What's in a name? Even as users see gains, vendors say lack of clarity keeps supplier relationship management from taking off.(Applications & Services)

Manufacturing Business Technology, November, 2005 by Fulcher, Jim

Many companies can't resist what Purchasing Director James Polak calls the siren song of supplier relationship management (SRM): e-procurement. But when his company, PPG Industries, considered SRM, Polak says PPG implemented spend analysis first. "We knew spend analysis enhances e-procurement, and is a necessary first step for a successful SRM initiative," says Polak of the Pittsburgh-based manufacturer of specialty chemicals, coatings, and glass products.

Admittedly, it was a rough project until, as Polak puts it, the first millions in savings rolled in. Today, it is significantly easier for PPG to consolidate spending across the corporation, using fewer vendors, and in return receive higher-quality materials at lower overall costs. Since...

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