Good communication is like black coffee
By Sam Jenks
Kodiak Community has been created to challenge status quo and existing modes of operating — as well as bringing you the latest news, trends and ideas — surrounding all things that are captured by Supplier Relationship Management (SRM).
Why?
“Good communication is just as stimulating as black coffee, and just as hard to sleep after”
-Anne Morrow Lindbergh
Frankly, I’ll need a few weeks to show you whether our blog will provide you with enough food for thought and, even then, it can’t be guaranteed the words will generate persuasion or action. I can, however, promise that I will be diligent in the quest; exploring innovative methods of doing well-established things a little bit differently. The plan is to provoke imaginative thought- pose questions, start discussions and display some facts about topics surrounding SRM. Some of the discussion topics will include;
What does it really entail to apply sustainable practices within the supply chain?
There are plenty of good B2C solutions & apps; they’re at our fingertips, but where are is the ‘wow factor’ B2B apps? And why not within strategic sourcing and supply management?
How can systematic supplier relationship management provide optimal customer value? And help you gain momentum in terms of innovations and product development?
If our businesses are making pushes towards environmental practices, shouldn’t you demand that your suppliers do too?
How do we get out of excel hell? How can sourcing benefit from Big Data, and how does it affect our landscape?
And hot button issues such as;
How can I be certain my labradoodle isn’t just a poodlador?
Just as SRM does between companies and their suppliers, Kodiak Community’s plan is to open a solid line of communication about a topic we find interesting, important and worthy of investigation.
Supplier Relationship Management, at its core, is a dense and deeply business-oriented topic. To summarize simply, “ ‘supplier relationship management’ refers to the practice and process for interacting with suppliers” (Cavinato). Now in all fairness, that description was prefaced with “to summarize simply”, because that is truly as simple as the definition gets. In all honesty, SRM is a dense topic.
Grasping the absolute enormity of what Supplier Relationship Management accomplishes in a business and for that business’s internal/external functionality is truly tall task. At its core, SRM is the handlings that happen between a company and their supplier/suppliers, but it sets a precedent for legal, financial, HR, PR, procurement, and sourcing initiatives. The relationship between buyer and supplier is one that has been well-recognized for years. It is a relationship that “… allows benefits to be achieved not only in quality, delivery, cost and productivity but also in technology, product development, and problem solving” (Jayaraman et al. 2016). However, the means to manage that relationship, creating shared value, capable of exponential growth for both parties in an efficient manner; well, that’s the million+ dollar question. Profitability, financial stability and innovation through SRM will, of course, be topics of discussion in later posts, as those fields are paramount to success.
As my mother instilled in me from a very young age; “If you want to build meaningful relationships with people, then you don’t kiss on the first date!” So, I bid a warm farewell, my incandescent reader base, accompanied by a virtual handshake.
Check-in again next week for the second edition of Kodiak Community.
