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Should a Company Outsource its Vendor Management?

Vendor Management organizations are being asked to do more than ever before, including oversee new services, deal with troublesome suppliers/vendors and meet ever-increasing performance goals—all of this with little or no increase in funding. Overseeing many providers can present a significant challenge, especially when it comes to managing risks and compliance requirements.

Today’s CEO’s and CFO’s understand the importance of overseeing the vendor ecosystem, but lately they are paying attention to more than cost as they realize the critical role this function plays in the organization. Document management systems are uniquely positioned to act as a bridge that connects internal stakeholders, but it is still simply a tool.  Unless it is managed properly, and used as part of a VMS solution, it can be cumbersome.

Businesses have traditionally managed vendors themselves, as they feel it provides better control over vendors—allowing them to keep a hand in what is going on. However, more established enterprises are seeing the benefits of outsourced management, bringing in experts to manage the day-to-day oversight of their vendors. Vendor management specialists can help manage transactional activity, collect operational data and suggest opportunities for improvement.

By outsourcing management of vendors, businesses can improve service delivery, reduce costs, and allow internal resources to help develop richer relationships and higher strategic value.  Bringing in people with specific knowledge and expertise is a viable and practical option for many businesses. A successful vendor management partnership can help businesses elevate their vendor compliance and minimize risk.  It also provides access to experts with a current working knowledge of vendor management best practices, and avoids the risk of poor business decisions with flawed information. 

When a single individual is responsible for managing an internal vendor management system, knowledge of that system is often held by just that single person. When that person goes on vacation, takes time off for life events, or quits, the work is shuffled off to a backup who doesn’t necessarily know what to do. This can result in two problems:

1) The backup does it wrong. Tasked with vendor management, the backup will do their best, but if she/he doesn’t have the right skill set and history, costly mistakes can happen, like missing critical compliance checks.  This can create bigger problems down the road.

2)  She/He wastes a lot of people’s time asking questions. They spend time reinventing the wheel, asking questions and reviewing processes that the previous vendor manager had already put in place.  

Outsourcing vendor management creates stability, business continuity, and brings an expertise to a company that an employee with day to day management responsibilities may struggle to build.  It also means that losing an employee won’t mean losing systems, policies, and procedures.  The key is finding the right partner to work with.  When you do, you will see a significant return on your investment.

About Limitless Technology

Limitless Technology, LLC has been managing complex indirect spend and vendor documentation since 2006 for some of the largest companies in the USA saving them millions in costs.

Through our Billing Optimization and Vendor Management Solutions proprietary platforms we utilize technology, processes, expertise, time, and resources to improve our client’s bottom-line.

Limitless Technology manages your vendors, so you can manage and grow your business.

For Additional Information Contact us at:
Phone:             407.330.4466