  {"id":6706,"date":"2020-09-16T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-09-15T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/blog\/build-strong-supplier-relationships\/"},"modified":"2025-07-03T08:32:52","modified_gmt":"2025-07-03T08:32:52","slug":"build-strong-supplier-relationships","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/blog\/build-strong-supplier-relationships\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Establish Good Relationships With Suppliers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignfull blog-template-header has-neutral-100-background-color has-background has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--16)\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\"><div style=\"--bb--crumb-gap:.4em;\" class=\"blog-template-breadcrumb wp-block-employmentherocom2025-breadcrumb-block\"><nav role=\"navigation\" aria-label=\"Breadcrumbs\" class=\"breadcrumb\"><ol class=\"breadcrumb-items\"><li class=\"breadcrumb-item breadcrumb-item--current breadcrumb-item--home\"><span class=\"breadcrumb-item-name\">Home<\/span><\/li><\/ol><\/nav><script type=\"application\/ld+json\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"item\":{\"name\":\"Home\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/employmenthero.com\\\/sg\\\/\"}}]}<\/script><\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group blog-template-tags-row is-content-justification-space-between is-nowrap is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-4 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\" style=\"padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--9)\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group blog-template-tags is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-1 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\" style=\"padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--2);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--2)\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button is-style-ghost is-style-ghost--1\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link has-btn-black-background-color has-background wp-element-button has-icon__eye\"><span class=\"wp-block-button__link-icon\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><svg width=\"20\" height=\"20\" viewBox=\"0 0 20 20\" fill=\"none\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"> <g clip-path=\"url(#clip0_5893_17419)\"> <path d=\"M19.8727 9.55732C19.7127 9.30315 15.8927 3.33398 10.0002 3.33398C4.10771 3.33398 0.287713 9.30315 0.127713 9.55732C0.0442677 9.69013 0 9.8438 0 10.0007C0 10.1575 0.0442677 10.3112 0.127713 10.444C0.287713 10.6982 4.10771 16.6673 10.0002 16.6673C15.8927 16.6673 19.7127 10.6982 19.8727 10.444C19.9562 10.3112 20.0004 10.1575 20.0004 10.0007C20.0004 9.8438 19.9562 9.69013 19.8727 9.55732ZM10.0002 15.0007C5.88605 15.0007 2.80271 11.299 1.84855 10.0007C3.12342 8.22835 4.79779 6.78123 6.73605 5.77648C6.15544 6.50283 5.83739 7.40411 5.83355 8.33398C5.83355 9.43905 6.27253 10.4989 7.05394 11.2803C7.83534 12.0617 8.89514 12.5007 10.0002 12.5007C11.1053 12.5007 12.1651 12.0617 12.9465 11.2803C13.7279 10.4989 14.1669 9.43905 14.1669 8.33398C14.1629 7.40674 13.8468 6.50785 13.2694 5.78232C15.2033 6.78886 16.8752 8.23337 18.1519 10.0007C17.201 11.3015 14.1277 15.0007 10.0002 15.0007Z\" fill=\"currentColor\"\/> <\/g> <defs> <clipPath id=\"clip0_5893_17419\"> <rect width=\"20\" height=\"20\" fill=\"white\"\/> <\/clipPath> <\/defs> <\/svg><\/span>Blog<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<ul style=\"display: flex; gap: var(--wp--preset--spacing--2); padding-left: 0; flex-wrap: wrap;\"><li style=\"background-color: #e8e7e8;padding: var(--wp--preset--spacing--0-5) var(--wp--preset--spacing--3);border-radius: var(--wp--preset--spacing--8);margin: 0;display: inline-flex;align-self: center;\">\n                <span class=\"has-sm-font-size\" >\n                    <a href=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/resources\/business-basics\" title=\"Business Basics\" style=\"font-weight: 500;\">Business Basics<\/a>\n                <\/span>\n                <\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group blog-template-social-desktop is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-3 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-nowrap is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-2 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\" style=\"margin-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--2);margin-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--2)\"><div \n    class=\"eh-social-sharing-button wp-block-employmentherocom2025-eh-social-sharing-button\" data-icon=\"facebook\" data-social-type=\"facebook\">\n    <span style=\"display: flex;\">\n        <svg class=\"icon\" width=\"24px\" height=\"24px\" viewBox=\"0 0 20 20\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"> <title>Group<\/title> <path d=\"M14.4446 6.47609H11.4173V4.40033C11.4173 3.62078 11.9115 3.43904 12.2596 3.43904C12.6068 3.43904 14.3958 3.43904 14.3958 3.43904V0.0120058L11.4537 0C8.18772 0 7.44447 2.55599 7.44447 4.19168V6.47609H5.55566V10.0075H7.44447C7.44447 14.5394 7.44447 20 7.44447 20H11.4173C11.4173 20 11.4173 14.4856 11.4173 10.0075H14.0981L14.4446 6.47609Z\"><\/path><\/svg> \n    <\/span>\n    <\/div>\n\n<div \n    class=\"eh-social-sharing-button wp-block-employmentherocom2025-eh-social-sharing-button\" data-icon=\"twitter\" data-social-type=\"twitter\">\n    <span style=\"display: flex;\">\n        <svg class=\"icon\" width=\"17\" height=\"18\" viewBox=\"0 0 17 18\" fill=\"none\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"> <g clip-path=\"url(#clip0_2187_1527)\"> <path d=\"M6.88269 10.3821L0.554058 18H2.05374L7.54889 11.3855L11.9379 18H17L10.363 7.99774L17 0.00924304H15.5002L9.69721 6.99436L5.06215 0.00924304H-5.51343e-07L6.88306 10.3821H6.88269ZM8.93683 7.90961L9.60929 8.90561L14.9598 16.8309H12.6563L8.33833 10.4349L7.66587 9.43894L2.05303 1.12518H4.35659L8.93683 7.90923V7.90961Z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path> <\/g> <defs> <clipPath id=\"clip0_2187_1527\"> <rect width=\"17\" height=\"18\" fill=\"white\" transform=\"matrix(-1 0 0 -1 17 18)\"><\/rect> <\/clipPath> <\/defs> <\/svg> \n    <\/span>\n    <\/div>\n\n<div \n    class=\"eh-social-sharing-button wp-block-employmentherocom2025-eh-social-sharing-button\" data-icon=\"linkedin\" data-social-type=\"linkedin\">\n    <span style=\"display: flex;\">\n        <svg class=\"icon\" width=\"17px\" height=\"16px\" viewBox=\"0 0 17 16\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"> <title>Shape<\/title> <g id=\"Symbols\" stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"> <g id=\"Icons\/Social\" transform=\"translate(-74.000000, -2.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\" fill-rule=\"nonzero\"> <path d=\"M74.2155762,7.20409322 L77.8588786,7.20409322 L77.8588786,18 L74.2155762,18 L74.2155762,7.20409322 Z M76.0616143,2 C74.8146643,2 74,2.80609002 74,3.86411056 C74,4.90036967 74.7908238,5.72989508 76.0139333,5.72989508 L76.0371667,5.72989508 C77.3079571,5.72989508 78.0993476,4.90032981 78.0993476,3.86411056 C78.0755071,2.80609002 77.3079976,2 76.0616143,2 Z M86.8041976,6.95048874 C84.8702857,6.95048874 84.0038929,7.99790755 83.5205667,8.73245583 L83.5205667,7.20409322 L79.8761714,7.20409322 C79.924419,8.21687707 79.8761714,18 79.8761714,18 L83.5205667,18 L83.5205667,11.9708054 C83.5205667,11.6478911 83.5444071,11.3261725 83.6402952,11.0948476 C83.9041595,10.4502147 84.5037738,9.78266458 85.5095667,9.78266458 C86.8291714,9.78266458 87.3561714,10.773129 87.3561714,12.2237722 L87.3561714,18 L91,18 L91,11.8093881 C91,8.49339883 89.2027762,6.95048874 86.8041976,6.95048874 Z\" id=\"Shape\"><\/path> <\/g> <\/g> <\/svg> \n    <\/span>\n    <\/div>\n\n<div \n    class=\"eh-social-sharing-button wp-block-employmentherocom2025-eh-social-sharing-button\" data-icon=\"link\" data-social-type=\"copy\">\n    <span style=\"display: flex;\">\n        <svg class=\"icon\" width=\"18px\" height=\"19px\" viewBox=\"0 0 18 19\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"> <title>Group 7<\/title> <defs> <polygon id=\"path-1\" points=\"0 0 11.3597146 0 11.3597146 13.250495 0 13.250495\"><\/polygon> <polygon id=\"path-3\" points=\"0 0 11.4438464 0 11.4438464 13.237235 0 13.237235\"><\/polygon> <\/defs> <g id=\"Symbols\" stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"> <g id=\"Icons\/Social\" transform=\"translate(-115.000000, 0.000000)\"> <g id=\"Group-7\" transform=\"translate(115.000000, 0.000000)\"> <g id=\"Group-3\" transform=\"translate(6.640285, 0.000000)\"> <mask id=\"mask-2\" fill=\"white\"> <use xlink:href=\"#path-1\"><\/use> <\/mask> <g id=\"Clip-2\"><\/g> <path d=\"M9.6365839,1.06427739 L9.6365839,1.06407143 C7.63313006,-0.581342526 4.71799441,-0.287025772 3.06469376,1.72767436 L1.68152847,3.42787366 C1.2637913,3.94153775 1.3305731,4.70585509 1.8305341,5.13486964 C2.33069565,5.56409016 3.0749216,5.4955055 3.49265877,4.98184141 L4.8760246,3.28143615 C5.71089731,2.25863908 7.1949372,2.1243532 8.19104884,2.98176443 C8.20769415,2.99597567 8.22413891,3.01059882 8.24038313,3.02522198 C9.18174573,3.92361924 9.26838157,5.42383144 8.43691815,6.43015171 L5.5610895,9.96627791 L5.53461744,9.99634806 C5.38079871,10.1792405 5.20090901,10.3370058 5.00076417,10.4640831 C4.04676718,11.0718709 2.80719278,10.901748 2.04211006,10.0579301 C1.59709864,9.56877523 0.850065046,9.54303024 0.374169553,10.0002613 C-0.100522665,10.4562566 -0.127195273,11.2205739 0.315008503,11.7099348 C1.3991598,12.9045024 2.99670869,13.4575049 4.56377459,13.1800768 C4.80503134,13.1364133 5.04287882,13.0742134 5.27470991,12.9934771 C6.09434113,12.7094584 6.82152068,12.1980598 7.37542854,11.5155086 L10.2440375,7.98947441 C11.0680808,6.96832503 11.4617524,5.65182909 11.3372134,4.33183184 C11.2235039,3.05137889 10.6100339,1.87267016 9.6365839,1.06427739\" id=\"Fill-1\" fill=\"#000000\" mask=\"url(#mask-2)\"><\/path> <\/g> <g id=\"Group-6\" transform=\"translate(0.000000, 5.762765)\"> <mask id=\"mask-4\" fill=\"white\"> <use xlink:href=\"#path-3\"><\/use> <\/mask> <g id=\"Clip-5\"><\/g> <path d=\"M7.78481199,8.39527139 L6.54864687,9.91484383 C5.73222439,10.9339336 4.27946967,11.1129128 3.25127068,10.3214088 C2.2300908,9.49612727 2.05361038,7.97696676 2.85719793,6.92821874 C2.87083505,6.91050619 2.88447217,6.89299959 2.89851039,6.87569896 L5.82387388,3.27984437 L5.84553284,3.25492322 C5.99915102,3.07203079 6.17924127,2.91447144 6.37938611,2.78739415 C7.23972815,2.23645131 8.34754387,2.31595185 9.12506044,2.98449782 C9.2157072,3.06235067 9.30073868,3.14700021 9.37915214,3.23782854 C9.60657122,3.50207514 9.93486491,3.6513961 10.2784001,3.64665902 C10.6175233,3.64171598 10.9377951,3.48498047 11.155588,3.21764447 L11.1696262,3.20034383 C11.5426416,2.74620216 11.5342187,2.07930388 11.1497722,1.63546021 C9.42768425,-0.367088286 6.45118155,-0.55698335 4.50107292,1.21159465 C4.32298813,1.37306725 4.15713665,1.54813319 4.00472174,1.73555674 L1.08738009,5.32173121 C-0.548874157,7.35084854 -0.312430505,10.3492133 1.62043117,12.0813364 C2.56821124,12.921447 3.80678291,13.3317192 5.05377751,13.2188532 C5.20097822,13.2064956 5.34697566,13.1875473 5.49176982,13.1613904 C6.61362375,12.9593437 7.63039162,12.3585585 8.36398864,11.4636626 L9.59594229,9.94923914 C10.0136795,9.43578101 9.94709821,8.67146367 9.44693666,8.24224316 C8.94677511,7.81302264 8.20254916,7.8816073 7.78481199,8.39527139\" id=\"Fill-4\" fill=\"#000000\" mask=\"url(#mask-4)\"><\/path> <\/g> <\/g> <\/g> <\/g> <\/svg> \n    <\/span>\n            <span class=\"eh-social-sharing-button__copied_text\">\n            URL copied for sharing!        <\/span>\n    <\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-global-padding is-content-justification-left is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-5 wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\"><h1 class=\"blog-template-title wp-block-post-title\">How to Establish Good Relationships With Suppliers<\/h1><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"blog-template-sub-title\" style=\"padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--9);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--9);line-height:1.5\">\n    Find out how you can build strong supplier relationships, no matter your business size, and ensure a fruitful and enduring business partnership.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group blog-template-meta-row is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-8 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-query wp-block-hosts-query has-global-padding is-content-justification-left is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-query-is-layout-1 wp-block-query-is-layout-constrained\"><ul data-wp-interactive=\"eh-hosts\" class=\"wp-block-post-template is-layout-flow wp-container-core-post-template-is-layout-1 wp-block-post-template-is-layout-flow\"><li data-host-index=\"0\" data-wp-on--click=\"actions.openDetail\" class=\"wp-block-post post-1551 hosts type-hosts status-publish has-post-thumbnail hentry\">\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-nowrap is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-7 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\"><figure style=\"width:52px;height:52px;\" class=\"wp-block-post-featured-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"120\" height=\"120\" src=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2021\/07\/EH_Favicon-120x120.png\" class=\"attachment-host_thumbnail size-host_thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" style=\"border-radius:60px;height:52px;object-fit:cover;\" srcset=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2021\/07\/EH_Favicon-120x120.png 120w, https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2021\/07\/EH_Favicon-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2021\/07\/EH_Favicon.png 239w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 120px) 100vw, 120px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-sm-font-size is-vertical is-content-justification-center is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-6 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\"><h6 style=\"line-height:1.3; border-right-width:1px;border-right-color:var(--wp--preset--color--black); padding-right:var(--wp--preset--spacing--2);\" class=\"has-text-align-center has-link-color wp-elements-1e20e747939e3458765ab321928f59b7 wp-block-post-title has-text-color has-violet-500-color has-sm-font-size\">The Team<\/h6><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-sm-font-size\" style=\"border-left-style:none;border-left-width:0px;padding-left:0\">Published<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-post-date has-sm-font-size\"><time datetime=\"2020-09-16T00:00:00+00:00\">Sep 16, 2020<\/time><\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-sm-font-size\" style=\"border-left-color:var(--wp--preset--color--neutral-700);border-left-width:1px;padding-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--2)\">Updated<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-post-date__modified-date wp-block-post-date has-sm-font-size\"><time datetime=\"2025-07-03T08:32:52+00:00\">Jul 3, 2025<\/time><\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"has-sm-font-size\" style=\"border-left-color:var(--wp--preset--color--neutral-700);border-left-width:1px;padding-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--2)\">6 mins read<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignfull blog-image-container has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large is-resized blog-template-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/10\/EmploymentHero-supply-chain_28-05-202122880-98.jpg\" alt=\"Image\" style=\"object-fit:cover;width:864px;height:561px\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:66px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-1 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:30%\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group sticky-side-panel is-vertical is-content-justification-stretch is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-12 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex wp-container-2 is-position-sticky\">\n<p class=\"has-lg-font-size\" style=\"border-bottom-color:var(--wp--preset--color--neutral-200);border-bottom-width:0.1rem;padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--4);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--4)\"><strong>Contents<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"content-single-table-content\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:70%\" id=\"content-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group content_single content_single--blog content-single-content-wysiwyg wysiwyg content-wrapper has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"margin-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--4)\">\nAs a small business owner, you&#8217;ll be acutely aware that you can&#8217;t do it all. In fact, to have any chance at real success, there&#8217;s a whole swag of people you&#8217;re going to need to rely on.\n\nArguably, the most critical is your suppliers. Without them, you don&#8217;t have a product, and your customers are left disappointed. So, you&#8217;re probably wondering what you can do to lock your suppliers in for a lifetime of business bliss.\n\nThe hard truth is, you&#8217;re going to have to work at it. Like all good relationships, strengthening those with your suppliers requires time and dedication to realise their full potential (and we promise it&#8217;ll be worth it).\n\nStrong supplier relationships can mean more flexible terms of the business agreement, better quality products and faster turnaround times. It can put you in the prime position to benefit from new innovations and technologies and empower you to embrace opportunities to expand.\n\nSound good? Let&#8217;s dive in.<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"How to build strong supplier relationships\" class=\"wp-image-34593 size-large\" height=\"672\" src=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/business-supplier-1024x672.jpeg\" width=\"1024\"\/>\n<h2 id=\"1-think-collaboration-rather-than-transaction\">1. Think collaboration rather than transaction<\/h2>\nThere may be an &#8216;i&#8217; in suppliers, but good business is a team sport. Approaching your relationships with suppliers as partnerships or collaborations rather than transactions will enable you to align your business around common objectives and mutual benefits.\n\nThe idea is that success for one party is ultimately likely to benefit the other.\n\nTo put it another way:\n<ul>\n<li>More customers for your business means more business for your suppliers<\/li>\n<li>More business for your suppliers can often result in better prices for your business<\/li>\n<li>An upturn in business for both parties means less risk of headaches such as supply chain issues and unpaid invoices<\/li>\n<li>Working collaboratively affords greater product development and innovation<\/li>\n<li>Closer working relationships enable more agile and efficient processes<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nToo often, suppliers are seen as little more than a means to an end; a cog in the wheel. The most successful businesses recognise this as a misstep, instead choosing to view them more as an extension of their team. A true partner in business.\n<h2 id=\"2-communication-is-key\">2. Communication is key<\/h2>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/blog\/communication-in-the-workplace\/\">Regular, open communication<\/a> with your supply partners is key to ensuring you clearly understand each other. Make it your business to know the ins and outs of your suppliers&#8217; business -and for them to know yours. This means keeping in touch beyond purchases and payments and barebones admin.\n\nIt means proactively maintaining the conversation, and not just over the phone or email.\n\nBook regular facetime with your suppliers. Schedule a visit to their site. Invite key contacts to meet for coffee or lunch. Such meetings provide the perfect opportunity to talk through feedback and any <a href=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/blog\/5-steps-to-refresh-your-business-plan\/\">new business developments<\/a> that may be in the works.\n\nAre they doing something great? Is there something they could be doing better? Here is your chance to let them know. Are you looking to <a href=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/blog\/pricing-strategy\/\">diversify your product offering<\/a>? Taking on a new strategic direction? Struggling with any issues or pain points? Maybe they can help.\n\nYou would be surprised how often suppliers are able to provide useful insights or solutions to your business challenges. It&#8217;s in their best interest to do so after all. Going the extra mile to maintain close contact with your suppliers will not only help ensure you&#8217;re seen as more than just another account number to them.\n\nIt&#8217;ll also help both your businesses to run more effectively together.\n<h2 id=\"3-the-best-relationships-are-built-on-trust\">3. The best relationships are built on trust<\/h2>\nIf there&#8217;s one thing that every solid relationship has in common, it&#8217;s trust. Without it, a relationship can fall apart at the best of times. During harder times, trust can be the difference between getting through and not.\n\nFor businesses and suppliers, <a href=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/blog\/develop-trust-remote-working\/\">establishing trust<\/a> comes down to two small but significant details: honesty and reliability. It&#8217;s about setting expectations and delivering on them. It&#8217;s being easy and consistent to do business with.\n\n<h3 id=\"for-businesses-establishing-trust-means\">For businesses, establishing trust means:<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Paying your invoices on time.<\/strong> Like all businesses, suppliers rely on money being paid on time to meet their own financial obligations. Not doing so could be both detrimental to their business and your own, as they may be unable to deliver products or services as required.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Being honest and upfront about late payments<\/strong>. Whether it&#8217;s through financial difficulties or processing faults or inefficiencies, late payments can and likely will happen. The important thing is how you deal with it when it does. Honesty is always the best policy.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Providing enough lead time on orders.<\/strong> It&#8217;s only natural that sometimes you will need something from a supplier urgently. While having a solid relationship will make this less of a hassle to fulfil, as a general rule of thumb, it&#8217;s important you give suppliers as much lead time as possible. Making a habit of last-minute requests will eventually wear thin.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 id=\"for-suppliers-establishing-trust-means\">For suppliers, establishing trust means:<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Delivering on time.<\/strong> Just as suppliers need to be paid on time, businesses need to know their goods or services will be delivered when expected. This can have a direct and damaging effect on their relationships with their own customers.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Upholding product quality.<\/strong> Businesses require consistency in quality from their suppliers. Like timeliness, this can have a direct effect on their relationships with their own customers in cases where a product falls short of expectations.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Providing timely support in case of mishaps.<\/strong> When things go wrong (and they&#8217;re bound to at some point), businesses need to know they can count on suppliers to resolve the issue in a timely manner.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 id=\"4-respect-goes-a-long-way\">4. Respect goes a long way<\/h2>\nWe don&#8217;t mean to sound like your Mum, but&#8230;treat supply partners how you wish to be treated. Few things will derail a relationship with suppliers quicker than a lack of respect. When entering into a partnership of any kind, both parties do so bringing certain expectations.\n\nRespect is about delivering on these expectations. It&#8217;s about being considerate of the needs of both parties and striving to work in a mutually beneficial way.\n\nWhile there is always an element of conflict between business and supplier interests, namely minimising costs, a strong business-supplier relationship requires both parties to feel they are getting a fair deal.\n\nA business that feels they aren&#8217;t getting a fair deal will likely seek an alternative supplier. On the other hand, a supplier that believes they are being treated unfairly may no longer produce products of the quality expected by the business per the agreed terms.\n\nThis is why overly aggressive negotiating from either party can be so counterproductive to a business-supplier relationship. If only one party wins, there&#8217;s a good chance nobody wins.\n<h2 id=\"better-together\">Better together<\/h2>\nSupplier relationships are pivotal to the performance of your business. Ignore them, and they&#8217;ll stall your momentum; nurture them, and they can propel you towards your business goals\n\n<strong>Hint<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/resources\/okrs-guide\/\">Make strengthening your supplier relationships an OKR<\/a>! Building long-lasting and valuable business partnerships start with you. The best approach is a holistic one. Work collaboratively with your suppliers, communicate regularly and openly, and operate on a basis of trust and respect.\n\nIn the words of Henry Ford, \u201cComing together is a beginning; staying together is progress; and working together is success\u201d.\n\n<em>If your business is looking for a supplier that provides effective <a href=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/products\/hr-software\/\">cloud HR solutions<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/blog\/employment-hero-partner-faq\/\">91±¬ΑΟ may be the right one.<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/request-a-demo\/\">Get in touch today<\/a> with one of our small business specialists.<\/em>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-content-justification-center is-layout-flex wp-container-core-buttons-is-layout-2 wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\" data-trigger-modal=\"request-a-demo-modal\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\">Learn more<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignfull has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--20);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--20)\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-content-justification-space-between is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-14 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\" style=\"margin-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--10)\">\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Related Resources<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button is-style-link-arrow is-style-link-arrow--3\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link has-btn-brand-background-color has-background wp-element-button\" href=\"\/resources\/?topic%5B0%5D%5B0%5D=Product\">View all<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-query blog-3-col-query-loop is-layout-flow wp-block-query-is-layout-flow\"><ul class=\"columns-3 alignfull wp-block-post-template is-layout-grid wp-container-core-post-template-is-layout-2 wp-block-post-template-is-layout-grid\"><li class=\"wp-block-post post-27886 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-uncategorized resource-type-blog\">\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-border-color has-neutral-100-border-color has-white-background-color has-background is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-17 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\" style=\"border-width:1px;min-height:100%\"><figure style=\"aspect-ratio:16\/9;width:100%;height:100%; padding-bottom:0;padding-top:0;margin-bottom:0;\" class=\"wp-block-post-featured-image\"><a href=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/blog\/product-update-january-2026\/\" target=\"_self\"  style=\"height:100%\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1152\" height=\"760\" src=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/Product-Update-January-2026-thumbnail.webp\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"Product Update: January 2026\" style=\"width:100%;height:100%;object-fit:cover;\" srcset=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/Product-Update-January-2026-thumbnail.webp 1152w, https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/Product-Update-January-2026-thumbnail-300x198.webp 300w, https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/Product-Update-January-2026-thumbnail-1024x676.webp 1024w, https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/Product-Update-January-2026-thumbnail-768x507.webp 768w, https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/Product-Update-January-2026-thumbnail-576x380.webp 576w, https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/Product-Update-January-2026-thumbnail-440x290.webp 440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1152px) 100vw, 1152px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group blog-3-col-details wp-container-content-3 is-vertical is-content-justification-left is-nowrap is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-16 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\" style=\"margin-top:0;padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--10);padding-right:var(--wp--preset--spacing--10);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--10);padding-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--10)\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-15 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\"><div style=\"font-style:normal;font-weight:600\" class=\"taxonomy-resource-type eh-resource-type wp-block-post-terms\"><a href=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/resources\/blog\/\" rel=\"tag\">Blogs<\/a><\/div>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-post-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/blog\/product-update-january-2026\/\" target=\"_self\" >Product Update: January 2026<\/a><\/h3>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-post-excerpt has-text-color has-contrast-2-color has-small-font-size wp-container-content-2\"><p class=\"wp-block-post-excerpt__excerpt\">Welcome to the January 2026 product update from the 91±¬ΑΟ team. We\u2019ve got lots to share around Custom Forms,&hellip; <\/p><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<a style=\"font-style:normal;font-weight:600;\" class=\"wp-elements-9dfcbcb7662772ecb2d671e8976a6c51 wp-block-read-more has-text-color has-violet-500-color\" href=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/blog\/product-update-january-2026\/\" target=\"_self\">Read more<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">: Product Update: January 2026<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/blog\/product-update-january-2026\/\" target=\"_self\" class=\"group-block-link\"><\/a>\n<\/li><li class=\"wp-block-post post-27783 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-uncategorized tag-2025-product-update resource-type-blog topic-product\">\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-border-color has-neutral-100-border-color has-white-background-color has-background is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-20 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\" style=\"border-width:1px;min-height:100%\"><figure style=\"aspect-ratio:16\/9;width:100%;height:100%; padding-bottom:0;padding-top:0;margin-bottom:0;\" class=\"wp-block-post-featured-image\"><a href=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/blog\/product-update-december-2025\/\" target=\"_self\"  style=\"height:100%\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1152\" height=\"760\" src=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/December-2025-Product-Update-Thumbnail.webp\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"Product Update: December 2025\" style=\"width:100%;height:100%;object-fit:cover;\" srcset=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/December-2025-Product-Update-Thumbnail.webp 1152w, https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/December-2025-Product-Update-Thumbnail-300x198.webp 300w, https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/December-2025-Product-Update-Thumbnail-1024x676.webp 1024w, https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/December-2025-Product-Update-Thumbnail-768x507.webp 768w, https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/December-2025-Product-Update-Thumbnail-576x380.webp 576w, https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/December-2025-Product-Update-Thumbnail-440x290.webp 440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1152px) 100vw, 1152px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group blog-3-col-details wp-container-content-6 is-vertical is-content-justification-left is-nowrap is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-19 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\" style=\"margin-top:0;padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--10);padding-right:var(--wp--preset--spacing--10);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--10);padding-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--10)\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-18 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\"><div style=\"font-style:normal;font-weight:600\" class=\"taxonomy-resource-type eh-resource-type wp-block-post-terms\"><a href=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/resources\/blog\/\" rel=\"tag\">Blogs<\/a><\/div>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-post-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/blog\/product-update-december-2025\/\" target=\"_self\" >Product Update: December 2025<\/a><\/h3>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-post-excerpt has-text-color has-contrast-2-color has-small-font-size wp-container-content-5\"><p class=\"wp-block-post-excerpt__excerpt\">Welcome to the December 2025 product update from the 91±¬ΑΟ team. We\u2019ve got lots to share around Custom Forms,&hellip; <\/p><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<a style=\"font-style:normal;font-weight:600;\" class=\"wp-elements-9dfcbcb7662772ecb2d671e8976a6c51 wp-block-read-more has-text-color has-violet-500-color\" href=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/blog\/product-update-december-2025\/\" target=\"_self\">Read more<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">: Product Update: December 2025<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/blog\/product-update-december-2025\/\" target=\"_self\" class=\"group-block-link\"><\/a>\n<\/li><li class=\"wp-block-post post-27764 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-uncategorized tag-2025-product-update resource-type-blog topic-product\">\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-border-color has-neutral-100-border-color has-white-background-color has-background is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-23 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\" style=\"border-width:1px;min-height:100%\"><figure style=\"aspect-ratio:16\/9;width:100%;height:100%; padding-bottom:0;padding-top:0;margin-bottom:0;\" class=\"wp-block-post-featured-image\"><a href=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/blog\/product-update-november-2025\/\" target=\"_self\"  style=\"height:100%\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1152\" height=\"760\" src=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/12\/BlogDownloadable_Generic-optimized.webp\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"Product Update: November 2025\" style=\"width:100%;height:100%;object-fit:cover;\" srcset=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/12\/BlogDownloadable_Generic-optimized.webp 1152w, https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/12\/BlogDownloadable_Generic-optimized-300x198.webp 300w, https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/12\/BlogDownloadable_Generic-optimized-1024x676.webp 1024w, https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/12\/BlogDownloadable_Generic-optimized-768x507.webp 768w, https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/12\/BlogDownloadable_Generic-optimized-576x380.webp 576w, https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/12\/BlogDownloadable_Generic-optimized-440x290.webp 440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1152px) 100vw, 1152px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group blog-3-col-details wp-container-content-9 is-vertical is-content-justification-left is-nowrap is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-22 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\" style=\"margin-top:0;padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--10);padding-right:var(--wp--preset--spacing--10);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--10);padding-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--10)\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-21 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\"><div style=\"font-style:normal;font-weight:600\" class=\"taxonomy-resource-type eh-resource-type wp-block-post-terms\"><a href=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/resources\/blog\/\" rel=\"tag\">Blogs<\/a><\/div>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-post-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/blog\/product-update-november-2025\/\" target=\"_self\" >Product Update: November 2025<\/a><\/h3>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-post-excerpt has-text-color has-contrast-2-color has-small-font-size wp-container-content-8\"><p class=\"wp-block-post-excerpt__excerpt\">Welcome to the November 2025 product update from the 91±¬ΑΟ team. We\u2019ve got lots to share around Workflows, Rostering,&hellip; <\/p><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<a style=\"font-style:normal;font-weight:600;\" class=\"wp-elements-9dfcbcb7662772ecb2d671e8976a6c51 wp-block-read-more has-text-color has-violet-500-color\" href=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/blog\/product-update-november-2025\/\" target=\"_self\">Read more<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">: Product Update: November 2025<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/blog\/product-update-november-2025\/\" target=\"_self\" class=\"group-block-link\"><\/a>\n<\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>We\u2019ve got the inside scoop on how to build strong supplier relationships. Check it out!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":30,"featured_media":24403,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"_lite_auth_enabled":false,"_lite_auth_trigger_method":"scroll","_lite_auth_scroll_percent":25,"_lite_auth_click_element_query":"","exclude_from_algolia":false,"reading_time":"5 min read","display_reading_time":false,"download_content_type":"","download_file":"","download_url":"","download_cta_label":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"resource-type":[130],"topic":[86],"industry":[42],"audience":[],"business-size":[],"product-tag":[],"funnel-stage":[],"region":[],"pain-point":[],"persona":[],"post_features":[],"class_list":["post-6706","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","resource-type-blog","topic-business-basics","industry-agriculture"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6706","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/30"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6706"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6706\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26791,"href":"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6706\/revisions\/26791"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/24403"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6706"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6706"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6706"},{"taxonomy":"resource-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/resource-type?post=6706"},{"taxonomy":"topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/topic?post=6706"},{"taxonomy":"industry","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/industry?post=6706"},{"taxonomy":"audience","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/audience?post=6706"},{"taxonomy":"business-size","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/business-size?post=6706"},{"taxonomy":"product-tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product-tag?post=6706"},{"taxonomy":"funnel-stage","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/funnel-stage?post=6706"},{"taxonomy":"region","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/region?post=6706"},{"taxonomy":"pain-point","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pain-point?post=6706"},{"taxonomy":"persona","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/persona?post=6706"},{"taxonomy":"post_features","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/employmenthero.com\/sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_features?post=6706"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}