The Centre for Management Development in the Faculty of Business Administration is celebrating a successful partnership with the Purchasing Management Association of Canada (PMAC). Memorial, through the CMD, is the first university in Canada to offer the PMAC’s certified professional purchaser accreditation program.

Certified professional purchasers manage the supply chain in all sectors of the economy, from retail and manufacturing to government and natural resources. PMAC is the leading Canadian professional association for supply chain management professionals. Their intent is to establish supply chain management as a profession that is equal to other business disciplines such as accounting, finance and marketing.

In order to do so, PMAC has revised their accreditation program to focus on integrative thinking, strategic analysis and decision making. In January 2007, PMAC partnered with the CMD to deliver the new Strategic Supply Chain Management Leadership Program. Successful participants will finish the program with management skills and the CPP designation.

The first class of students in the PMAC program at Memorial began in fall 2007. The program has met the enrolment target set by PMAC and the CMD, and the expectation is for strategic growth as the program moves into its second year at Memorial.

Hilkka McCallum, manager of member development program with PMAC, believes that PMAC is already benefiting from the partnership with Memorial. “Memorial University is the most highly respected post-secondary institution in Newfoundland and Labrador. In working with the CMD, PMAC is able to leverage the university’s excellent reputation in facilitating professional development at the management and executive level,” she explained. “PMAC can also take advantage of the CMD’s extensive network of student, alumni and employer contacts to raise the profile of the supply chain management profession in the province.”

Partnerships, like the one with the PMAC, are a part of the growth strategy for the CMD. “Our mandate is to offer high-quality professional development programs for all levels of management,” Bill Morrissey, director of the CMD, said. “We know partnerships with other organizations have played a significant role in our success in meeting our clients’ needs and we will continue to build these partnerships to support professional development of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.”