|
Supplier Relations
Performance and Reviews
Xerox’s Global Purchasing organization
routinely tracks and reports on current
and potential suppliers for adherence to
our requirements, and we hold quarterly
on-site reviews with our top 38 suppliers.
This provides a forum to discuss our
business relationships and to define
and refine the metrics for Xerox and
the supplier performance evaluations.
Xerox requires all production suppliers
to complete an assessment of their
quality management system prior to
being added to the Approved Vendors
List (AVL), which now includes about
1,500 active suppliers. Our vendors
use the Xerox Multinational Supplier
Assessment, which is equivalent to
the ISO 9000, but was implemented
ten years earlier.
Before our primary suppliers are
permitted to do business with us, we
make on-site visits. Once they are added
to our AVL, we conduct on-site audits
every one to three years, depending on
the scope of our relationship with them.
About 80% of our spending for the
manufacturing of Xerox technology
(i.e., for components, wiring, plastics,
etc.) comes from 50 global suppliers.
These suppliers are assessed regularly
to measure compliance with Xerox
standards and applicable local laws.
Xerox audited more than 90% of them
in 2006.
As with any relationship-based engagement,
face-to-face communication is
critical to building trust, respect and
credibility. With more and more of
Xerox’s suppliers now located in Asia,
we felt the need to develop a stronger
Xerox purchasing presence in this
region, enabling more direct interaction
between Xerox buyers and suppliers.
In the last year, Xerox has transferred
the vast majority of its production purchasing operation to the Asia-Pacific
area and we now have Xerox Global
Purchasing representatives in Hong
Kong, China, Malaysia, Singapore, Korea,
Japan and India. These purchasing
professionals conduct quarterly, if not
more frequent, on-site reviews to assess
the quality, cost and delivery of the
vendor’s products and ensure the
business is run with the highest ethical
standards. In addition, we have opened
access for the supplier community to
work more directly with Xerox. Through
the Web site www.xerox.com/suppliers,
vendors and potential vendors can
learn about the latest procurement
initiative and find information on supplier
diversity, procurement policies, supplier
quality assurance and supplier ethics.
Consistent with our comprehensive
environmental initiatives, Xerox has
specific guidelines for our paper
suppliers. These paper-sourcing
practices are outlined here.
|