Supplier Relationship Musings...

I had the chance to have a drink with the president of Next Level Purchasing's IT vendor last night. We have an excellent working relationship.

He remarked how much of a pleasure it is to work with me and how pleasantly I communicate with him. I may have shocked him by stating that not every supplier I've dealt with will share that view.

I told him that I communicate as a partner because his company simply does a good job. When they do something and tell us it's done, it's really done! We don't have to QA it for them and tell them to come back to fix this and that. They are committed to getting the job done right the first time.

Now other suppliers whose work is fraught with errors may not find me so cordial!

But, fortunately, I've gotten pretty good at supplier selection throughout my purchasing career, so I really don't have many problem suppliers any more.

So suppliers, take note: If your purchasing counterparts are less than cordial with you, maybe it's not because they are unseasoned purchasing professionals who don't know how to have productive supplier relationships. Maybe it's because you're just not good!

Think about it...

Respectfully,
Charles Dominick, SPSM
President
Next Level Purchasing, Inc.
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