Comments on: Procurement’s “Long Tail” – Supplier Programs http://stephensnexus.com/2006/04/07/procurements-long-tail-part-1/ Dave Stephens on technology and business trends Wed, 08 Dec 2010 23:20:54 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.com/ By: Procurement Central » Blog Archive » Supplier Onboarding Costs http://stephensnexus.com/2006/04/07/procurements-long-tail-part-1/#comment-60 Wed, 03 May 2006 05:30:40 +0000 https://procurement.wordpress.com/2006/04/07/procurements-long-tail-part-1/#comment-60 [...] I couldn’t come up with a quick answer on how to compute the cost of adding a new supplier to your supply base. And I’m pretty sure it can’t be condensed into a formula. But all the same, let’s explore the topic some. If you’ll remember I wrote previously about the strategic advantage a company could gain by increasing its supply base in key areas. Perhaps now I can touch on what tools are required to maximize supplier efficiency to make that vision practical. [...]

]]> By: Logistics and supply chain management http://stephensnexus.com/2006/04/07/procurements-long-tail-part-1/#comment-38 Mon, 17 Apr 2006 11:44:33 +0000 https://procurement.wordpress.com/2006/04/07/procurements-long-tail-part-1/#comment-38 Strategic supplier segmentation, a comparision of supplier relationship in US, Korea and Japan

What kind of relationship with supplier is best? Recently we have seen a lot of discussion about collaboration and supplier relationship. Here is a summary of recommendation from Professors from University of Pennsylvania and Seoul National Universi

]]> By: Senthil Nathan http://stephensnexus.com/2006/04/07/procurements-long-tail-part-1/#comment-37 Mon, 17 Apr 2006 11:42:46 +0000 https://procurement.wordpress.com/2006/04/07/procurements-long-tail-part-1/#comment-37 This is an interesting but non conventional view. Dell is known for its low R&D/Sales ratio. It rides on R&D spending by its competitors and suppliers. With SRM and contract management applications, buyers can bring down supplier management costs and afford to expand supplier base. I wish some one come up with a framework for deciding when to select a new niche supplier or expand the relationship with existing supplier.

This somewhat resembles the discussion on strategic supplier vs arms length supplier.

]]> By: Vendor Management » Blog Archive » Tying some vendor management threads together http://stephensnexus.com/2006/04/07/procurements-long-tail-part-1/#comment-34 Sat, 08 Apr 2006 12:25:52 +0000 https://procurement.wordpress.com/2006/04/07/procurements-long-tail-part-1/#comment-34 [...] Firstly, the Vendor Manager must establish clear aspirational goals for the supplier relationship. Once they have established the goals and tied remuneration to the goals, the environment is set for a flexible relationship that can change with the times. If the parties are focused on the aspirational goals, they are more likely to be flexible [1] [2] [3] and to demonstrate innovation. [...]

]]> By: AnonymousCoward http://stephensnexus.com/2006/04/07/procurements-long-tail-part-1/#comment-33 Sat, 08 Apr 2006 04:17:02 +0000 https://procurement.wordpress.com/2006/04/07/procurements-long-tail-part-1/#comment-33 I completely agree with Dave Stephens. Here is one more reason why I think the big companies need to look for new suppliers all the time. For the very same reason these big companies acquire smaller ones.

]]> By: Vendor Management » Blog Archive » Dave Stephens on supplier strategy http://stephensnexus.com/2006/04/07/procurements-long-tail-part-1/#comment-32 Sat, 08 Apr 2006 00:11:09 +0000 https://procurement.wordpress.com/2006/04/07/procurements-long-tail-part-1/#comment-32 [...] Dave Stephens has some great commentary on the role of the supplier in strategic execution. [...]

]]> By: Dave Stephens http://stephensnexus.com/2006/04/07/procurements-long-tail-part-1/#comment-30 Fri, 07 Apr 2006 23:12:56 +0000 https://procurement.wordpress.com/2006/04/07/procurements-long-tail-part-1/#comment-30 I’ve seen Cisco, Amazon.com, and a number of other firms cultivate new sources of supply precisely because they felt they could tap into their unique innovations. Could you do the same through partnership with long-standing suppliers (who are often larger companies)? Sure you can. But whether they’ll have the creativity (in product design, in business practices, etc) to move you forward is an open question.

]]> By: hudgeon http://stephensnexus.com/2006/04/07/procurements-long-tail-part-1/#comment-29 Fri, 07 Apr 2006 22:19:40 +0000 https://procurement.wordpress.com/2006/04/07/procurements-long-tail-part-1/#comment-29 Terrific post! Is the length of the tail the defining feature of the strategic advantage or is it the buyer’s ability to wag it (By “wag it” I am referring to a buyer’s ability to extract strategic innovation from their suppliers). Should companies prefer to gain competitive advantage from bringing new suppliers into their fold or should they prefer to work with existing suppliers to develop new, tailored offerings? I’d suggest their preference should be driven by a weighing of the risks inherent in bringing on a new supplier vs. the risk of moving with an existing supplier into a new offering. But it’s critical that it one or the other occurs.

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