Supplier Self-Help is a new term for many. But it shares much of its DNA with Knowledge Management (as opposed to Content Management). And it was whilst reading an article by Neal Haraguchi on how people sometimes confuse the two, that I came across this brilliant analogy:
“Knowledge Management is like a concierge. You provide some contextual information and get a specific answer. If you are looking for a place to go for dinner near the hotel, the concierge may ask a few qualifying questions such as type of cuisine or price range... Then a good concierge will often provide some related answers, such as how to get there, is it a walk-able distance, and a good bar for drinks after dinner.”
Neal Haraguchi
Imagine you had a personal concierge for every single one of your suppliers. A dedicated member of your team whose sole purpose is to be on call day or night (and unlike you, happy about it!). Their only objective is to get that specific supplier the answers and guidance they need to get the job done for you.
Supplier Self-Help on the Supply Pilot Platform does just that. It allows you to increase and improve the support you give suppliers without using any more resource – just as if you had an army of concierges. By providing suppliers access to easy-to-digest information when and where they need it, it reduces the amount of low-value repetitive queries your team need to answer. This means they can spend more time on solving the problems that really will add value to your top and bottom line.
