Partnership in supply chain management

Anwar Faruq Talukder | Published: April 23, 2016 00:00:00 | Updated: February 01, 2018 00:00:00

Businesses that are involved with forward and backward linkage fall under a supply chain. In today's business world, supply chain management is very crucial and important for uninterrupted services. Supply chain management is the management of the flow of goods and services. This chain evolves many parties and thus all parties engaged in a chain face some challenges while conducting business transactions. In most countries including Bangladesh partnership business seems risky but partnership in supply chain management is important for success. If a partner knows his duty clearly and discuss the matter with his principal, many issues can be solved in time.Â Â Â Â Â Â
A principal-supplier trend being adopted by a growing number of organisations is to establish and build positive relationships with a goal to form strategic partnerships of trust. While changing a business relationship that may have been less than ideal or even adverse to a more cooperative and collaborative relationship, in the long run the bonuses will be well worth the effort. The resulting partnerships make it easier for business partners to do business on a day-to-day basis and help ensure productive and profitable relationships by decreasing operational risk.
Whether the business role is that of a supplier or a customer, one should work with his/her key supply chain partners. All parties, domestic or international, can start by viewing one another as strategic partners working towards a common goal.
To be effective in managing risk in supply management information and ideas should be shared among partners. Not only the organization's needs but also those of partner organizations should be considered. It is quite possible that through joint collaboration and planning, mitigation and recovery strategies will be identified that serve both well and will be cost-effective.
While it is realistic to undertake that working together has benefits for all parties, to succeed, this approach requires that both or all involved are willing to share information about the risks they face and how prepared they are to manage those risks. If the partners freely state their expectations it could help other parties prepare a strategy. Working together is the key to success in any joint collaboration. Business continuity is an increasingly accepted core business practice and a significant factor in supplier selection.Â If an organization has not previously been approached by customers or insurers, investors, regulators, or other stakeholders, their business continuity plan is only a matter of time. The lines of communication should remain open. When suppliers fall short of continuity performance goals, the customer can promptly discuss performance issues to provide valued critical suppliers with an opportunity to quickly correct any areas needing improvement.Â This will lead to a cooperative approach to resolving any problem.
The writer is a banker.
anwarfaruq@yahoo.com