In December I wrote about the value of "Strengthening Your Three Most Important Vendor Relationships." January is all about simplifying those vendor relationships to streamline processes, improve visibility and ge...

Year end is a time most organizations use to review vendors and look for new ways to streamline and mature their vendor management activities in the New Year. From contract audits to business reviews to vendor con...

Virtual payment solutions are an emerging trend in the B2B space. There’s continuing pressure on procurement and accounts payable to improve processes and “do more with less”. Virtual payments provide an avenu...

I’m sure you know the pricing benefits you can often get from vendor consolidation. When you spend more money with a single vendor it provides more leverage and, oftentimes, allows you to negotiate better pricin...

When it comes to the value of vendor relationships, Zappos gets it. 
 
Zappos’ CEO, Tony Hsieh,

has spoken frequently about Zappo’s approach to developing collaborative relationships with vendors and how import...

Performing a regular evaluation of your key vendors is no different than doing the same for your staff. Each plays a key role in your success, which is why it's so important to have a mechanism in place to align...

Outsourcing an important component of your business operations is a high risk activity. There are many things that can go wrong along the way, and there is no one-size-fits-all. However, a successful outsourcing...

Tough economies tend to drive a heightened focus on purchasing. I've never quite understood this logic. It seems to me that anyone with budget responsibility should always be thinking of ways to streamline purcha...

With 2015 underway, it’s a new year and (for many) a new budget cycle. If you have purchasing responsibility, that means you’ll likely be entering into a contract or two with a vendor this year. And while price i...