The Inovis Blog

On CNN.com the other day, there was a great story called, “Christmas card arrives 93 years late.” Some people would look at this story and say, “Better late than never.” Well, sure, but better late than never doesn’t work if it’s data that I need in order to run my business. So often when I’m talking to customers, the challenge isn’t just that things get there late, it’s that when something turns up missing, you don’t know about it until it’s a problem. This is where we’ve been going with some of our Supply Chain Visibility applications.

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Image taken from www.nninet.com

 Tami Morrison-Ruben just recently submitted this piece to me about Vendor Management:

Dealing with vendors can be tricky at times, and it’s important to establish some rules or agreements to assure that the right level of expectation has been set and will be met. We had a few hundred vendors that we were using a few years ago, and through trial and error, we’ve come up with criteria that we provide to our vendors when conducting business with them. We are currently in the process of streamlining and consolidating our vendor relations. Here are some of our guiding principles that may help you figure out your level of agreement with outside vendors.

When a vendor comes in with their product, the product fits your needs, you decide you’d like to purchase this product, and you feel this relationship may be a good fit; it’s time to communicate expectations. I suggest providing your vendor with a list of requirements that say, “This is what we expect from you.” Here are some examples of what we communicate to our vendors.

Be Your Word- If you’re going to say you’re going to do something for us, then do it. Perform the activities dependably, accurately, and in the time that you say you’re going to do it. Also, provide your service in a quality manner.

Honesty is the Best Policy- Let us know the status of things. I don’t even care so much if they’re bad, just let us know! Especially when we want to know about equipment delivery, circuit delivery, or network issues. The worst thing is not to know. Also make sure that you’re communicating clearly. You may inform us, but it may be at a level that we may not understand.

Character is Key- Not only do we want you to communicate in a dependable and truthful manner, we need to be able to trust you. Are the people that work for you reliable, consistent, and accountable? Accountability is a big one for us. We need a vendor that we can trust and that we know will treat us with respect and courtesy.

Partner Protection- Being that we’re a technology company, security is a big issue for us—especially in this day in age. We are not only looking for protection of our company, but protection of our company’s reputation as well. Are you credible? This is huge for us. If you’re not credible as a vendor, we don’t want to do business with you at all.