Relationship and engagement

The provision of policy, internal standards and advice on the procurement or commissioning of externally supplied and internally developed products and services. The provision of commercial governance, conformance to legislation and assurance of information security. The implementation of compliant procurement processes, taking full account of the issues and imperatives of both the commissioning and supplier sides. The identification and management of suppliers to ensure successful delivery of products and services required by the business.

The alignment of an organisation’s supplier performance objectives and activities with sourcing strategies and plans, balancing costs, efficiencies and service quality. The establishment of working relationships based on collaboration, trust, and open communication in order to encourage co-innovation and service improvement with suppliers. The proactive engagement of suppliers for mutual benefit to resolve operational incidents, problems, poor performance and other sources of conflict. The use of clear escalation paths for discussing and resolving issues. The management of performance and risks across multiple suppliers (internal and external) using a set of agreed metrics.