SUPPLY CHAIN
Thames Water , the UK ’ s biggest water and sewerage company , has undergone a radical supplier transformation of late , as the organisation looks to match the quality of its network with a level of service that delivers
As one of the largest utility companies in the UK , serving more than 15million customers on a daily basis , Thames Water has a clear responsibility to provide essential services that are of the highest quality , and it can successfully do so through a strong and reliable supplier network .
However , managing a network of suppliers and contractors that encompasses around 12,000 people working directly for the organisation or as part of a thirdparty contract can prove difficult .
It was not so long ago that Thames Water was consistently ranked the lowest in the annual supplier satisfaction survey from British Water . Fast forward to 2017 however , and Thames Water now ranks within the top two and has won a number of major awards , ( including Construction Client of the Year and the Supply Chain Excellence Customer Service award ).
The reason for the historically low rankings , as Jon Loveday , Group Commercial Director explains , was a lack of any real commercial strategy , the supplier contracts and company goals were misaligned and there was a deep rooted belief that suppliers represented lowest cost and could not provide a value proposition .
“ I wasn ’ t brought in to develop a strategy initially , I was tasked with managing Thames Water ’ s existing suppliers ,” he says . “ Thames Water was seen as an aggressive client
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