procurement.
Value that bridges
The setting provides opportunities to connect, deepen, and triangulate contents learned in other trainings and to receive new, out-of-the-box impulses.
Course Contents
Strategy and strategic alignment
- Learn how to analyze, develop, and justify procurement strategy
- Use frameworks to diagnose strategy and capability gaps
- Analyze make-or-buy problems in a structured fashion
- Understand coordination and motivation problems in the procurement context and how to tackle them
- Design appropriate operating models and governance mechanisms
- Discuss the problem of performance trade-offs and be able to provide justifications to stakeholders
Sourcing
- Learn how to interlock procurement strategy, category strategies, and supplier strategies
- Get to know state-of-the-art approaches to category management and optimization
- Discuss current research on supply base segmentation, buyer-supplier relationships, and interfirm governance mechanisms
- Revisit frameworks and best practices for demand and supply analysis
- How to move to demand and supply analysis to business awards
Negotiation
- Understand healthy competition in sourcing and learn how to organize it in sourcing projects
- Learn how to use market competition in bilateral negotiations with alternatives
- Navigate the broad landscape of negotiation theory and practice
Prof. Dr. Christoph Bode
Prof. Dr. Christoph Bode is a full professor at the Business School of the University of Mannheim and holds the Endowed Chair of Procurement. He obtained his Ph.D. from WHU – Otto Beisheim School of Management and his Habilitation from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich. He holds a master's degree in business engineering from the University of Karlsruhe and master's degrees in industrial engineering and in management from the Grenoble Institute of Technology in France. Prior to joining the faculty in Mannheim, he served at the Department of Management and at the Center for Economic Research at Tilburg University in the Netherlands and at the Department of Management, Technology, and Economics at ETH Zurich.
Teaching and research interests lie in the areas of procurement, supply chain, logistics, and operations management with a special focus on risk and disruptions, interfirm relationships, innovation and entrepreneurship, sustainability, and strategies and performance. His research in these areas has been published in multi-disciplinary management journals. Several of his studies have received awards. Prof. Bode serves as an associate editor for leading international journals and as a frequent ad-hoc reviewer for other leading journals and conferences. He is a member of the Complex Adaptive Supply Networks Research Accelerator and of the academic advisory council of the Association Supply Chain Management, Procurement and Logistics.
Registration and Course Fees
- Registrations are open until April 7, 2026 (for April 2026 course) and September 18, 2026 (for October 2026 course) via an e-mail to ee@mannheim-business-school.com.
- The regular course fee is €3,240. Secure the early-bird offer of €2,950 until February 24, 2026 (for April 2026 course) / August 7, 2026 (for October 2026 course).
- Alumni and participants at Mannheim Business School, their spouses and co-habiting partners, and alumni, staff and participants of the University of Mannheim are eligible for a 20% discount on this program (course fee €2,590).
- Good to know: Tax offices usually recognize costs for your further education if they are job-related. Depending on your tax status in Germany, you may claim up to 50% of the tuition fee and related travel expenses on your annual tax return. Outside of Germany, please check details with a tax advisor in your country of residence. Please note: Each federal state in Germany has regulations on educational leave. Check here to see which regulations apply in your federal state and get in touch with us to discuss your individual situation.
Contact Person
Downloads
- Privacy Policy Open Courses
- Registration Form Advanced Procurement Certificate
- Factsheet Advanced Procurement Certificate
MANNHEIM BUSINESS SCHOOL (MBS)
Located in the heart of the German and European economy, Mannheim Business School (MBS), the umbrella organization for management education at the University of Mannheim, is considered to be one of the leading institutions of its kind in Germany and is continuously ranked as Germany’s #1.
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