Chapter 2: The Right Minds in Your Organisation in Customer and Supplier Interaction

The Right Minds in Your Organisation in Customer and Supplier Interaction

This document covers the area of customer and supplier interaction, the minds in your organization that you should know. Applicable to high volume, repeated transaction environment – manufacturing based.  (It can also be applied to service industry.)

Communication Between You (as a Customer) and Your Suppliers

In every customer and supplier interaction, the right minds are required to do the right type of work. In the forefront, communication with the suppliers is important in order to know the products or the service that will be sold or rendered. If an employee purchases the wrong product or service, it will not be put to good use, or it may not even be used at all. Money paid will be lost. What is your judgment on this? The communication between you and your supplier is important to ensure that you have the correct source of product, and the service will meet your end customer’s requirements.

Know the Type of Person

Before you can know the type of person that work in your organization or company, you should know yourself first. In this short article, there are 2 illustrations for your view. The first illustration is of identical cards whilst the second is an illustration of an array of illusion. These two illusions are only to know two things, (1) to know what your decision is and (2) to know what you are seeing. In a customer and supplier interaction, it is not that you will not know what you require until you meet your supplier. It should be the opposite. You should know what you require before approaching your suppliers. The second part of the article is that your employees are your resources. Your employees are important to do the work. The right type of employee is required for the right type of job. The right type of employee is also required to buy the right type of the products or the services from your suppliers.

Illustration No.1

Seeing the right or the left card does not matter. Whether it is left or right, you still see the alphabet A. Whether it is the left card or the right card, it is a card with alphabet A. It does not imply anything that has been known. If both cards are moved to the left, you will see the left card. In the same way, if both cards are moved to the right, you will see the right card.

Moving two cards to both sides and then remove either left or right. You will know which card you are looking at. Right? Second question, which card is more outstanding? In my opinion, there are some that are more outstanding than the other. Some stand out from the other. In this case, the cards are identical.

Biases exist and it is difficult to disregard. The example above is clear that when it comes to individual judgment, it depends on personal decision. When it comes to management decision, management has to ascertain its clear direction. It is profound to know that a judgment is blurred by the lack of factual data or other unknown factors, or probably an illusion.

Illustration No. 2

This is an interesting illustration, an illusion in array.

You know yourself more than anyone else. Please note the last two circles are of the same radius. But do not stress yourself. (WARNING 1: See an eye specialist if you cannot get back your vision.) Too many ambiguities cause you to think of the unknown. If it is thought too much, you may be thinking unnecessarily. See the actual. (WARNING 2: See a psychiatrist if you are a day dreamer.) The above example shows that there are three actual possibilities.

The Right Mind in Your Organisation

Having the right mind in your organisation is to ensure that the right people are in your organization or company to do the intended job. There are various types of people with different characteristics, traits and behaviours. Some might not be acceptable to you. Consider the first example, who will you employ if the qualification and other consideration are almost the same? Even identical twins have different character, though they look alike. If you are deciding, which will you choose? What is the reason for choosing this person and rejecting the other person? Another application is when you are choosing your supplier, what is the reason for choosing this supplier and rejecting the other supplier?

Applying it to your employees, what is your justification for a pay rise if both are rated almost the same? What will then be the effect of choice on the customer and supplier interaction?  The identical cards example is to know your choice. The circles array example is to know your unknowns. Decision is difficult and you can only know the outcome after.

Suppliers’ Performances - Internal Evaluation

Your organization or company requires the right type of people to do the right type of job. Performance rating from suppliers’ performances to internal evaluation up to end-customer’s satisfaction are required to meet the requirements of your customers. Software are there to assist in getting things organized. In my opinion, it is important that the right minds are required to do the right type of work.