Weasel Suppliers

[Stephen Soroosh]

Hey, I'm sure we have all encountered our fair share of jankey suppliers during the year. It would make sense to share our bad and good experiences with each other in order for us all to avoid the suppliers who promise lots but deliver little and do business with the ones who deliver what they said they would. One policy that we have made is to assume that all suppliers are lazy weasels who are only out to take your money and give you lip service over the phone. Additionally, assume that they can't read or write and thus can't follow instructions, therefore they need us to call them on a daily basis to remind them what they were instructed to do. Make the stated assumptions until the parts are in hand and have been verified. Any thoughts?

[Stephen Soroosh]

Hey, I'm sure we have all encountered our fair share of jankey suppliers during the year. It would make sense to share our bad and good experiences with each other in order for us all to avoid the suppliers who promise lots but deliver little and do business with the ones who deliver what they said they would. One policy that we have made is to assume that all suppliers are lazy weasels who are only out to take your money and give you lip service over the phone. Additionally, assume that they can't read or write and thus can't follow instructions, therefore they need us to call them on a daily basis to remind them what they were instructed to do. Make the stated assumptions until the parts are in hand and have been verified. Any thoughts?

[Sam Zimmerman]

Wow, if I made all those assumptions I would do nothing but babysit our vendors and never get any other work done!

Seriously, we have only had one bad experience this year and plenty of good ones.

[Stephen Soroosh]

Wow. If you have only had one bad experience this year and plenty of good ones then I think I need to find out who you deal with. I though perhaps it was just poeple in Oklahoma but then when we were in Detroit last year and needed a set of axles splined at the last minute, the supplier, with the old axles in hand as well as instructions and prints, proceeded to make us a set of axles that only had splines on one side...not both sides like the old one had and like the instructions, both verbal and written instructed. Of course we had to get him to do the other sides of the axles but it cost us an additional $300. Eventually the manager didn't charge us the additional $300 but we lost time and time is money. That is just one of many stories that I can tell...

~Soroosh