Tips on Establishing the Program

Consider these tips when you establish and implement an outsourced program:

• When taking on a new program or project, analyze the likelihood of a new agreement not going according to plan. Look at the risks and determine how they can be mitigated.

• Clarify any assumptions you may have made about the program, and be sure to understand the vendor's way of working and solving problems.

• Ensure you have a system in place to pay strategic vendor invoices in a timely manner. This will help reinforce your intention to treat them as true partners.

• Look at how you value and treat a vendor. The vendor performing a role critical to the business operation may be more integral to your company than an internal function that simply delivers a service. Act accordingly.

• When launching projects with new vendors, take time to brief them on your organization. It could otherwise take them four times as long initially to learn who's who in getting things done for you.

• Look at your vendor counterpart to see if he or she has an effective "relationship influence bridge". Does your contact in this client-vendor relationship have the appropriate influence in their company to make things happen? Explore how this influence may assist or hinder you in your role.