A practical guide to preparing for high stakes supplier negotiations, covering your walk away position, the full range of terms you can trade and the tactics a trained supplier team will use.
Part of the SmartBuyer Procurement Guide Series.
Most procurement teams are rigorous about sourcing, risk and contract drafting, then walk into a renewal meeting with a spreadsheet and goodwill. The supplier has an account plan, a target and a team behind them, and a strategic deal that needed six weeks of preparation often gets two days.
This guide gives procurement leaders a structure for preparation, a way to read the deal you are in, a method for planning what you trade rather than what you give away, and the tactics to watch for, so the next big renewal happens with you in control.
If any of these describe you, this guide will earn back its 15 minutes.
Most negotiations are prepared in the car park and decided by whoever frames the issues first. Our specialists negotiate with suppliers every day. This guide turns that experience into a practical process you can apply with confidence.
Every SmartBuyer guide is written by an experienced procurement specialist with real, hands-on delivery experience in the category, not theory. Our network of specialists has negotiated with suppliers for organisations across the public and private sector.
