Master Thesisat Volvo Group Purchasing – “Innovative Supplier Communications”

Please note:

-This assignment is a student thesis. In order for your application to be considered, you should currently be aUniversity student eligible to complete a Master thesis as part of your university program.

-Students can apply by themselves or in an already formed group.

-Below presented topics are to be defined based on existing information and suggestions by all involved parties

About us:

The Volvo Group Purchasing provides competitive advantages to the Volvo Group by selecting high performing suppliers, driving and managing the supplier relations, to deliver the best possible products and services that add business value.

The Purchasing business area consists of 1,300 employees located in 25 countries and 50 sites. We manage 2,588 suppliers in serial production that delivers 2 billion automotive parts to Group Truck plants per year. In total, including non-automotive/Indirect Products & Services (IPS), we control an annual spend of 125 billion SEK.

To achieve the Volvo Group’s mission and vision, together with our suppliers, we work towards Purchasing Excellence for Customer Success.

Description of thesis work

The landscape of communications ischanging. Traditional communication tools and content must betransformedintohigh speed, attractive and proactive solutions .In order for the Volvo Group to stay on the forefront of Purchasing Excellence, now and in the future, itiskey tomeet and exceed the demands of emerging and future communication channels,relevant tobothsuppliers and Volvo Group needs.

The thesisaims to identifysolutions for a communication platformwithinnovativeconcepts examplified by pragmatic pilottools, suitable to drive Purchasing excellence by meeting the realneeds of both Volvo Group and the suppliers.It shouldbeperformedwithstakeholderdeep insight, enabling real needs and driversand withproper, scientificanalysisforming the base for the communication platformproposals.

The thesisshouldinclude interviews withsuppliers to gain deepinsight on how they use ourcurrent data to plan theirstrategicwork and volumes, short and long term. A basic surveyisalreadydone, but more in-depthworkisneeded if VG shouldinvest in new communication tools. This shouldbefutherdefined, togetherwith the selectedstudents.

Suitable background

The ideal student(-s) will possess good communications skills in English, shows a high level of initiative, be self-driven, have good analytical capabilities and preferably have an interest in theautomotive industry and communication.

The successful candidate should have strong interpersonal and social skills and should be proactive, curious and have an innovative mindset.

The candidate should have a bachelor degree in Economics or Business and is now completing his/her Masters.

Thesis Level

Master thesis

Number of students

1 or 2 students.

Language

English

Tutor:
Olivia Sesevic,SVP Communications Volvo Group Purchasing
Phone number: +46 76 55 33 052
E-mail: