What you'll learn:
- Create vendor selection criteria and run RFPs with weighted scorecards and vendor segmentation.
- Negotiate vendor contracts with SLAs, renewal terms, audit rights, and data protection requirements.
- Build KPI scorecards and run performance reviews that drive accountability and improvement.
- Identify and mitigate vendor risks (financial, operational, cyber, geopolitical) with tiering and monitoring.
- Apply root-cause analysis, corrective actions, and PDCA to resolve issues and prevent repeats.
- Set up compliance oversight (audits, attestations, indemnification, insurance, ESG requirements).
When was the last time your team depended on someone outside your company to deliver something critical—on time, on budget, and up to your standards? For most managers, the answer is: today.
And the stakes are higher than many teams realize:
73% of organizations are highly dependent on third parties (Deloitte)
87% of companies report disruptions linked to third-party vendors (risk executive survey)
Structured vendor oversight can drive procurement savings of up to 12% (procurement analysts)
Vendors don’t sit inside your org chart—but their performance, security posture, and compliance directly affect your operations, your reputation, and your regulatory exposure.
This course is designed to give you a clear, end-to-end system for Managing Vendors—from selection to onboarding, performance management, risk control, and continuous improvement.
In this course, you’ll learn how to:
Select the right vendors using clear criteria (beyond lowest price), RFPs, scorecards, and segmentation
Run practical due diligence: references, audits/certifications (e.g., ISO/SOC), financial checks, and reputational screening
Negotiate stronger contracts with SLAs, data protection requirements, audit rights, renewal terms, and pricing controls
Build exit plans and offboarding steps so you’re not trapped in a poor-performing relationship
Manage vendor performance with KPIs, dashboards/scorecards, and structured review meetings
Strengthen communication, collaboration, escalation paths, and partnership behaviors that prevent issues early
Resolve conflicts with root-cause analysis, corrective action plans, and the PDCA continuous improvement cycle
Identify and mitigate vendor risks (financial, operational, cyber, geopolitical, and reputational), including sub-tier risk
Implement compliance governance: monitoring, audits, indemnification, insurance, and ESG/ethical sourcing expectations
Use modern tools and trends—VMS platforms, automation, AI-based risk signals, and vendor identity “passports”—to scale oversight
You’ll also learn from real-world examples and a practical case study on how North West London Procurement Services implemented Strategic Supplier Relationship Management (SRM) to improve governance, risk readiness, and collaboration.
By the end, you’ll have a repeatable framework you can apply immediately—whether you manage a handful of vendors or hundreds—and you’ll be equipped to turn vendor relationships into a measurable competitive advantage.
