How do you develop and maintain long-term supplier partnerships?

1) Analyse your current supplier base (using tools such as supplier scorecards, audits, surveys, and feedback) to identify their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. 2) Measure and monitor supplier performance, quality, compliance, innovation- Know their capabilities, goals, values, and culture, and how they align with yours. 3) Segment your suppliers based on their strategic importance and potential risks. 4) Communicate your expectations and goals clearly by establishing a shared vision for the partnership. 5) Collaborate and co-create value with your suppliers, rather than just transact and negotiate. 6) Involve suppliers in your planning, decision making, and problem-solving processes by sharing information.

Assessing supplier performance and your need for its profession to secure the required service/supply is the starting point to think for a longer term relationship. One of the aims (if not the sole source) is to keep the minimum satisfactory level of performance and work together for improving opportunities. The key for that is to have stated KPI's and QPR meetings for monitoring and improving.

To cultivate enduring supplier partnerships, start by conducting a comprehensive assessment of your current suppliers to pinpoint their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Utilize tools like supplier scorecards, audits, surveys, and feedback sessions to gain insights. Develop contingency plans and establish alternative suppliers for resilience. Foster dynamic relationships by regularly evaluating and enhancing partnerships to align with market trends and customer needs. Measure performance metrics, seek feedback, and conduct periodic reviews to ensure mutual success. Engage suppliers in decision-making processes, share knowledge, and celebrate achievements to strengthen collaboration and trust.

Ao desenvolver parcerias de longo prazo com fornecedores, é essencial avaliar seus pontos fortes, fracos, oportunidades e amea?as. Ferramentas como scorecards de fornecedores, auditorias e pesquisas s?o úteis para medir desempenho, qualidade e conformidade. é importante entender as capacidades, objetivos, valores e cultura dos fornecedores e como eles se alinham aos seus. Essa avalia??o permite segmentar os fornecedores por importancia estratégica e risco, otimizando a aloca??o de recursos e esfor?os.

Communicating your expectations requires a clarity on your business' strategic priorities. The company's mission and vision are a good place to start. Often this is complemented by top line and bottom line goals that are then broken down into individual objectives for departments. Needless to say, business and Procurement alignment is a pre-requisite before the goals and success criteria can be shared with the supplier. There also needs to be complete trust in the supplier's culture and capability to absorb the information shared and utilize it for the mutual benefit of the relationship.

One key thing is to remember a supplier relationship is a partnership. Keeping respectful of each other's role can help to build consensus, negotiate and build trust. It's important to have some flexibility. Maintain a timeline but continue to return and adjust this to manage your risks and changepoints.

We call it STP situation, target, proposal. Must be done & aligned with key stakeholders. The most difficult piece is also to state what the supplier should gain from the relationship. So ideally we should involve the supplier in this conversation. SRM means benefits for both parties while I understand that SPM(supplier performance mgmt. we mostly focus on our own company and benefits)

Ideally SRM partners should start with a quick and simple relationship survey across the 2 companies. The current picture will help set the right ambition. An ambition is a bit more than strategic objectives as it fixed the long term outcomes jointly with core values to follow. Then you can create strategic objectives

La base de las relaciones es la capacidad de crear beneficios para todos los participantes. El co-desarrollo coo resultado de la colaboración es crítico para mantener viva una relación. Los roadmaps de desarrollo ayudan a mantener a las partes interesadas e invirtiendo recursos

ong-term supplier partnerships are built on mutual trust, respect, and cooperation. Collaborating with suppliers goes beyond mere transactions and negotiations; it involves co-creating value by involving them in decision-making processes, sharing information, knowledge, and best practices. By fostering strong relationships with suppliers, companies can benefit from continuous improvement, joint investments, and shared knowledge, leading to sustainable competitive advantages and increased profitability. Shared risk and reward in a collaborative partnership create an environment where both parties are invested in success, motivating them to overcome challenges together.

Look within your organization to see where other opportunities exist for your supplier. By helping to grow your suppliers support within the company means you can achieve economies of scale or maximize other efficiencies.

If you have already communicated your business priorities in previous steps, this step is about ensuring you and the supplier finds areas to co-invest. This means time, people and financial commitment from both sides. The buying org needs to ensure the right people are chosen and are available to guide supplier resources. The supplier may typically provide resources with zero or minimal upfront costs but with objectives linked to financial incentives. The best collaborative projects have business and supplier resources working together so closely its often hard to distinguish who's who.

n managing conflicts and risks within supplier partnerships, it is essential to adopt a proactive and constructive approach that focuses on problem-solving rather than blame. Establish clear communication channels to address issues promptly and openly, fostering transparency and trust. Implement risk mitigation strategies and contingency plans to minimize potential disruptions. Encourage open dialogue and collaboration to find mutually beneficial solutions. By viewing conflicts as opportunities for improvement and growth, companies can strengthen their relationships with suppliers, enhance resilience, and drive continuous innovation and value creation in the partnership

Everything happens in ordinary life.. Accidents, mis-understandings, catch the goal, can't catch the goal, mistakes, good things, bad things.. All are possible and actually it happens so, becuase that's life. But, all the time, key point should be, to have "long term business relationship" mindset by both parties. Happen is happen. Let the parts sit together and honestly talk, "what happened", "why happened". Then mutually agree , "how could not happen again". INTENTION and HONESTY are key points. Both parties should clearly explain "why's" to each other to be convinced and understood then agree on future. If one of them feel / understand / proof the opposite action / thinking or behaviour, then finish relationship as soon as possible.

Demonstrating appreciation is a core element of developing a long-term relationship. It’s usually quite apparent when a supplier’s performance is struggling. However, when operations are running smoothly and a supplier is performing well, it can sometimes be harder to notice. An important way to develop a long-term relationship with a supplier is by recognizing and demonstrating appreciation for the day-to-day successes. This shows the supplier that their great work is being noticed at a working level and that their daily actions are noticed (vs only noticing big actions). Another great way to demonstrate appreciation is by reflecting with your supplier on how their performance has improved over time and thanking them for their progress.

Los resultados tangibles son la mejor evidencia de que una relación funciona y debe mantenerse, pero debemos medir la compatibilidad cultural y también la alineación de las estrategias. No hay que tener miedo de suspender una relación cuando no es prioritaria, si se hace de forma correcta, en el futuro habrá oportunidades de retomarla.

To develop and maintain long-term supplier partnerships, focus on clear communication, mutual trust, regular performance reviews, and collaborative problem-solving. Building strong relationships and ensuring both parties' needs and expectations are met are key.