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AMERICAN EXPRESS

Organization Directory Page

• Organization description

• Source of official student records

• Titles of all evaluated learning experiences

• Descriptions and credit recommendations

The mission of American Express is to be the world’s most respected service brand. The vision of Corporate Services, the business unit within Travel Related Services that serves the needs of corporations, supports the greater mission. This vision, to become the world’s most respected business-to-business service brand, is based on the goals of achieving extraordinary customer service, transforming entire industries, and making people incredibly successful.

Corporate Services comprises over 14,000 employees in the U.S. and a significant number around the world. Corporate Services works with diverse clients, from small to mid-size companies to Fortune 50 companies, on ways to reduce their expenses and improve operating efficiency. The most common products to assist clients in these areas are the Business Travel and Corporate Cards. In an effort to assist clients with their corporate purchasing, American Express also offers the Corporate Purchasing Card. This program focuses specifically on the corporate purchasing industry and the intricacies associated with procuring products and services to meet each client’s needs.

Learning and Development, a group within Human Resources Development focused on the Corporate Services business, houses employee records. The role of Learning and Development is to build viable human performance systems within Corporate Services to help employees achieve their business goals.

Source of official student records: Director, Learning and Development, American Express, 90 Hudson Street, 9th Floor, Jersey City, NJ 07302.

Titles of all evaluated learning experiences
Corporate Purchasing Card Certification

Descriptions and credit recommendations

Corporate Purchasing Card Certification
The Purchasing and Accounting Industry
CPC Product Knowledge and Competitive Analysis
CPC Implementation and Program Design
Location: Various AMEX offices throughout the United States.
Length: Self-paced independent study program; each course takes approximately 25 hours to complete.
Dates: April 1999 - November 2004.
Objectives: Course 1: Given a prospect account, the prospect’s industry classification, a supplier listing, and access to information on the prospect’s accounting and purchasing processes, the course participant will be able to diagram a client’s current procurement process, identify the goods and services the client acquires, discuss the client’s data requirements and its usage, identify purchasing systems already in place, identify the client’s key suppliers and its supplier strategy, identify the goals, objectives, and functional requirements for each individual within the purchasing and accounting process, and prepare and present a situational analysis on an client’s purchasing and accounts payable processes. Course 2: Given a prospect account, the prospect’s situational analysis, and current corporate product and competitive information, the course participant will be able to determine process-reengineering opportunities, optimize the use of suppliers, determine cost reduction opportunities, match data capture capabilities to the client requirements, match controls and limits to the client requirements, and determine the appropriate pricing model. Course 3: Given a client account, the client’s situational and readiness assessment, and a commodity chart, the course participant will be able to create a commodity strategy to maximize market penetration, create a card and card member strategy, define a supplier strategy; leverage services to maximize program goals; execute data capture capabilities against client requirements, and create a communication and training strategy.
Instruction: The Corporate Purchasing Card Certification program is an integrated learning experience spanning three self-paced independent study courses. Each course emphasizes the development of abilities to recall knowledge appropriately, analyze knowledge for a specific purpose, and apply knowledge in a simulated environment using case studies. Each of the three courses requires successful completion of two tests, which are administered on-line, and a final test, which is administered under secured, proctored conditions, and utilizes a case study approach. Following successful completion of the three courses, a culminating final examination is administered under secured, proctored conditions. This final examination also utilizes a case study approach. Course 1: Lessons covered include: Industry terminology; the key individuals and groups involved in the procurement process; the traditional methods of procurement, from requisition to payment, and the inherent gaps that exist within the procurement process; purchasing activities within the procurement process; accounting activities within the procurement process; and new systems used within the procurement process and how technology advances are redefining the purchasing function. Course 2: Lessons covered include: Terminology; reengineering a company’s procurement process using the corporate purchasing card; preparing an account readiness assessment and determining opportunities for a client to maximize the corporate purchasing card features; information captured on a transaction; the role of the supplier in the procurement process; pricing and profitability; competitive analysis. Course 3: Lessons covered include: Short and long-term strategies for implementing a client’s corporate purchasing card program; implementation milestones and timelines; assuming ownership of an account and focusing on maintenance and expansion of services.
Credit recommendation: Courses 1, 2, and 3: In the upper division baccalaureate/associate degree category, 3 semester hours as an elective in Management or Finance (11/99).

Updated 9/20/05

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