Trends In North American Vendor Management

Forty-seven percent of the North American companies Forrester surveyed have vendor management offices (VMOs). These firms have a more centralized IT organization that is closely aligned with the business. Organizations with a VMO want to consolidate the number of suppliers they work with. VMO groups have responsibilities ranging from hardware suppliers to facilities management providers. Despite the increasing span of control, groups average between 10 and 20 people and do not rely on the growing portfolio of software for managing different aspects of the supplier relationship. Ninety-two percent of the firms with a VMO state that the group is somewhat or very effective.