Lewis Cracknell

A thought I’m pondering:

A supplier can only perform as high as the level you treat them on the supplier ladder.

There will be outliers of course, but in my experience, this is the case.

The Ladder

• Thriving – On a journey together. Fully integrated. A shared vision. A true partnership. Meets regularly in-person or shares same work space.

• Engaged – A trusted service provider and consumer.Open and honest robust conversations. Meets regularly in-person. Engages proactively with each other.

• The Grey middle – No persons land. We have gripes about the supplier and the supplier has gripes about us – none of which have been shared by the way, or if they have, not in a collaborative manner. Perhaps meets in person in-frequently. There has been a revolving door of contacts on this account.

• Compliant – A transactional relationship. I say, you do. Perhaps has not and does not meet in person.

• Disengaged – Complete apathy. A relationship that is damaged and is on course to end.

TLDR:

• Your supplier can only perform as high as the level you treat them on the supplier ladder
• Are you in the grey zone? Do you struggle to quantify how your supplier is performing? If you are, chances are, you need to look at your own ladder – are you being clear with them on your expectations and what you truly need from the relationship?
• Don’t expect your supplier to out-perform the expectations you set upon them, when you don’t allow them to succeed.