Know what? When I first started in quality, THE FIRST thing we asked for and looked at was financials. If the organization was not financially sound, then why would I go further and put money into an on-site audit?
I thought it was lost art until now. I see it more and more. Alot of good it does to negotiate 2 cents less per part, then the supplier goes out of business. Then the supplier you took the business from went out of business because they lost your business, and then you are s%^&#- because you can't deliver to your client.
More and more of my clients are not only getting financials before they do business, but they do it annually as part of the re-evaluation of suppliers.
If I want you as a supplier, and I agree to a confidentiality agreement, and you still refuse access to these reports, then bye-bye business. I have to ask the same question asked? What have you got to hide?
I also agree. Living in GA, I have to question the competency of the driver (with a drivers license) that pull out in front of you in a 55 mph zone, and fails to accelerate. Likewise, while auditing (third party especially) is a sampling, I have to question the competency of the CB auditor on some certified companies when I see the same NC's over, and over, and over....
I thought it was lost art until now. I see it more and more. Alot of good it does to negotiate 2 cents less per part, then the supplier goes out of business. Then the supplier you took the business from went out of business because they lost your business, and then you are s%^&#- because you can't deliver to your client.
More and more of my clients are not only getting financials before they do business, but they do it annually as part of the re-evaluation of suppliers.
If I want you as a supplier, and I agree to a confidentiality agreement, and you still refuse access to these reports, then bye-bye business. I have to ask the same question asked? What have you got to hide?
I also agree. Living in GA, I have to question the competency of the driver (with a drivers license) that pull out in front of you in a 55 mph zone, and fails to accelerate. Likewise, while auditing (third party especially) is a sampling, I have to question the competency of the CB auditor on some certified companies when I see the same NC's over, and over, and over....
As I have written on a number of occasions here in the Cove, I had no compunction about firing a customer who tried to play such games.
My advice:
Any customer asking for information of any kind must be absolutely willing to divulge its own info - else he must not be a serious customer. I did have some customers who refused to divulge financial info, but I sold to them on a cash-in-advance basis, with a suitable discount, since I didn't have to finance materials, overhead, and labor. (We were unique enough that we could and did enforce our policies, walking away from hesitant prospects - not a customer UNTIL he pays!)