Want to earn more as a procurement specialist? Insights from a 16-year procurement veteran.

    Supplier development and maintenance

    Directly determines your income

How to Build Supplier Resources? Insights from a 16-Year Procurement Veteran

Suppliers Met Through On-Site Visits ("Floor Sweeping")

When I first started in 2004, I would print out product specifications, walk around markets with A4 sheets in hand, and gather quotes. I recorded details like part numbers, prices, batch info, and

 supplier contacts in a notebook. Every night and on weekends, I organized all the business cards into Excel, categorizing them by brand or packaging type. This hands-on approach helped me build a

 solid and memorable supplier base.

Sourcing from Websites

I searched both domestic and international platforms like IC Net, Huaqiang, Alibaba, Baidu, ICSOURCE, NETCOMPONENTS, and Findchips. Early in my career, many suppliers

 weren’t online yet, making sources harder to find—which also meant better pricing advantages.

Trade Shows

In the early years, I attended electronics expos in Shenzhen, exchanging business cards and connecting with distributors.

Advertisements & Hot Lists

I kept an eye on promotions from factories and distributors, including emails, QQ/WeChat groups, and public accounts, noting hot-selling part numbers.

Networking

Suppliers met through industry gatherings or referrals from colleagues and friends. My advice: Add contacts immediately, jot down their specialties, and label them properly.

Why Supplier Resources Matter

The depth of your supplier network reflects a procurement professional’s core competitiveness—it directly impacts your income and career growth. Suppliers are just as valuable

 as clients; they, along with industry contacts, can become key references for future trade opportunities.

Last year, I bought an ST chip. It took 4-6 weeks to place an order from the supplier, and the deposit was tens of thousands of dollars. I was not confident that the supplier was one I had never worked with before. I asked many friends in Shenzhen, but none of them had worked with me before. Finally, a friend in the foreign procurement circle helped me find it. Foreign companies will rate suppliers. After learning more about it, I found that this supplier had a high rating, so I paid the deposit with confidence.

Be sure to conduct a background check on unfamiliar suppliers, including their resource channels, boss’s background, the more detailed the better. This can be done through

 indirect information and the resources of the supplier’s circle of friends as well as comprehensive consideration.

• Learn from the side: whether the supplier has other vests, check the registration time, legal person, mobile phone and telephone number;

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• Trade reference: which large companies the supplier has cooperated with, how many orders have been cooperated, when was the most recent one, the amount, payment method, product quality, after-sales service, etc.

                                        Price negotiation:

                                      With skills, you can achieve twice the result with half the effort

Negotiation is an essential part of a procurement professional's daily work. Mastering negotiation skills can maximize efficiency, and from the boss's perspective, it’s a win—

helping them achieve ultimate profit optimization. A successful negotiation can even cut costs equivalent to one or more employees' base salaries.

1. Thorough Preparation Before Negotiation

a. Market Research

Understand the market: Is the supplier’s stock of this component abundant? Are they under inventory pressure?

Evaluate sourcing channels: Is the supply from direct orders, transfers, or purchased inventory?

Leverage historical data: Check if you’ve sourced this part in the past six months to determine a reasonable bargaining range.

b. Supplier Assessment

Gauge demand: Are many buyers inquiring about this part?

Check inventory levels: How much stock does the supplier have?

Lead time: How long is the ordering cycle? Are there authorized distributors with ready stock?

c. Negotiate with Decision-Makers

Different levels have different authority (boss, manager, salesperson).

The boss usually has more flexibility in pricing, while salespeople may prioritize their commission.

2. Pay attention to the rhythm when bargaining

a. Don't let the customer feel that you have to buy this batch of materials before bargaining. If necessary, change the topic. You can start with a small order and talk to the customer first;

b. Try to talk in a positive tone, especially when you are facing the other party's sales. If your tone is not positive enough, he is worried that you will not buy it after applying for the

 price for you, and he will not be able to apply for the price with the boss next time. Of course, it will also affect your next negotiation with the supplier.

c. To avoid the breakdown of the relationship, you should also think more about the other party. You can't kill them all and make no concessions. Long-term cooperation and win-

win are the smartest ways. Only by retreating can the relationship last long;

d. Don't consume suppliers too much. Frequently asking for prices but not buying goods, bargaining but not buying goods will consume suppliers and there is a risk of being

 blacklisted;

e. When the supplier complains to you, be a good listener or communicate with him as a friend. Suppliers and buyers often complain about their poor channels, too high purchase

 prices, purchases during high exchange rates, customers not wanting the goods after placing an order, etc. You just need to listen quietly.

          Sales can't kill a deal, but Procurement can.

"Sales can't kill a customer relationship, but Procurement can." I've seen many long-term clients lost because procurement failed to properly vet suppliers, resulting in purchases of

 refurbished components that destroyed the business.

For procurement professionals, you don't need to be as technical as an FAE (Field Application Engineer), but you should understand key markings and labels - suffix variations,

 packaging types (tubes, reels, trays), RoHS compliance levels, etc. Solid component knowledge enables better client communication, increases order conversion rates, and most importantly, reduces procurement risks.

1. How Procurement Should Inspect Goods

Quality control can be approached two ways:

a) Partner with professional third-party inspection agencies. These specialists use advanced equipment to provide reliable verification - for example, ChipHero's component

 authentication and labeling verification services.

b. At the procurement level, even trusted suppliers require inspection to mitigate risks from lax ordering channels, oxidized/dead stock, or market transfers. When in doubt about

 components, vet the supplier instead – "If you can't judge the goods, judge the people."

2. Which products are prone to problems?

High imitations: mainly some high imitations of foreign brands, diodes, triodes, optocouplers PC357, EL817, AOS, Maxim (starting with 2, 3, 4), ATMEL, etc. are all severely affected,

 mainly some low-end chips, such as some low-end interface chips of Maxim, which are sold for 2-3 yuan in the market, and high imitations only cost a few cents. However, in order

 to avoid suspicion, some high imitations are only a little less than the normal price. Maybe there will be no problems at the time, but they may have problems after half a year.

Suggestions for improving quality control capabilities:

1. Don't use last year's standards to look at this year's goods

High imitations and refurbished goods are getting stronger and stronger, and new goods often make up for the flaws that everyone can see.

2. Keep a record of the goods you buy, study refurbished goods and fakes, and carefully inspect the goods when buying.

For all the chips you have bought, take a photo of the outer packaging and keep a record, study the differences between chips produced by different years, different testing and

 packaging factories, and you can see some tricks in the fonts, spacing, and templates. I usually spend my weekends and evenings to carefully look at the labels and chips with a

 magnifying glass, like appreciating pictures of antiques. I also take time out on weekends to buy high-quality imitations for research, and I will directly record any clues I find.

3. Don't blindly develop new suppliers when you don't have enough inspection capabilities.

4. Inspection is not achieved overnight, it is a long-term process of exploration and accumulation.

                                               How to Build a Personal Brand?

                                             "Your Network Determines Your Net Worth"

"My understanding of personal branding is this: As a procurement professional, it's about your influence within your company and across the entire industry. Your network truly

equals your net worth. Building your personal brand ultimately depends on your character and capabilities."

1. In the eyes of your boss, what kind of subordinate are you? (Are you vigorous and resolute? Do you like to avoid problems?)

"It determines your income, promotions, and even termination. Ask yourself honestly: If you were the boss, what score would you give yourself? Would you hire an employee like you?"

2. What kind of purchasing/partner are you in the eyes of your colleagues?

Mainly reflected in the details of daily work, you may not feel any benefits in the short term, but in the long run, you can get stable returns, such as sales tendencies and more

 reliable purchasing cooperation, which directly determine the speed of closing orders.

At the same time, you should have a good relationship with your colleagues and avoid marginalization. The purchasing circle is closely connected, and your current colleagues may

 become your boss, partner, or help you introduce other resources in the future.

Reliable purchasing considerations:

A Quotation speed

B Price quality

C Quotation completeness (brand, packaging, packaging form, delivery date, vacuum packaging, outer box, etc.)

D After-sales service

E Attitude towards work

3. The Core Value of Procurement Lies in Your Comprehensive Competence

The Core Value of Procurement: Your Comprehensive Competence

A. Supplier Resources (Authorized Distributors, Overseas Sources, Market Channels)

Actively seek valuable information in industry groups and tag key contacts.

Always be expanding your supplier network—it’s a must.

B. Networking & Resource Mobilization

Your own competence is the foundation, but equal-value exchange sustains lasting relationships.

C. Negotiation Power = Your Value to Sales

Sales teams prioritize assigning key accounts to strong negotiators.

D. Knowledge Reserve

Master broad topics to engage any supplier: current affairs, economics, real estate, politics, history, culture, even poetry.

Why? Depth builds trust and unlocks opportunities.

E. Professional Writing (Contracts, Reports, Summaries)

Your documents reveal critical thinking,Post-Mortem Analysis (post-mortem analysis), and strategic perspective.

F. Communication Skills

Strengthen ties with sales and suppliers. Result? More orders, priority stock holds, and access to hidden resources.

G. Quality Control

Avoid high-risk suppliers and defective goods. Free up time for high-value work.

H. Payment Terms

Minimize company risk while optimizing cash flow.

I. Part Number Sensitivity

Know instantly which suppliers dominate a specific component—and spot obsolete/mislabeled parts.

J. Crisis Management

Handle emergencies: defective shipments, canceled orders, or "bait-and-switch" deliveries.

K. Serve Internal Clients

Remember: Your sales team is your customer. Treat them as priority #1.

In his book “The Doing Method”, Kazuo Inamori divides employees into three categories:

• Non-flammable type: People who cannot catch fire even if ignited;

  
  

• Flammable type: People who catch fire when ignited;

  
  

• Spontaneous combustion type: People who can burn without being ignited.

If you observe carefully, you will find that those who get promoted the fastest and have the most growth and progress are often the third type of people - the self-igniting type.

 Therefore, as a purchaser, you must make use of the time outside of 8 hours to improve your professional level (various groups of official website specifications) and strengthen

 your comprehensive strength. The difference between outstanding purchasers and mediocre purchasers is the difference between self-control and execution. All problems are

 your opportunities to stand out.

Economist Xue Zhaofeng once said: In fact, everyone, every time, is working for his resume. No matter how long you can work in this company, no matter whether you are in this

 industry or go to other industries in the future, this resume will always be with us.