Whether your company has hundreds of suppliers or you’re currently looking to add new ones to your supply chain, it’s critical for your bottom line to ensure you have a reliable source to receive goods on-time, on-quality, and on-cost. As every supply chain is unique in its respective needs, not all suppliers will be a fit to deliver what they’ve promised. So how do you figure out who can?
Supplier audits are a critical verification process to ensure your suppliers can produce exactly what you have contracted them to deliver, within your schedule and budget. Audit results can also tell you which of your suppliers are over performing and which are repeatedly falling behind, so you can take appropriate action to reward or correct issues as needed.
At Anvyl, we believe supplier audits are a key consideration to gaining a more complete picture of your supply chain’s strengths and vulnerabilities. In our latest white paper, we outline key strategies for conducting supplier audits, tips for engaging suppliers during the process, best practices for auditing design, and of course, how to measure the results.
This white paper includes the following topics and more…
Engaging Your Suppliers in an Audit
Audits are not a one-way street where you are simply grading your suppliers’ performance and proving them results. A good audit will encourage the supplier to self-assess themselves and their capabilities to acknowledge where they are succeeding or failing. By comparing how a supplier views their performance with your own observations, both sides are more likely to glean a clearer picture of how to better work together.
Design the Audit Based on Your Needs
Every supplier audit does not need to be the same. For new suppliers (like the ones found in the Anvyl Sourcing Hub) you’ll likely want a more complete inspection, while audits of long-term partners may only need to look at changes since the last audit was completed. Begin with the end result in mind and define what you’re looking to help ensure you’re collecting the information that matters.
Know How to Measure Results
Some audit categories can be pass or fail, like safety, child labor, etc., while others may be measured subjectively on tiers of success, like a 1 to 5 rating. No matter how scoring will take place, it’s critical that both parties understand the criteria so there is no gray area when discussing needed improvements.
Conducting supplier audits is simply good business practice to understand where improvements and optimizations can begin. Learn how to conduct a supplier audit and why it matters…
