Solutions Current Issues > July.Aug.Sept_2008 > COVER STORY
Email LinkCOVER STORY
SIX TRAITS OF A STRONG SUPPLIER
What separates the good the bad and the unstable
by John Hamill
What separates great suppliers from the merely good ones? What are those exceptional qualities that, when customers need help and need it fast, inspire them to call one supplier and not another? At RL Hudson, we have a checklist of key traits we look for in our supply base, and we work to demonstrate those same qualities to our customers.
Rick Hudson and his team have given quite a bit of thought to the question of what makes a great supplier. Rick believes that ultimately, to understand what your customer wants from you, you have to look at what you want from your own supply base.
“It’s really as simple as the Golden Rule. We have to serve our customers the way we want our suppliers to serve us,” Rick said.
Due to his company’s innovative business model, Rick has spent a lot of time over the past quarter century evaluating and cultivating a remarkably reliable and diverse supply chain. Since the quality and capabilities of RL Hudson’s independently-owned factories are essential to the company’s success, great care is given when selecting these key partners.
As they have refined their evaluation process over the years, Rick and his management team have created a list of seven specific qualities they seek in their suppliers. And in turn, what they want to see when they look in the mirror.
- VALUE First and foremost, great suppliers bring great value.That doesn’t always mean the lowest price, but the total cost has to be right. Great suppliers deliver a well priced package that includes a competitive unit price, excellent quality, attention to every detail, and reliable delivery. “The lowest unit price is not the same thing as the lowest cost,” Rick emphasized.
- FOCUS Great suppliers know who they are and who they are not. A great supplier develops areas of expertise and focuses on applying and refining those things that it does extremely well. According to Rick,“We don’t want suppliers who try to be all things to all people; we want ones who do what they do better than anyone else.“
- INNOVATION Great suppliers anticipate changing needs and respond in proactive ways. “This is accomplished by being a good listener, having shared values, and being in touch with your customers,” Rick said.
- COMMITMENT Great suppliers are committed to doing whatever is required to serve their customers. This includes the essential commitment to continuous improvement of systems and designs. “It also includes a commitment to invest in people, technology, facilities and inventory,“ Rick added.
- FLEXIBILITY Great suppliers respond to changing needs and market conditions with an attitude of flexibility and collaboration. “‘This is the way we’ve always done it’ is not the right answer to any question,” Rick said.
- GROWTH Great suppliers are not stagnant. They grow both in terms of their capabilities and in terms of sales. “Growth is a natural by-product of greatness ,“ Rick said. “An excellent supplier can’t help but grow.”
- STRENGTH Great suppliers are strong financially. They do what they must to ensure the health of their business.“ Just as we have to be profitable,we know our suppliers have to be profitable,” Rick said. “Our suppliers will be of no value to us if they’re struggling to survive.”
There are other important qualities that great suppliers must have. Honesty and integrity are essential, of course, and here, as in everything, Rick’s standards are exceptionally high.
“In our suppliers and in ourselves,we demand a determination
to do what is right, regardless of the consequences,” he
said in summing up the RL Hudson approach to being both a
customer and a supplier. “We call it doing ‘The Right Things
Right.’ It’s a promise we make to our employees and to our
customers.”
RL Hudson is ideally positioned to deliver on its promise. According to Executive Director of Engineering, Product and Material Technology Ray Podesta,“ Many companies try to force customers to fit their product lines, while others are simply ‘middle men,’ taking orders and processing shipments. RL Hudson transcends the limitations of both of these models by offering expertise in the design, production, and delivery of an infinite number of molded rubber and plastic components.”
Added Vice President of Operations Roux Carroll: “At RL Hudson,‘good enough’ isn’t an option. Doing the ‘right things right’ means we don’t cut corners, and we don’t simply make do. We’re not perfect, but if we don’t aim to be the best, we’ll never get there.”
It really all comes back to the number one item on RL Hudson’s list of “great supplier” traits: Value.
In summarizing RL Hudson’s philosophy of value, Rick Hudson likes to quote the legendary and famously value-conscious billionaire Warren Buffett, who said, “Price is what you pay. Value is what you get.”
