CPIM Study Guide 2026
Everything you need to pass the CPIM exam in one place: the exam format, every topic to study, real practice questions with explanations, flashcards, and full-length practice tests. Free, no sign-up needed.
📋 CPIM Exam Format at a Glance
📚 CPIM Topics to Study (75)
✍️ Sample CPIM Questions & Answers
1. In MRP, what is a 'planned order release' (POR)?
A planned order release is a system-generated recommendation that must be reviewed and approved by a planner before becoming a firm order.
2. Which inventory replenishment strategy is most appropriate for items with highly lumpy or sporadic demand?
Lot-for-lot orders exactly the quantity needed to meet net requirements each period, avoiding excess inventory for items with irregular demand.
3. What distinguishes a 'push' inventory replenishment system from a 'pull' system?
In push systems, inventory is produced or ordered based on forecasts and pushed to the next stage; pull systems replenish only in response to actual demand consumption.
4. Which technique helps reduce effective lead time by releasing overlapping operations to the shop floor simultaneously?
Operation overlapping starts a downstream operation before the upstream operation is fully complete, compressing the total elapsed time for the job.
5. A key performance indicator (KPI) for a responsive supply chain strategy is most likely to be:
A responsive supply chain strategy prioritizes reacting quickly and efficiently to customer demand. Order fulfillment lead time, which measures the time from order placement to delivery, is a direct measure of this responsiveness. While other metrics are important, they are more central to other strategies (e.g., total landed cost for an efficient chain).
6. Which of the following best describes the role of the demand review step in the S&OP process?
The demand review produces an unconstrained demand plan—reflecting market opportunity—which is then tested against supply capability in subsequent S&OP steps.