Rule 3: Giving suppliers visibility of their invoice in progress

Unlike many other retailers, Amazon has not yet been hit hard by the consumer credit crunch. In fact, its fourth-quarter profits rose by nine per cent, having enjoyed its best Christmas ever.

Aside from its broad product range and outstanding user interface, what consumers really appreciate is its tracking mechanism - it’s hugely reassuring to check your account and see the words ‘item dispatched’ next to your order with a predicted delivery date. But being able to check the status of a transaction easily can be life-critical if you’re a supplier. In today’s cash-strapped economic climate, it can make all the difference to cash-flow, business survival and fingernails.

The ‘disaster scenario’ that suppliers dread is waiting weeks for payment – only to then call to discover the invoice has been either misplaced, entered incorrectly on the system or is waiting to be checked because it fails to tally with the original order.

At the same time, what purchasing organizations really don’t need is hundreds of anxious suppliers phoning up each day to plot the progress of every payment. Thankfully, there is a pain-free solution to all of this … that takes us back to the Amazon example.

Imagine being able to visit a web site where you can ‘flip’ purchase orders into electronic invoices automatically, so there’s no room for errors at the payment end? And how about streamlining the payment process, so ‘human approval’ is quick and easy? And what if everyone – buyers and suppliers – can track payments online, 24-7 so they know exactly when payments are being made?It’s an approach that the London Borough of Enfield, helped by EGS, and many other organisations are now adopting, fully aware that it will ease the financial pressures faced by their valued suppliers. If you want to improve supplier relationships – and reap the rewards of their greater loyalty and better service – then improving the efficiency and visibility of your payment process will work wonders. There are few things that focus the mind so sharply as fast payment. Especially now.

And it means there’s a better chance your favourite suppliers will be around provide the goods and services you need tomorrow.