Contracting in the New Economy Program

Over multiple weeks, SIG University’s Contracting in the New Economy (CITNE) program will help you understand the significance of collaborative and relational contracts in creating greater value, mitigating risk, and fostering innovation in today’s commercial contracts and strategic business relationships.

What is “Relational Contracting”?

Relational Contracting can be defined as a legally enforceable written contract establishing a commercial partnership within a flexible contractual framework based on social norms and jointly defined objectives, prioritizing a relationship with the continuous alignment of interests before commercial transactions.

Both supplier and customer organizations must embrace contracting models beyond the traditional transactional contract. By doing this, value is maximized for both parties. At the same time, they are able to mitigate the overall risks while fostering innovation as well as earning the prerequisite trust and collaboration.

Establishing and managing relational contracting models requires a unique skill set for the sourcing professionals who embark upon the relational contracting journey.  This course will teach practitioners how to foster trust, develop a shared vision, and implement guiding principles to optimize the overall yield from their contracts, relationships, and other commercial assets.

What will I learn in this course?

SIG University’s Contracting in the New Economy (CITNE) program helps individuals, organizations, and the supplier/customer enterprise put effective relationship management and governance programs in place by exposing students to leading-edge training in this multi-week program. The program covers:

• Exploring the Social Science, Economics, and Psychology of Contracting
• Moving from Theory to Practice
• Laying the Foundation for a Partnership
• Co-creating a Shared Vision and Objectives
• Adopting Guiding Principles for the Partnership
• Aligning Expectations and Interests
• Staying Aligned
• Understanding the Legal Considerations of Relational Contracting
• and more!

Developed by practitioners, academics, and subject matter experts, the CITNE program offers insights into the theories driving relational contracting, and the most effective means of actually implementing the approach, enabling attendees to understand how to capture significant incremental value from relational contracting, while mitigating the risks, volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity associated with the new economy.

Who should take this course?

The CITNE program applies to many roles in the industry, including those who work as sourcing practitioners and service providers. It applies to category managers, supplier relationship managers, procurement managers, lawyers, risk managers, operations, finance, business development, and any person within the business who owns and manages business relationships (such as IT Directors, Marketing Managers, Lawyers, Risk Analysts, Engineers, Manufacturing Leaders, etc.).

If you manage supplier/customer relationships and want to learn more about how relational contracting can create long-term value and foster bilateral innovation, then this program is for you.

How is the course structured?

The CITNE Program is a multiple-week learning journey that takes approximately 3-6 hours per week to complete.

Each week, you will:

• complete weekly module assignments
• take quizzes after each lesson to assess your retention
• engage in a faculty-led asynchronous discussion forum with peers in your field across industries

This combination of elements creates a holistic learning experience for our students.

What can I expect after completing the course?

In addition to the knowledge, skills, and tools gained, those who have completed the CITNE program have loved the learning experience provided, and they are able to apply what they learned immediately. All graduates of the CITNE program are issued a digital badge and a certificate of completion to include on their CVs and LinkedIn profile.

Graduates of the CITNE program are invited to join the SIG University Alumni and Faculty private LinkedIn group to stay connected with peers and faculty.