Supplier Selection and Assessment

Supplier Selection and Assessment

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Outsourcing has become an important factor in a company since competition between firms has increased and hence it leaves companies to focus on their core competencies. Outsourcing is important since it will significantly reduce the costs associated with creation of a department that will handle a particular business operation. As far as competition is concerned, a company should be willing to critically analyze the weaknesses of the enterprise so that it can look into areas that bring profitability down. Sectors that bring the company down will have to be outsourced to the company which will leave the company to explore on the core competencies. Companies rely on suppliers due to their technological advancement and capabilities in performing their operations. Therefore, the impact of the supplier assessment and selection on the purchaser is increased due to the reliance which then affects the performance of the supplier. Companies who have outsourced their business purchases to their suppliers depend on them, and therefore they are the most critical part of the enterprise. Several scholars have discussed the evidence required in assessing the criteria used when performing the selection and assessment of the suppliers. However, those scholars did not discuss the relationship between the supplier assessment process and their performance. Selection and evaluation of suppliers are important since it will ensure that the firm’ supply capabilities are explored for one to find out which supplier can be used.

The paper has discussed the attitudes of companies on the selection and assessment of suppliers. Also, the study has discussed the impact of the attitudes of the selection criteria and assessment on their performance.

 Scholars argued that different companies have attitudes during the supplier selection and assessment due to factors such as cost and accessibility.

The selection criteria used in this case considers several factors that include the cultural and geographical fit, suppliers size, and many others. Also, some factors are considered to be significant and include ethical standards of the suppliers, financial capability, insurance, and openness of the suppliers when making the contracts. The article has discussed the criteria to be used in the assessment in both the USA and Europe. Criteria used in the quality level, service level, and on-time delivery, and correct quantity, price/cost of the product, communication skills and flexibility to unexpected demand changes. The factors that are highlighted in the paper will be analyzed using both the multivariate analysis and correlation analysis. The two methods of analysis are necessary since the factors in assessment will be explored in detail.