Supplier Relationship Management (SRM) is a strategic approach that aligns your suppliers with your organization’s goals which among other things are to drive value, innovation, and efficiency. Having an effective SRM requires a focus on operational excellence and long-term strategic partnerships.
If you have not set up SRM as a practice, you risk losing your competitive edge as your industry evolves and you lose key opportunities for innovation. Here’s why:
SRM advances your business by maximizing your supplier contributions beyond transactional exchanges. Your strategic suppliers, when properly managed, become partners in innovation, contributing to sustainable growth and resilience in your operations.
SRM fosters stronger, more transparent relationships with suppliers, leading to enhanced collaboration and better alignment with business goals.
Traditionally, SRM was seen as a function focused primarily on cost reduction, quality control, and service levels. It involved basic transactional relationships with suppliers, often driven by price negotiations and performance assessments through rudimentary scorecards. While we believe these elements are still important, a modern SRM has evolved to encompass much more.
Today, SRM is focused on building strategic partnerships that deliver mutual value beyond basic transactional interactions. Modern SRM emphasizes collaboration to support sustainability, innovation, and to mitigate risks. This shift transforms your suppliers from mere vendors into critical partners in your company’s growth and resilience strategies.
The above diagram emphasizes the evolution from traditional, reactive supplier management focused on transactional relationships to a modern, proactive Supplier Relationship Management (SRM).
We support organizations by helping them think critically about the key questions that drive the development of a successful Supplier Relationship Management (SRM) program. Here’s where you should start, by answering these questions first:
We address these questions first, as the path to help organizations build out robust SRM programs that foster long-term, strategic partnerships and drive continuous value.
We understand the intricacies of procurement and what factors drive meaningful value as we continue to help organizations design or improve and implement their SRM programs. Over the years SRM has evolved and we continue to keep abreast of the latest innovations that will improve existing partnerships while continuing to deliver greater value for our clients.
If you are taxed to take on this initiative because of limited time, resources or capabilities, we can work together to advance the progress and implementation of your custom SRM practice to meet your strategic goals and build solid dependable partnerships with the suppliers who understand and will drive the value you require to remain competitive.
