Tales from the Trenches: Rejecting a ‘take it or leave it’ Offer

One of the best things about presenting live webinars is the direct interaction I get to have with procurement professionals. They ask fantastic questions, and sometimes, they even share their own stories.

Just this week, I presented a webinar on When Suppliers Reject Fair Pricing – and Silent Slopes Don’t Work and I heard from one of the attendees afterward. Carol Roddy is the Procurement Manager for Mac-Weld Machining in Ontario, Canada.

Carol is making the most of input cost data to negotiate with her suppliers – even the really large ones that probably assume they have all of the negotiating leverage.

Carol reminds her supplier reps that they shouldn’t give her a reason to go out and look for another supplier. “RFQs are a lot of work, and if I go through all that effort I will most likely switch suppliers. I would hate to open that door and walk through just because I didn’t feel they were being fair on their pricing.” 

Believe it or not, a ‘take it or leave it’ supplier can help advance your procurement career. Regardless of the outcome, identifying costs and strategic vulnerabilities and elevating them to management will lead them to recognize and appreciate your initiative, analytical approach, and professionalism.