Tips For Reducing Pain In First 18 Months Of Relationship In Supply Chain Operations

By Author: Ramesh Manghirmalani
Total Articles: 2
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Sourcing clients generally report that the first year and a half of their outsourced services relationships are a painful time. There will always be startup issues to be addressed. But, assuming you have a strong transition plan in place, you can take a number of steps to ensure that you minimize the pain and maximize success during this complex period.

Consider these tips for managing your outsourced services startup:

Consider rebadging or seconding your top knowledge talent to your service provider. Most companies retain their top subject matter expert talent for fear of losing knowledge or control. This can result in the service provider team struggling through knowledge transfer; then the retained team is frustrated because the provider doesn't get it the way the retained people do. Failing to realize the benefit of rebadging could cause you to end up letting these valuable people go later - which doesn't serve the relationship, the services, your company or the affected employees.

Ensure you have enough of the right people in governance and relationship roles ─ early. Most companies retain ...
... enough subject matter experts to manage the services but often fail to retain enough in the governance function to manage the relationship. Managing a sourced service requires different skills than managing a retained service. Having too few people to catch when service delivery and relationship issues arise results in rampant frustration on both sides of the relationship.

Create and live by an issueSupply Management Process. Provide a clear, simple, and preferably automated way for your service delivery and governance teams and the service provider teams to document issues that need governance attention - and publish a promised response time. (This process often reveals understaffing of the governance function.) If teams have issues and nobody responds, there will be substandard results, frustration and disappointment. Ultimately no one will trust the process, and issues will go unknown and unresolved.

Actively study issues to determine root causes of Long Term Supply Chain Management issues:. Similar problem symptoms will emerge in various areas, especially in large engagements.The common underlying cause of these systemic problems should be addressed swiftly in the governance process. If each problem is taken in isolation, time and effort will be wasted in addressing it repeatedly at each occurrence, and the root problem will not be solved.

Create your governance structure early, and pattern your transition governance on it and focus on Supply Chain: Don't create an exceptional process for transition management. You may meet more often during this period, but it should be with the same teams and essentially the same agendas as for ongoing services - especially when services are being phased in.

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