Supplier Management outsourcing - Business idea

[Mealiff82]

I'm current working on setting up a cloud based company that manages suppliers on a companies behalf. I will retain a list of vendors and create a vendor file which will contain documents such as: Vendor questionnaire, ISO certification, competence statements, Notified body audit results, Change control procedure ect. As companies hopefully come on board, the list of vendor will grow creating a catalog of vendor, so if a company is looking for a new vendor they can review the quality history and use the info available to approve that supplier.

I previously work as a Supplier Quality Eng and a lot of time and resources were focused of supplier selection, approval and continuous assessment.
As far as i can tell most companies are doing variations of the same thing when it comes to supplier management so why not create one central location for this info.

The site will also be beneficial to the supplier, while also encouraging Supplier Transparency, and hopefully be rewarded with more business as a result.

Would really appreciate your thoughts and opinions.

 

[Jen Kirley]

I'm current working on setting up a cloud based company that manages suppliers on a companies behalf. I will retain a list of vendors and create a vendor file which will contain documents such as: Vendor questionnaire, ISO certification, competence statements, Notified body audit results, Change control procedure ect. As companies hopefully come on board, the list of vendor will grow creating a catalog of vendor, so if a company is looking for a new vendor they can review the quality history and use the info available to approve that supplier.

I previously work as a Supplier Quality Eng and a lot of time and resources were focused of supplier selection, approval and continuous assessment.
As far as i can tell most companies are doing variations of the same thing when it comes to supplier management so why not create one central location for this info.

The site will also be beneficial to the supplier, while also encouraging Supplier Transparency, and hopefully be rewarded with more business as a result.

Would really appreciate your thoughts and opinions.

That sounds like a worthwhile service. Will you include safety and environmental contractor services? All standards say the organization shall ensure persons working on their behalf are competent, but many groups struggle with an organized way to ensure their contracted service providers are certified.

I am referring to each member doing the work holding providing evidence ranging from current forklift driving certs, to HVAC Technician certs (now required by the EPA for working on refrigerant systems with more than 50 pounds of coolant), to Level II NDT certs for performing vessel inspections in Process Safety Management systems, to NFPA 70E for high voltage electricians... the list goes on and on. Very seldom are my clients ready to demonstrate they have ensured their contractors possess current evidence of their competency.

 

[John Broomfield]

Would it automatically shortlist vendors against a set of selection criteria?

Post-contract, how would your app “manage” vendors?

From what you say it’s a vendor selection app, not a vendor management app.

 

[Mealiff82]

That sounds like a worthwhile service. Will you include safety and environmental contractor services? All standards say the organization shall ensure persons working on their behalf are competent, but many groups struggle with an organized way to ensure their contracted service providers are certified.

I am referring to each member doing the work holding providing evidence ranging from current forklift driving certs, to HVAC Technician certs (now required by the EPA for working on refrigerant systems with more than 50 pounds of coolant), to Level II NDT certs for performing vessel inspections in Process Safety Management systems, to NFPA 70E for high voltage electricians... the list goes on and on. Very seldom are my clients ready to demonstrate they have ensured their contractors possess current evidence of their competency.

I am initially focusing on suppliers who impact the quality of the product and trailer the questionnaires and documentation to satisfy the requirement of supplier management within ISO 13485 and 9001. But this is an avenue i didn't think of, i would need to trailer the request from the suppliers based on the service being provided.

The idea is the same no matter what the industry, the site will be a one stop shops to show compliance to a standard or requirement.

Appreciate your feedback Jen.

 

[Mealiff82]

Would it automatically shortlist vendors against a set of selection criteria?

Post-contract, how would your app “manage” vendors?

From what you say it’s a vendor selection app, not a vendor management app.

Excellent questions john and issues i'm trying to address.

Question 1: Yes the suppliers will be categories by commodities, the suppliers who have supplied most info will be top of the list. Other criteria will be available: ISO certified,location ECT.

Question 2: Post-contract the info supplied by the suppliers will be kept updated (New ISO cert, updated audit report, update questionnaire, current change control requirements)(I was thinking 3 year reviews based on iso audit cycles)

Question 3: I'm hoping it will be both ( A company gives me a contract to manage there suppliers, the info will be gathered and place on the site. If another company gives us a contract they will have visibility on the first companies supplier info and vise versa. Each company can just filter for there own suppliers list. No info gather will be company specific. Its an opportunity for the supplier to document there process and capabilities)

Would appreciate your opinion on my response John, these are the type of questions i was hoping for.

 

[michaelcwang2]

Excellent questions john and issues i'm trying to address.

Question 1: Yes the suppliers will be categories by commodities, the suppliers who have supplied most info will be top of the list. Other criteria will be available: ISO certified,location ECT.

Question 2: Post-contract the info supplied by the suppliers will be kept updated (New ISO cert, updated audit report, update questionnaire, current change control requirements)(I was thinking 3 year reviews based on iso audit cycles)

Question 3: I'm hoping it will be both ( A company gives me a contract to manage there suppliers, the info will be gathered and place on the site. If another company gives us a contract they will have visibility on the first companies supplier info and vise versa. Each company can just filter for there own suppliers list. No info gather will be company specific. Its an opportunity for the supplier to document there process and capabilities)

Would appreciate your opinion on my response John, these are the type of questions i was hoping for.

It will not be a new idea but surely an interesting business model.

Vendor selection is not purely on supplier quality but many other things needs to be consider, it's part of your sourcing strategy like how's your annual purchasing amount, your bargaining position, your future technique roadmap and logistic consideration. You can have a supplier list and some service provider like Sourcify: Product Sourcing Simplified

For vendor management, it builds on accountability and trustworthy relationship so simply being managed by numbers without concern of moral hazard is the key to success. Some company like SQA Services, Inc. hires talent globally for certain industry segment which needs professional quality.

I also have similar interest so I believe that's a topic which we can exchange and explore more.

 

[Kiran Walimbe]

Those organizations currently supplying to the German Automotive industry, need to select and manage their vendors as directed by the VDA 6.3 standard. The model proposed by you may not comply with the requirements; especially of Process element P5.

 

[Mealiff82]

Those organizations currently supplying to the German Automotive industry, need to select and manage their vendors as directed by the VDA 6.3 standard. The model proposed by you may not comply with the requirements; especially of Process element P5.

Initially my focus will be on medical device companies and possibly moving into Pharma at a later stage. I'd have zero experience in the Automotive industry and its associated requirements, but thank you for your comment.

 

[Mealiff82]

It will not be a new idea but surely an interesting business model.

Vendor selection is not purely on supplier quality but many other things needs to be consider, it's part of your sourcing strategy like how's your annual purchasing amount, your bargaining position, your future technique roadmap and logistic consideration. You can have a supplier list and some service provider like

For vendor management, it builds on accountability and trustworthy relationship so simply being managed by numbers without concern of moral hazard is the key to success. Some company like SQA Services, Inc. hires talent globally for certain industry segment which needs professional quality.

I also have similar interest so I believe that's a topic which we can exchange and explore more.

Hi Michael, the initial goal of the company is to manage companies approved vendor list, as more companies hopefully come on board each company can see each other’s approved vendors, this is secondary but will be beneficial to manufacturers.
If a company is looking for a packaging company for example they can search by that particular commodity code and select 2 or 3 potential suppliers to evaluate further. The system will be an aid in vendor selection, and give manufacturers an overview of a suppliers (Quality system, capabilities, audit history). It can take months to get a list of potential suppliers and gather this info.


Other criteria will need to be considered before approving a vendor but the site will be a starting point.