L3M1 Practice Exam Questions with Answers Procurement and Supply Environments Certification

Explanation

In 2015 an agreement was reached in Paris, France among most world nations to try to limit climate change and its effects.

The other answers shown are simply fictions.

Explanation

Payment (the implication here is 'in full') 60 days after delivery allows the buying organisation time to check the goods carefully, and possibly even use them in that time.

All of the other options would require the buyer to part with money prior to holding the goods, thus exposing that sum to risk. The least risky from the buyer's viewpoint is therefore after 60 days.

Particularly hazardous would be payment at time of order.

Explanation

Because a wide range of organisations (or even individuals) may respond to an open tender, consid-erable administrative resource may have to be devoted to analysing offers.

Explanation

An easy question.

Price is what the customer will pay for goods or services eg fifty dollars; payment terms are the ar-rangements under which you pay the price eg in advance, on delivery, 30 days, 60 days, etc.

Although this may seem rather obvious, I have encountered a surprising number of people who seem to confuse the two.

Explanation

The base rate is often used as a basis for the calculation of other rates, some of which eg credit card repayment rates, bear no resemblance to the base rate. Some longer-term, perhaps more responsible, lending, uses changes in the base rate to determine a repayment rate for debt egmortgage rates. For credit card repayment rates and for late payments in business contracts there is often a considerable amount of freedom to agree relevant rates, but government is often encouraged to influence to try to ensure some level of sanity.

The answer which references procurement of a new 'instrument' is an attempt at humour, 'base' be-ing a type of guitar.

Explanation

'Multi-national corporation' is the correct answer. Very large international organisations, with very large turnover, purchasing power and influence. Examples would include: Alphabet, Amazon, Ap-ple, Dell, Ford, Shell, Toyota, etc

Explanation

It was Milton Friedman who promoted this view in the second half of the 20th century. This view is now less popular than it was. 'The business of business is business' is another famous quote from Professor Friedman, meaning profit maximisation is what business should be concerned with, not broader social or welfare issues. This thinking takes the view that governments can legislate as nec-essary to cater for society's needs, funding such activities from taxation placed on successful profit-able businesses.

Milton Keynes is a place in UK; J M Keynes was a famous economist who took a different view to Friedman's and John Milton is a famous 17th century English poet.

Explanation

This is true.

Explanation

All of these.

Explanation

Exchange rate fluctuations and escalating materials costs can both substantially impact on a contract price. Where a contract has been drafted to allow for it, the price may be adjusted in line with some pre-agreed mechanism or formula to make the price paid more equitable.

Quality problems of the supplier's own making and shareholders seeking extra profit - neither being uncommon - are not seen as being grounds for adjusting price (upwards).

I should mention that price adjustment clauses can result in prices being adjusted either upwards or downwards, or not at all, depending on circumstances.

Explanation

Corporate Governance. Not to be confused with CSR.

Corporate identity relates to marketing and branding; corporate manslaughter is the concept of an organisation being criminally accountable for the deaths of humans through some lack of care. An example might be the deaths of rail company employees on the railway track, where the prosecution would attempt to show that it was the employers' fault.

Explanation

Sources of funds for private sector commonly include revenues from sales, shareholders and long-term loans. Taxpayers would not normally be thought of as a source of funds for private sector, alt-hough in recent Coronavirus times, in some countries, such as the UK, businesses have received considerable support. But that is abnormal.

Short-term sources such as overdrafts are not to be relied upon on a regular or long-term basis.

Explanation

The Act was introduced in 2010. Although this is a UK-centric QUESTION NO:, it is valid for several rea-sons. Firstly, the UK was one of the first countries to introduce such a wide-ranging Act; secondly the Act is so wide-ranging that all UK managers need to be familiar with it. People who live and work outside the UK may wish to familiarise themselves with the content of the Act to have an idea of what the impact of such legislation might be like.

Interestingly, in the UK, the Act has seldom been used 'in anger'.

Explanation

The correct answer is to provide services. However, some other secondary factors may come into play. For example, some public sector organisations may be encouraged to boost national prestige eg airports, airlines; or they may be used as job creation schemes.

Explanation

To the lay person, they may look the same.

However, for a procurement professional, a fixed price may be altered in some circumstances eg 'fixed price with incentive', 'fixed price with exchange rate adjustment', etc.

A firm price on the other hand cannot be altered, and is the price which will be paid under the con-tract.

An earlier text by Patrick Behan on government contracting refers.

Explanation

It's 'delegated authority' - where the authority to spend has been delegated to others, at a 'lower lev-el' in the organisation.

Normally organisational finance or procurement policies will explain how this is to work, often with a written delegation provided by a more senior manager. The authority to spend is invariably a tem-porary permission, which may be withdrawn under certain circumstances eg breach of rules, exces-sive spend, maverick spend, etc.

Explanation

Increasingly practised, albeit often quietly, protectionism seeks to protect domestic industries, re-ducing access to markets for foreign companies. The aim is normally to protect domestic worker's jobs, often with an eye on domestic politics. Industries recently (late 2020) mentioned in this subject area include agriculture, airlines, defence, shipbuilding, steel, etc - not just in UK or Europe, but worldwide.

The World Trade Organisation seeks to reduce protectionism - an activity supported by many econ-omists, as globalism is believed by many to increase global wealth overall.

However, this is not clear cut, and there are a variety of views.

Interventionism is not relevant to this QUESTION NO:, and preventionism is a made-up word.

Explanation

Exchange rate - the rate at which the currencies are exchanged. This rate can vary frequently, some-times several times per hour, depending on circumstances.

The interest rate is the rate charged on loans - the cost of borrowing.

The base rate is the basic interest rate used for agreeing loans within an economy. This rate is nor-mally set by the government or the central bank. Loans within that economy will usually be at a higher rate than the base rate, often much higher.

The equilibrium rate (more commonly 'equilibrium price') is the rate at which supply and demand meet, not necessarily related to currency.

Explanation

This is true.

A limited company has its own legal identity.

(Your syllabus makes reference to 'unincorporated companies'. This is something of a contradiction - the term 'company' implies incorporation. Although I have not been permitted to see your actual ex-am QUESTION NO:s, it seems unlikely that you will be QUESTION NO:ed on this particular point).

Explanation

One of the best ways to combat maverick buying is for procurement to be seen to be doing a good job, reducing the justification in colleagues' minds for going outside the system.

The other terms shown in the answers are simply made up to create the question.

This is your final question in this practice exam - good luck in the real exam!

Explanation

We are now aware that the cost of externalities to society are considerable. A simple example would be that proximity to flow of motor vehicles is likely to increase ill-health requiring state-funded medical services where they exist, to treat at state (taxpayers') expense those who become ill. In the UK the number of people affected this way is believed to be numbered in the tens of thousands an-nually. Thus some businesses' cost structures do not reflect their true cost to society.

Another example would be the discharge of untreated waste into rivers or the sea, where the com-panies undertaking these activities may not be contributing financially to the cleaning up required.

In future years there is likely to be much debate about this, as some people will attempt to find ways to make companies pay the full cost of running their businesses.

Explanation

All of these are ways of classifying organisations.

Examples: Retailers, SMEs, limited companies, etc