Fhyzics brought out this series of articles on supply chain terminologies to help the supply chain aspirants better prepare for supply chain and procurement job interviews. Each article will contain a set of terminologies in one of the supply chain or procurement sub-domains and are equally applicable to all industries.

Fhyzics Business Consultants Pvt. Ltd. – a boutique business consulting firm specialising in supply chain management, procurement, business analysis and new product development. Fhyzics offers consulting, certifications, and civil services training and conducts conferences. Fhyzics represents the Association of Supply Chain Management (ASCM/APICS), USA; Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (CIPS), UK; EEP of International Institute of Business Analysis, IIBA, Canada; REP of International Requirements Engineering Board, IREB, Germany; Indian Affiliate of Product Development and Management Association, PDMA, USA.

Top Supply Chain and Procurement Terminologies

Abbreviation
ABC classifications
Acceptance criteria
Acceptance sampling
Accreditation
Accruals
Activity based costing
Ad-hou purchase
Adaptive
Aerosol
Algorithm
Allocated overhead
An individual with capacity
Approved supplier list
Arm,s length trading relationship
AS
Assets
Audit
Audit trail
Back order
Balanced scorecard
Bar code
Barrier to entry
Base price
Batch quantity
Benchmarking
Bespoke
Best value
Bid
Bidder
Bilateral trade agreements
Bill of lading
Bill of materials
Biodiversity
Biomass
Biophysical
Blanket order
Blockchain technology
Board meeting
Bottleneck
Bottom line
Bounce back
Brand
Brek even
Budget
Buffer stock
Business critical
Business to business
Business to customer
Business case
Business cycle
Buyer view
Buying
Buy in
CA
CAD
Call off schedule
Capital
Capital costs
Capital purchase
Carbon disclosure project
Cartel
Cashable savings
Cash flow statement
Cash flow
Catalogue
Category
Category aware
Certificate of origin
Channel
Chemical process
Chief executing officer
Chief procurement officer
Climate proofing
Closed system
C02
Cooperative
Cohesiveness
Collaborative
Collusion
Combustion
Commercial
Competitive advantage
Conflict
Conflict of interest
Conformance
Conglomerate
Consignment
Consignment note
Consignment stock
Consolidated deliveries
Consumer
Consumerism
Continuing professional development
Continous improvement
Contract
Contract clause
Contract compliance
Contract management
Contract period/contract term
Control chart
Control measure
Copywrite
Core competencies
Corporate governance
Corporate social responsibility
Cost centre
Cost driver
Cost of goods sold
Costs
Counter offer
Credit limit
Credit note
Credit rating
Cross docking
Cross functional teams
Culture
Customer
Customer relationship management
Customs
Decarbonisation
Decommission
Degrowth
Demand
Demand curve
Demographics
Dependent demand stock
Depreciation
Depreciation charge
Depreciation of assets
Design specifications
Devolve
Direct call off
Direct cost
Direct labour costs
Direct material cost
Direct supplies
Disclosure of gifts
Discretionary spending
Diseconomy of scale
Disssolved
Distribution
Distribution channel
Dividend
Domestic
Downstream environmental factors
Downtime
Dual sourcing
Due diligence
E-commerce
E-sourcing
Early adopters
Eco management and audit scheme
Early adopters
Eco management and audit scheme
Economic growth
Economic separator
Economic order quantity
Economy
Economy of scale
Electronic data interchange
Embedded carbon
Embezzlement
Emerging market
Enforceable by law
Enterprise resource planning
Environmental protection agency
Equilibrium protection agency
Equilibrium point
Equity
Epoxy floor paint
Ergonomics
Escalation process
Escrow agreement
Ethics
Evaluation criteria
Exchange rate
Executing contracts
Expediting
Expeditor
Expenditure
Expenses
Exposure
Express terms
External stakeholders
Fast moving consumer goods
Feedback
Fill rate
Financial regulations
Financial return
Financial year
Finished goods
First article inspection
First in first out
First party audit
Fit for purpose
Fixed asset
Fixed cost
Flat structure
Force majeure
Forecasting
Franchise
Fraud
Free trade area
Friction
Fugitive dust
Full container load
Fully operational
Game theory
Gannt chart
Gated process
GHG emissions inventory
Go live
Goods in
Gross amount
Gross domestic product
Gross national product
Habitat
Hard skills
Hardware
Hedge
Hierarchy
High bay racking
High bay warehousing
Home page
Horizon scanning
Hurricane intensity
Implied terms
Impartial
Imperfect competition
In house
Inclusive price
Incorporated company
INCO terms
Independent demand stock
Index
Indirect cost/ indirect spend
Indirect supplies
Inducement
Induction
Inflated
Input
Insolvent
Institute of chartered accounts of Scotland
Intangible
Intangible cost
Integrated report
Intense report
Intense precipitation
Interest rate
Intermodal
Internal rate of return
Internal stakeholders
International integrated reporting council
Interpersonal skills
In the public domain
Inventory
Inventory management
Invitation to tender
Invoices
ISO
ISO 9000
ISO 9001
ISO 14001
ISO 26000
IT network
Johari window
Joint contracts tribunal
Just in time
Kaizen
Kanban
Key customer segments
Key performance indicator
Kyoto protocol
Laggards
Landed cost
Landfill
Last in first out
Law of demand
Law of supply
Low cost country, low cost country sourcing
Lead time
Lean
Lean manufacturing
Learning curve
Ledger
Less than container load
Less than truck load
Letter of credit
Liabilities
Liable
Life cycle assessment
Life cycle cost
Life cycle plan
Lifetime cost
Linear pricing
Liquidated damages
Liquidation
Logistics
Long tail spend
Loss lender
Macro environment
Make to stock
Make or buy manual handling
Manufacturing response planning
Market
Market analysis
Market factors
Market knowledge
Market price
Market saturation
Market segment
Master production schedule
Material asset
Material requirement planning
Materials management
Maverick spend/ off-contract spend
Mean
Method statement
Micro environment
Micro small medium enterprises
Middle majority
Milestone
Mini competition
Minimum order quantity
Minutes
Mission statement
Mitigation function
Mixed loads
Mobalisation
Modern day slavery
Monopoly
Monopsony
Moonlighting
Movements
Multilateral trade agreement
Multilingual
Multinationals
Net amount
New engineering contract
Non cashable savings
Non governmental organisations
Non linear pricing
Non verbal communications
Objective
Obligations
Obsolescene
Obsolescent stock
Occupational health & safety agency
Off the shelf
Offer
Officers
OJEU
Oligopoly
Open book contract
Open account
Opening stock
Operating costs
Operating environment
Opportunity cost
Ordering system
Organisation
Organisational culture
Original equipment manufacturer
Oscillating
Outcome focused specifications
Output
Outsource
Over specd
Overdraft
Packaging
Packing list
Packing
Pallet
Palletisation
Participative
Partnership
Patented
Patent
Payment terms
Perfect competition
Performance
Performance measure
Performance specification
Peri-urban
Personal improvement plan (PIP)
Petty cash
Photovoltaic
Picking
Piece part price
Pitch
Plagiarism
Positive-sum game
Poverty line
Personal protective equipment (PPE)
Pre-qualification questionnaire (PQQ)
Pre-qualify
Preferred supplier list
Price –penetration strategy
Price-skimming strategy
Price elasticity
Price on application (POA)
Price volatility
Pricing model
Pricing schedule appendix
Primary packaging
Primary sector
Private limited company (Pic)
Private sector
Proactive
Probity
Process mapping
Procurement
Procurement platform
Procurement specification
Product label
Product life cycle
Profitability
Profit
Proforma invoice
Promotional mix
Propulsion system
Prospective suppliers
Prototype
Public limited company
Public procurement
Public sector organisation
Purchase order (PO)
Purchasing
Qualified bid
Qualitative
Qualitative research
Quality assurance
Quality control
Quality management system (QMS)
Quantitative
Quantitative research
Quota
Radio frequency identification (RFID) tag
Rationalisation
Re-engineering
Reactive
Read receipt
Rebate
Reciprocal
Recruitment
Redundant stock
Regression analysis
Regulatory framework
Remedies
Remittance advice
Re-procurement
Request for information (RFI)
Request for quotation (RFQ)
Request for tender (RFT)
Requisition
Residual waste
Return on investment (ROI)
Revenue
Risk assessment
Risk register
Road safety impact assessment (RSIA)
Roll-over contract
Roller-stacker shelf mechanism
Safety stock
Sales and operations planning (S&OP)
Sales tax
Samples
Scalability
Scanner
Schedule of rates
Schematic
Scorecards
Search engine
Secondary sector
Self-assessment tool
Sensitive receptors
Service credits
Service level agreement (SLA)
Service sector
Shares
Shift
Shipping address
Shop floor
Signed off
Silo thinking
Single administrative document (SAD)
Slotting (or profiling)
Small-and medium-sized enterprise (SME)
SMART
Social Sustainability
Soft skills
Software
Sole trader
Specification
Spend analytics
Spot buying
Staged pricing
Stagged pricing
Staggered deli
Stakeholder
Standard deviation
Standing orders
Statutory
Stewardship
Stock
Stockholder
Stock keeping unit (SKU)
Stockout
Stocktake
Strategic business decisions
Strategic core
Strategic plan
Strategic procurement
Strategic
Subjective
Substitutes
Subtract or outsource
Supplier inspection
Supplier ranking
Supplier relationship management (SRM)
Supplier relationship manager (SRM)
Supply
Supply chain
Supply organisation
Sustainability
Sustainability development goals (SDG)
Sustainably
Synchronisation
System-generated reference Number
Systemic
Tall Structure
Tangible
Target audience
Tariff
Technical (or conformance) specification
Technology chasm
Telematics
Tender
Term contracts
Tertiary sector
Testimonial
Testimonial
The carbon trusts
The greenhouse gas protocol (GHG Protocol) Corporate standard
Third-party audit
Third-party logistics (3PL)
Third-sector organisations (TSOs)
Threshold
Tooling
Total cost approach
Total cost of ownership (TCO)
Total costs
Total quality management (TQM)
Trade body
Traffic
Transcendental
Transformational step change
Transparency
Turnover
Unambiguous
Unincorporated company
Union
Unit load
Up-skill
Upstream environmental factors
Value added tax (VAT)
Value propositions
Variable costs
Variant bid
Vendor-managed inventory
Venture capitalists
Verbal communications
Vertical integration
Violation
Vision statement
Waiting time slotting
Warehouse slotting
Warranty
Water purification
Waybill (or airway bill)
Wearing parts
Whistle-blower
Wire transfer
Word-of-mouth
Working capital
Working in progress inventory
Zero-sum game

The fifty questions presented above will help the following supply chain job interviews. Demand Planner; Production Planner; Supply Planner; Supply Chain Analyst; Supply Chain Head; Inventory Controller; Materials Planner; VP Supply Chain; Warehouse Executive; Warehouse Manager; Inventory Analyst; Master Planner; Master Scheduler; Materials Manager; Category Manager; Commodity Manager; Procurement Specialist; Purchasing Manager; Sourcing Manager; Operations Manager; Operations Director; Production Manager; Production Scheduler; Logistics Coordinator; Logistics Manager; Transportation Analyst; Inventory Manager; Director of Supply Chain; Consultant; Buyer Planner; Logistics Resource Planner; Load Planner; Quality Manager; Production Supervisor; Production Operative; Strategic Sourcing Manager; Purchasing and Inventory Clerk; Logistics Administrator; Reverse Logistics Manager; Transport Administrator; Supply Chain Solution Design Analyst; Warehouse Clerk; Production Clerk; Production Technician; Inventory Associate; Export Manager; Capacity Manager; Manufacturing Manager; Plant Manager; VP of Operations; VP of Manufacturing; Supply Clerk; Replenishment Manager; Director of Procurement; Purchasing Agent; Vendor Manager; Fulfillment Associate; Route Manager; Import Manager; Distribution Manager; Director of Transportation; Operations Assistant; Quality Technician; Business Process Analyst; Quality Assurance Engineer; Continuous Improvement Manager; Planning Engineer; Lean, Six Sigma Specialist; SAP Consultant; Import Export Executive; Supply Network Specialist; Material Availability Analyst; Team Manager SCM; SCM Trainer; Sr. Specialist Supply Chain Logistics Management; Sustainable Supply Chain Specialist; Supply Chain Planner; Manager Supply Chain Management Analytics; Procurement Lead; Manager Store; Procurement Professional; Logistics Specialist; Global Delivery Manager; Sourcing Support Specialist; Category Head; Regional Logistics Incharge; Dispatch Incharge; Digital Transformation Leader for Supply Chain; Field Delivery Executive; Indirect Procurement Officer; DC Manager; Regional Procurement Lead; Yard Supervisor; Principal Buyer; Procurement HR; Fleet Coordinator; Supplier Developer; Vendor Consultant; Transportation Analyst; Manager Hub Operations; Supply Chain Planning System Manager;