Suppliers

Charities’ success largely depends on the relationships they maintain with suppliers. By working closely with suppliers, charities can maximise their impact, reduce costs, and improve the quality of services they offer. A charity’s relationship with its supplier can dramatically impact the outcomes achieved.

In this blog post, we will explore five focus areas charities can employ to maximise relationships with suppliers to achieve their goals.

Clear communication, well-defined expectations, mutual trust, support, and collaboration are key elements in building strong relationships with suppliers. Charities should invest time and effort into these relationships, as they play a crucial role in their success. Think of suppliers as an extension of your staff. You would provide staff with the in-depth knowledge and tools they need to do their job. Provide your suppliers with the same resources.

Five focus areas

1. Establish clear communication channels
   • Regular communication between charities and suppliers is key to building strong relationships.
   • Charities should establish clear communication channels and ensure that suppliers understand their goals, requirements, and expectations.
   • Take these actions to avoid misunderstandings and ensure that suppliers are fully aligned with the charity’s objectives
2. Define clear expectations
   • Charities should define clear expectations for suppliers, including quality standards, delivery dates, and customer service expectations.
   • By clearly articulating these expectations, charities can ensure that suppliers understand what is expected of them and are able to deliver on their commitments
3. Foster mutual trust
   • Building trust is essential in any relationship, and this is especially true when it comes to working with suppliers.
   • Charities should be transparent and honest in their dealings with suppliers and should work to build trust by being reliable, trustworthy, and delivering on their promises
4. Offer support
   • Charities should support suppliers by providing them with the resources they need to succeed, such as training, guidance, and access to funding.
   • This support will help suppliers to improve their products and services, which will, in turn, benefit the charity and its stakeholders
5. Foster collaboration
   • Charities should encourage collaboration between themselves and suppliers, such as joint projects, events, and initiatives
   • This collaboration will help to build stronger relationships, create new opportunities for both parties, and achieve shared goals
   • Collaboration could also reduce costs and decrease the risk of more than one supplier providing duplicate, overlapping services
   • FundraisingForce are a specialist consultant member of The Xfactor Collective. The Xfactor Collective includes consultants who are experienced, pre-vetted and from multiple disciplines to aid charitable organisations to meet their pressing needs.

Suppliers are an extension of your staff. Working with suppliers in a focused, clear, and concise manner will ensure you receive the optimal benefit for your organisations.