Supplier Manager – The Best Practice

Best Practices for IT Supplier Management

Duration
This three day course aimed at IT professionals responsible for managing external suppliers focuses upon industry standard approaches to managing all types of IT customer-supplier relationships.

Course Code
SMBP

Public Course Price
£ 850.00 plus VAT

Target Group
Managed Service Managers, Supplier Managers, Service Delivery Managers and IT Procurement staff

Pre Requisite
None

Course Benefits

• Understand and develop the effectiveness of the Supplier Management function
• Develop the framework for Supplier Management in your organisation
• Provide Supplier Managers with best practice skills and knowledge
• Equip the Supplier Managers with the core skills to manage Suppliers
• Provide guidance and frameworks on how to improve and measure
• Supplier Management.

Course Contents

Introduction to Supplier Management (SRM)
To ensure that the right level of commitment is shown, it is highly recommended that there is a focus on implementing a systematic approach to working with your suppliers, to increase the value and efficiency of working relationships and to derive increased competitive advantage from these relationships.

Background to Supplier Management
Cultural changes within Supplier Management, the main business issues: trends today; what is needed to thrive; the shift to business skills; intelligent customer role; retaining customers as their working practices change, buying patterns on the High Street, future customers, service and product expectations.

The Function of Supplier Management
We will examine the need for Supplier Managers and look at the background against which the job function came into being. Supplier Managers need to learn a new range of skills and techniques, which are all about the delivery of services from a customer perception. The prime function of the Supplier Manager is to ensure that expected benefits of supply are harvested. Formal presentation, evaluation and open debate on what has changed and is changing in the way SRM needs to be
delivered in today's market place.

The Role and Relationships of the Supplier Manager (The Intelligent Customer)

• An in-depth look at the role of the Supplier Manager: Who are my customers?
• What services do I provide?
• Do I understand those services? Do my customers?
• What boundaries are to be set? Should Supplier Managers hold responsibilities?
• Is the role full time or part time? Where and what service overlaps exist?
• What common services exist?
• How are they interpreted by the customers? How should shared service areas be treated?
• How do Supplier Managers relate to Service Delivery and Service Support?

Stakeholders and the Supplier Relationship Manager
How do we know who our stakeholders are? Who are the people with the real authority within a department? What happens when a key person leaves or moves departments? What are the buying cycles a department goes through?

Customer Classification and Positioning
Can a Supplier Manager identify where his/her customers' products are positioned within the organisation and mid to long term business plan? We will look at these issues and provide valuable marketing tools for the Supplier Manager to use when trying to answer these and many more questions.

The Partnership Development Stage - Supplier Maturity Model(s)
Service, like products, is a moving target. Supplier Managers will improve the relationship by initially understanding and investigating the lifecycle of a supplier. This vital session describes a 4 staged practical and objective assessment model of supplier effectiveness and maturity. The maturity assessment model may be used by Supplier Managers to identify gaps in the quality of actual supplier provision against the perceived quality of service, leading to Service Improvement Programmes.

The Choice, Types and Selection of Suppliers
With such a wide range of suppliers today, one of the crucial first steps is to understand what Supplier Managers are looking for in their suppliers, how best they can meet the requirement and further develop the relationship. We will describe how to find suppliers, how to compare traditional suppliers with existing suppliers. Risk analysis techniques, give guidelines on how suppliers differentiate, the advantages of short and long term relationships, how to create a BAFO shortlist, the costs of re-negotiation and the benefits, costs and problems of being a preferred supplier.

Key Supplier Relationship Management and Supplier Interfaces
In a relationship between a customer and supplier by far the key success factor will rest with the people involved. This session will discuss the roles and responsibilities; we will provide a checklist for reviewing current relationships, the Top 10 reasons for success, and how to enhance benefits to both sides.

Establishing the relationships with your Suppliers
These relationships need to be defined in a service, sales, support and ongoing marketing environment. We will also examine the keys to building long term, strong relationships at operational, strategic and tactical levels.

Measuring Your Supplier Performance - Past the winning post!
Simple customer satisfaction surveys are a pale predictor of performance and increasingly you, as the Supplier Manager, are demanding more from your suppliers. Stakeholders are not prepared to accept second rate performance. We will review how to ensure supplier effectiveness and compliance, and introduce techniques for measurement discussing a range of tools utilised in the field of Supplier Management to assess, review and develop the relationship.

The Procurement Cycle as part of a Project
How to initiate the project and define stages, tasks and deliverables required. Best practice methods and procedures to control quality progress and change. How best to use approaches such as PRINCE2 to help you achieve what you want. We will introduce best practice techniques and established Supplier Management frameworks.

Contract Management Best Practice - Tips and Hints
Every supplier organisation enters into agreements for the purchase and supply of services and most managers have some involvement in the negotiation. The structure of this session is to follow the logic of Contract Management best practice. We will describe the planning process, problems involved in contract management, people involved and what to look for to ensure successful contract management.


The Negotiation Stage and Handling and Resolving Dispute
From issue management through to dispute resolution, the distinguishing feature of contract negotiation or dispute is that the two sides are already in a relationship. Why does dispute occur? What stances do we take? Are we principled or do we take position? How do we compromise - or do we need to change the game? How will a SRM toolkit help? All these questions will be answered with a practical look at a practical Supplier/Purchaser dilemma, which will grab your attention!

Supplier Management Goal Setting and Measurement
Are you a novice or a penetrator? This session will determine the exact measurements and critical success factors for all Supplier Managers.

Final Session - Supplier Management Action Plan!
The development of an effective Supplier Management role requires ownership, control and a disciplined approach. A practical session where delegates are given the opportunity to reflect on lessons learnt during the course, prior to preparation of a formal presentation.

The deliverable will be to further develop the reward and recognition strategy utilising actions formulated from the three days.

NEXT RUNNING