Are You Paying for Hidden Fees?

Hidden Fees are those nasty little charges on our bills that we rarely notice are there. But when we do notice them, we feel taken advantage of, lied to, and cheated.

We have come to expect them from our cell phone service, internet, and cable providers. We almost expect that that’s the price of doing business with these companies. But wouldn’t it be nice to see those fees up front? Then we would go into the contract with our eyes wide open.

When it comes to working with Contractor Management and Prequalification companies, you do not have to accept that behavior as status quo.

3 Big Concerns with the Auditing Process

The same problems with the auditing process continue to come up, regardless of the contractor management company. We want to let you know how CanQualify does things differently to build an environment of trust and respect that will save your bottom line.

1) FRUSTRATION

Audits drive up both direct and indirect costs for the clients, contractors, and their subcontractors.

Direct costs of the audit are usually redundant because in most cases, the questions being asked during the audit have already been covered in the pre-qualification phase. Indirect costs appear in the form of staff responding to the audit’s findings and chargebacks or rate increases to pay for the additional service.?

The Subcontractor can hire a third party to develop, write, and implement whatever programs the Client wishes. However, the problem is that they have to hire specialty companies who have joined the marketplace out of the need that the pre-qualification client companies have created!

In this real-life scenario, the Contractor often becomes disenchanted by the process and adopts a “just pass the audit” mindset.

2) COMPLACENCY

Some Contractors purchase pre-built, pass-the-audit programs just so they can win the contract.

They look good on paper, but the Client will never know if they have a bad safety record! Their safety audits could be nothing more than pencil-whipped, check-the-box exercises. Safety becomes an obstacle to negotiate rather than a culture to embrace.

Or worse, the Contractor writes into their own procedures exactly what the audit asks for with no intention of implementing them. This could lead to the Contractor creating two safety plans: one for field operations and one to pass the audit, which can be confusing, frustrating, and dangerous for the employees.

3) RESENTMENT

The pre-qualification companies already audit the Contractors and Subcontractors. Sometimes, these companies leverage additional audits as mark-up opportunities.

These additional audit programs have become token reviews by the third-party pre-qualification companies. These audits come with a steep price tag and repeat a pattern that allows for more money to be added to the annual subscription rate, with no added value to the Client or the Contractors.

Resentment towards the pre-qualification companies emerges for the additional work and cost this process leads to. Often, resentment towards the Client appears for collaborating with these pre-qualification companies leading to these extra steps of work.

And what’s keeping the Contractor from invoicing the Client for these additional audits as “hidden fees”?? Nothing.

CanQualify - A Better Way to Qualify and Manage Suppliers

Pre-qualification should be simple enough to establish a baseline for compliance to safety standards and regulatory compliance based on the Client’s needs.

Pre-qualification should also serve as an acceptance to the standards agreed upon. It is up to the Contractor to ensure they meet those standards.

Canqualify’s pre-qualification process?connects hiring clients with suppliers that have been pre-qualified based on your specific requirements. Our goal is to help you improve your safety culture, reduce costs, and strengthen your relationship with suppliers…?with no hidden fees.

We understand that complicated processes bring about a lot of frustration and that’s why our pre-qualification process is simple, straightforward, and easy to understand. We work with our clients to establish pre-qualification benchmarks based on the specific work they do, and not just a blanket collection of safety data from suppliers on work they don’t even know how to perform.

Our pricing is transparent because we don't have a one-size-fits-all approach. Instead, our pricing is fair, reasonable, and affordable, even smaller suppliers.

Frustration, complacency, and resentment have been fixtures in our community for far too long. When we work together with our clients to lower their overall costs, we cultivate a working relationship based on respect and honesty where everyone wins!