Why Supplier Management?
Posted in Service Management Update on Jan 20th, 2009 No Comments »
To quote a long established phrase that most have heard, “No man is an island”. The phrase comes from a longer quotation by John Donne (1572-1631), and while himself a Christian, the concept is shared by many religions, principally Buddhism. The general meaning of the phrase (and longer quotation) is that human beings do not thrive when isolated from others, we are all connected and therefore events and changes affecting another human being affects us all.
Although abstract, this concept provides an engaging way in which a service provider should approach the management of IT services. Like the original quote, no service provider is an island, so events and changes affecting their customers and suppliers will in turn have some consequence for them.
What does this mean for IT Service Management and the practices involved in Supplier Management? Well based on this principle, we need to ensure that we carefully evaluate, select, manage and review any suppliers who will be involved in some way in the delivery and support of IT services, and be sure to develop and foster the relationship in a mutually beneficial way. As many organizations have found out recently, the death of a supplier (caused by a severe economic downturn) may well mean their own future existence could be short lived. “..never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee”.
Tim Malone
ITSM Educator
The Art of Service Pty Ltd
