Sourcing 101 Series – Sourcing Agents Part 1

The nature of trade has dramatically changed over the last 20 years with the arrival of internet, the fall of the Berlin wall and the rise of China and India to prominence. These changes contributed to shifts in purchasing profession, one example being arrival of sourcing agents. We discussed the changing nature of the job with Martin Brooke, principal consultant in Direct Supply Management. Martin spent 22 years of his carrier in the industrial fastener and hardware industries and held various sourcing positions in purchasing organizations of Fortune 500 and Forbes 100 Manufacturers and Distribution companies.
 
Editor: Martin, to give our readers some background, what is your product or industry expertise when it comes to sourcing?
Martin Brooke:  I specialize in fasteners. This is a very wide field because fasteners are used in a very wide variety of industries from simple commercial applications such as locks, hinges, latches you can find in Home Depot to complex systems used in medical and military applications. 
 
E. Where is the need for sourcing agents coming from? 
M.B.: There are several reasons that created this need. In a typical purchasing environment larger organizations can afford to hire or educate fairly diverse staff with variety of specialties. Small and medium size businesses would typically hire external help for specialized sourcing needs on a contract basis because they don’t have the same resource muscle. But In both cases the need for services provided by sourcing agents is primarily driven by: 
  • Changes in product strategy required for attacking new markets or going to low cost sourcing countries
     
  • New customers with specific demands that cannot be met by the current supply chain
     
  • Legislation changes. For example, ROHS standard in the electronics industry drives certain supply changes that require specialty expertise
 
E. What qualities define a successful sourcing agent?
M.B.: Simply put - experience, expertise and personality. Here are several factors that will play a key role in being a successful sourcing agent:
  • Having clear idea of how you can meet strategic needs of a company by utilizing sourcing expertise. Typically this would involve knowing the business from multiple perspectives – manufacturing, distribution and pricing.
     
  • Having a good knowledge of the industry and suppliers. Finding solution for a particular situation is based on the product or manufacturing expertise available and knowing what it will take to incorporate this expertise into a larger supply chain.
     
  • Having existing network of suppliers. Always very helpful to get things accomplished quickly and get the ultimate end result.
     
  • Ability to manage a sourcing initiative as a project, from the product concept to managing suppliers and delivering products that meet expectations.
     
  • Knowing the sourcing country and the culture.

read the second part of our interview in our next post

Valery Zelixon
Comments: 0; Published: November 24, 2009; Permalink
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