Archive for January, 2023

How do you collect disparate information across your organization

Wednesday, January 25th, 2023

 

Today’s post is by Ronald D. Southard, CEO at SafeSourcing Inc

At SafeSourcing we are often faced with customers not having accurate information. Often the best place to get it is from the end user. If a company has dozens to hundreds if not thousands of locations, there is often no company product designed to do this. SafeSourcing created SafeSurvey™ for just that purpose.

SafeSurvey™ is a user-friendly tool that allows users to create online questionnaires internally or externally to collect data within their organization as well as throughout the entire supply chain area of interest. SafeSurvey™ makes it easy to create a survey, track responses, as well as view and report the results.

Questions can be created to allow answers to be input through a Checkbox, Drop-Down List, Label Only, Radio Button or Text Area. With capability for both named and anonymous users to submit their responses, this tool is a perfect fit for quickly gathering a large variety of information from a small, medium, or large group of participants.

SafeSourcing is a Procure to Pay SaaS based provider of a number of e-Procurement solutions and associated white glove services that are part of our SaaS offered SafeSourceIt™ eSourcing suite. These include but are not limited to SafeContract™, SafePO™, SafeDocument™ and our SafeSourceIt™ Global Supplier Database that includes over 557,000 vendor/suppliers. To learn more, please contact a SafeSourcing customer services associate.

 

 

FOMO Blockchain and Bitcoin

Thursday, January 19th, 2023

 

Today’s blog is our Archives at SafeSourcing.

Don’t miss out! This post is from a few years back and it was spot on, so it might be time to invest again.

If you had invested $1,000 dollars in Bitcoin back in 2008, you’d have a WOW amount today. Bitcoin is based on the blockchain protocol. What is blockchain you ask? Blockchain is a digital ledger in which transactions made in bitcoin or another cryptocurrency are recorded chronologically and publicly “we can actually have a look at the blockchain and see evidence of what’s going on.” Blockchain originated in the technology space, which explains slow adoption rooted in its techno-babble jargon.

Marketing and business strategist, Clay Hebert (founder of Crowdfunding Hack), sees a familiar story playing out differently this time compared to how many companies were late to the party when social media emerged. People were very apprehensive about social media, putting your business or yourself out there for the world to see. But it worked, businesses were booming after starting a Facebook or Twitter page. People new about you and everything went viral. “In the mid-to-late 2000’s, big companies missed the social media train. They couldn’t see how Twitter or Facebook would immediately impact their business, so they were slow to adopt these technologies. They don’t want to play catch-up again.” Quoted by CEO of Bitcoin.

This is the same about Bitcoin. People all over are talking about how bad it is or what a scam it is. As Hebert (founder of Crowdfunding Hack) suggests too, we’re already starting to see wider understanding and adoption in blockchain technology from companies big and small. For example:

  • Large consulting firms like Accenture and Deloitte are building out entire blockchain practice areas and developing key alliances in the space.
  • IBM recently forged blockchain collaboration with Nestlé, Walmart, Costco and others to improve global food supply chain safety.
  • Some realtors have begun to differentiate themselves by accepting Bitcoin for real estate transactions (CNBC).
  • The hurdles won’t be overcome overnight. Similar to the Internet itself and social media, blockchain will enable new digital transactions that will disrupt traditional businesses like document authentication and title searches.

Smart companies will build skills around blockchain technology to ensure they are the ones doing the disrupting rather than the ones being disrupted.

Bitcoin is becoming bigger by the day and I say we all get on board fast. The Companies are drastically starting to use it around the world. And it’s a matter of time before its being used everywhere and in every aspect of our financial world.

For more information on how SafeSourcing can help your procurement efforts, or on our Risk Free trial program, please contact a SafeSourcing Customer Service representative. We have an entire team ready to assist you today.

 

 

 

 

Car Care and Fleet Care can save you a lot of money.

Wednesday, January 18th, 2023

 

Today’s post is by Troy Lowe; Vice President of Development at SafeSourcing.

With winter here, the days getting shorter and temperatures dropping you may think that it is a good idea to start your car and let it idle for a while before you get in and drive to your destination.  If you are like me this is something that we did all of the time when the temperatures were extremely cold.  This was common practice back in the day when most cars had carburetors.  The carburetors regulated the fuel/air mixture within the engine and were not very accurate when adjusting the air to fuel ratio in the cold weather.  In colder temperatures the carburetors could not vaporize all of the fuel that it let into the engine and some of that fuel was not vaporized would cause the vehicle to stall out.  For this reason it was common for people to start their cars and let them sit for about 5 minutes before getting in and driving.  According to the manufacturers this is no longer necessary because the cars now days have electric fuel injection systems that help maintain the correct fuel/air mixture needed for combustion despite the outside temperatures.  With this type of fuel injection system, vehicles can be driven immediately after being started and no longer need to be warmed up.  It is recommended by the EPA and DOE that you not let your car idle more than 30 seconds before you start your driving during the winter.  Letting it run any longer is just a waste of fuel and emissions.  Not only is idling your car not needed it can also cause damage to your vehicle by stripping oil from parts of the engine that help the engine run smoothly.   Below are some other reasons not to let your car idle this winter.

  • Engine Takes Longer to Warm Up
  • Fumes are Very Unhealthy
  • Prohibited by Law in Areas
  • Theft
  • Wastes Fuel
  • Bad for the Environment

Interested in learning how SafeSourcing can help your company save money maintaining your fleet. If you would like more information on how SafeSourcing can help you, please contact a SafeSourcing Customer Service representative.  We have an entire team ready to assist you today.

 

What goes up must come down?

Tuesday, January 17th, 2023

 

Today’s blog is by Margaret Stewart, Director of HR, and Administration at SafeSourcing

Prices are going up and have been for some time. Supply shortages and no shortage of demand have triggered companies to increase prices to cover their costs. While this is inflation hits every one of us, there are some things to keep in mind. Prices always fluctuate and will eventually level. Just like the say, what goes up must come down.

In all reality, prices can go up and stay up for a long time, but eventually they will hit a point where the price is too high and demand will dwindle, spurring that eventual price drop. While some things may have a high price all the time, like gold or diamonds, the prices there can fluctuate a great deal. This is when having an agreement in place can help your organization maintain a steady supply and a steady price.

A procurement partner, like SafeSourcing, can help you find the goods or services you need and help find the right supplier that can offer a competitive price and the stability that lets you carry on without concern over the day-to-day price changes. While we may not be able to control the price of gold or diamonds, we can help you source just about anything your organization needs at a competitive price and the reliability of a vendor you trust.

While this tactic may not work for every item, the general idea is the same – that there are ways to overcome shortages or at least make effective use of the time until the shortage is back in stock. SafeSourcing is a procurement partner that can help you find products that you already buy or even ones you have never bought.

For more information on what the SafeSourcing team can offer you, or on our Risk Free trial program, please contact a SafeSourcing Customer Service representative. We have an entire team ready to assist you today.

 

What Goes Up Must Come Down….

Tuesday, January 17th, 2023

 

Today’s blog is by Margaret Stewart, Director of HR, and Administration at SafeSourcing

Prices are going up and have been for some time. Supply shortages and no shortage of demand have triggered companies to increase prices to cover their costs. While this is inflation hits every one of us, there are some things to keep in mind. Prices always fluctuate and will eventually level. Just like the say, what goes up must come down.

In all reality, prices can go up and stay up for a long time, but eventually they will hit a point where the price is too high and demand will dwindle, spurring that eventual price drop. While some things may have a high price all the time, like gold or diamonds, the prices there can fluctuate a great deal. This is when having an agreement in place can help your organization maintain a steady supply and a steady price.

A procurement partner, like SafeSourcing, can help you find the goods or services you need and help find the right supplier that can offer a competitive price and the stability that lets you carry on without concern over the day-to-day price changes. While we may not be able to control the price of gold or diamonds, we can help you source just about anything your organization needs at a competitive price and the reliability of a vendor you trust.

While this tactic may not work for every item, the general idea is the same – that there are ways to overcome shortages or at least make effective use of the time until the shortage is back in stock. SafeSourcing is a procurement partner that can help you find products that you already buy or even ones you have never bought.

For more information on what the SafeSourcing team can offer you, or on our Risk Free trial program, please contact a SafeSourcing Customer Service representative. We have an entire team ready to assist you today.

 

What Are Your Procurement Resolutions for 2023?

Tuesday, January 17th, 2023

 

What changes you will make so 2023 is a great year?

Today’s post is by Dave Wenig is the Senior Vice President of Sales and Services at SafeSourcing Inc.

“Good resolutions are like babies crying in church. They should be carried out immediately.” – Charles M. Sheldon

This might be one of my favorite quotes about New Year’s resolutions. Procurement professionals need to set their goals and set about executing them.

Here is the problem… something always seems to get in the way. The timing is not perfect, a new solution might be available next year, the costs are up right now, etc.

There is no time like the present to get started. Delaying will be costly. Here is an example to consider. A customer of ours recently sourced their plastic garbage can liners. The estimated savings is around 25%. That means if the product used to cost $1,000,000 annually, it will now be $250,000 less. If they waited and had not gotten around to sourcing that product for another month, they would have overpaid by another $20,000 for another month. Pretty simple.

What if they delayed sourcing that product and then something else came up that distracted them the next month? You get the idea.

If you need help setting and achieving your resolutions for 2023, give us a call. We are happy to help you make 2023 a great year for procurement. For more information, please contact SafeSourcing.

 

 

 

 

Lettuce Prices in the News       

Monday, January 16th, 2023

 

Today’s post is by Dave Wenig is the Senior Vice President of Sales and Services at SafeSourcing Inc

Cardi B, the Grammy Award winning rapper has been getting a lot of attention over the last few days for an unexpected reason. That reason? Lettuce prices.

The rapper posted a series of posts to Twitter over the past several days highlighting her concerns about food prices and inflation. Notably, she had some choice words to say about the price of lettuce including a one-minute video in which she shares her worry for working class families. Fair warning, if you head over to Twitter to watch the video, you might want to wear headphones.

Of course, her observations about the costs of these goods are correct. At SafeSourcing, and even in this blog, we track and share our perspective as well. While the reasons for the price increases vary from legitimate to false, we all need to do our part to help manage the burden of rising prices.

For Cardi B, she can use her platform to draw national attention to the concern. The video I mentioned earlier has about 5.5 million views as I write this blog.

For SafeSourcing, we continue to collaborate with our clients via their procurement teams of category managers and other professionals to work to keep costs in line and fight back to reduce costs using innovative technologies and processes.

Join the fight against price increases with us. Follow our blog for more information, follow us on LinkedIn, and contact me to join us if you are a buyer and you are as fed up with the cost of lettuce as us and Cardi B.

For more information, please contact SafeSourcing.

 

 

 

I heard that inflation dropped for December to 6.5%. That’s’ good news!

Friday, January 13th, 2023

 

Today’s post is by Ronald D. Southard, CEO at SafeSourcing Inc

That’s not so good. However, it is avoidable if businesses hold their supplier accountable to what their prices should rightfully be and then pass those savings on to their customers or at least share them. That would be a win/win

So, how do you do that. It’s simple. Reach out to me. Tell me you have a category you would like to have alternative sources of supply for, improved service levels at a lower cost. If I can’t do that for you, don’t pay me. If I can let’s do some more work together and improve your margins, earnings, and shareholder value. I can prove it to you in less than three weeks start to finish.

So, give us a call.  And ask us about our e-Procurement solutions and associated white glove services and our SafeSourceIt™ Global Supplier Database that includes over 557,000 vendor/suppliers. We can get you better pricing on about any category of product or service.

To learn more, please contact a SafeSourcing customer services associate.

Keep on Trucking!!

Thursday, January 12th, 2023

 

Today’s Post is our archives at SafeSourcing Inc.

Establishing a maintenance schedule is the best way to protect your fleet. An experienced company will help this system work well. In addition to drivers, the system ensures maintenance and repair companies handle each vehicle properly.

Here are five tips for fleet maintenance:

  1. Schedule Inspections

Vehicles break down for multiple reasons, anything from accidents to undiagnosed wear and tear can stop a vehicle dead in its tracks. Addressing the issues can be easily resolved with regular scheduled inspections. These inspections help detect problems before the problem strikes. Regular inspections may seem like a waste of time and resources, but they easily save money overall. One small problem can snowball and create more issues in a vehicle. This can lead to expensive repairs that could have been avoided during an inspection. Always go for brake and tire-tread inspections. Check the engine, filters, oil, fuel, lights, and wheel alignment. Remember to test and replace the battery if necessary.

  1. Perform Tune-Ups and Cleanups

Tune up your engine to make it more efficient. This will increase the engine’s lifespan and improve its fuel and oil use. Moreover, it will boost the engine’s performance and prevent stalling or “knocking”. Second, wash the vehicle to remove dust and other particles. This dirt can damage your paint and expose the vehicle’s body to the elements. As a result, rust will form and start eating away at the metal. Also, use high-quality wax on the vehicle body to protect it from the sun’s effects.

  1. Get a Maintenance Checklist

Have a maintenance checklist as part of your system to ensure you don’t miss anything. This list should include the fuel, steering, suspension, brake, and electrical systems. It should also check the engine, tires, vehicle body, and potential fluid leaks.

  1. Do Immediate Repairs

Stay in touch with drivers to get views on potential truck problems. They know their vehicles well and they’ll know when there’s an issue. The important thing is to ensure you do repairs as soon as possible. You can get a mobile truck repair and servicing company to check what’s wrong. They send their technicians to review and solve the vehicle issue you are having. These immediate repairs will prevent bigger problems from arising.

  1. Install Fleet Maintenance Software

Get updated fleet maintenance software for your business. You can input all the details about your vehicles, such as mileage and servicing dates. This ensures you have all the information on the health of your vehicles. The software provides reports that show you are complying with safety regulations. It allows you to set reminders of when a specific vehicle should go for servicing. Plus, it will also help you when making a budget for fleet management.

SafeSourcing can help keep you on the road. By working alongside your Fleet and Vehicle managers we can help build preventative maintenance schedules and help lower repairs and equipment costs. For more information on how SafeSourcing can assist you or on our “Risk Free” trial program, please contact SafeSourcing  we have an entire team waiting to assist you today.

 

 

 

 

Has anyone ever asked you what a recession is?

Wednesday, January 11th, 2023

 

Today’s post is by Ronald D. Southard, CEO at SafeSourcing Inc

According to BING, A recession is a prolonged period of economic decline, beginning when the economy peaks and ending when it bottoms out. Recessions are typically marked by an economy shrinking in back-to-back quarters, measured by gross domestic product (aka, how much are we collectively buying and producing as a society).

So now that you were able to answer the question, how would you respond to how we end it or get out of it. The answer is embedded in the definition. We need to produce more, and we need to sell more. To sell more there needs to be adequate demand along with a price that companies and consumers are willing to pay. I will not get into commodity prices etc. This is a 300-word blog.

If it were me, I would tell my team to look at every contract we have and to get us better pricing. I would then pass those price savings on to my customers to encourage more purchasing. I would take the margin hit in my financials.

While simplistic, this is exactly what SafeSourcing does for our customers. We do it through a lot of tools and processes. Tools that find sources of supply willing to bid on our customers business if incumbent suppliers will not share the burden in cost reduction. Tools that encourage supplier behavior that supports a mission of, if you reduce my price and I reduce my customers price, we both sell more.

So, give us a call.  And ask us about our e-Procurement solutions and associated white glove services and our SafeSourceIt™ Global Supplier Database that includes over 557,000 vendor/suppliers. We can get you better pricing on about any category of product or service.

To learn more, please contact a SafeSourcing customer services associate.