Is it really fair to evaluate your suppliers performance during a national crisis that has affected everybody….. on a daily basis….. in new and unexpected ways….. that might change the shape of commerce and business for the rest of time?
Of course it is. I’m not saying that you should be cruel and not make concession that their supply chains have been compromised just like yours have. I’m not saying you should be dropping the hammer with an official performance review and a list of the myriad misses and possible supply integrity issues you’ve experienced.
What I am saying is that you should look at the response and ability your providers have, or have not shown through this crisis. This will show you not only the weaknesses of you providers, and your reliance on them, especially in sole source situations, but it could also make relevant your own weaknesses in your evaluation and supply chain practices in the past.
Time for a revamp. Use any lessons learned here to crank up the efforts of your sourcing department and the requirements your company puts on providers, or doesn’t put on providers. Either way, this is a good point in the life of your business to say “I’m mad as hell, and I’m not going to take it anymore”, or “I’m mildly annoyed and I may do something about it”, or “I’m pretty indifferent about this and it’s not really my problem”. You get the idea.
Here are some things you can look into.
Response: Has this supplier been responsive to my needs, contracts, changes in needs?
Response Whys: Why did they respond that way, do they not have materials to fulfill? Can’t find transportation? Are they selling my supplies to someone else? Are they not willing to amend fulfillment Obligations?
Product Quality: Has the material changed? How many sources do they have for materials? Are they good sources?
Alternate Suppliers: Who else makes what you need? Can you use another material you haven’t yet considered? Can you get a different supplier to produce what you need?
Pricing: Did it stay stable? Are they trying to raise prices, or availability?
Your standard evaluation practice: is it adequate, does it have depth to it, or just skim the top? Are you looking at all of the factors that you are now, or are you just saying, your doing pretty good, lets go golfing?
Internally you can look at your sourcing and purchasing practices. Is your department proactive in finding more sources, and getting competitive pricing and lead times? Or are they just purchasing from the same providers and cutting po’s. What do they need to be doing? Do you have enough people in this department?
Whatever approach you take, and whatever situation you and your providers are experiencing. Remember, you are also a provider, and your customers are evaluating you and your abilities.