A third (34%) of firms do not know how their suppliers are performing, according to a survey.
Three quarters (73%) of respondents to the poll, by software company MarketDojo, cited a lack of evaluation for the situation. Lack of time (37%), lack of software (24%) and not feeling the need to do so (18%) were the main reasons for not evaluating suppliers.
The survey, of more than 450 UK-based procurement professionals, also found understaffing (13%) and people forgetting (7%) were reasons.
Just one in four (25%) respondents had a digital procurement strategy in place, while 43% were “in the process of putting one together”. The remaining 32% had no current plans to put one in place.
Of those who had chosen not to evaluate supplier performance, a third (33%) thought this negatively affected their strategy. When asked in what way, most (45%) cited “disrupted or negative vendor relations”, followed by “cost effectiveness” (38%).
Half (51%) of participants said they had complained to suppliers, with “transparency or lack of communication” topping the list of bugbears (32%).
Alun Rafique, co-founder and CEO of MarketDojo, said: “As technology continues to advance at a rapid pace, those working in procurement have to do the same to keep up. Every single one of us should have a digital strategy in place and it’s worrying to hear that so many aren’t embracing the change in pace.
“As well as going digital, suppliers are a vital part of the procurement process and if their performance is slipping, then so can that of your business.”
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