ENGAGEMENT
Overcoming scepticism Where scepticism could have been a problem, Harvey’s approach was to discuss the challenges in the Australian energy industry. It is currently undergoing a transition from a slow-changing industry, to one marked by increased renewable investments, transformation of the energy ecosystem and dynamic market forces. A discussion about industry disruption led to a conversation about where stakeholders felt they need or would benefit from help. That might be whether our competitors were seen as suppliers’ ‘customer of choice’ thus enjoying favourable prices or services; or when other organisations were undertaking dialogue differently with
their suppliers; or whether Stanwell was prepared to do this differently. “Facing disruption alone will see limited successes. We needed to create a space to have that conversation, allowing us to use it as a catalyst for change. When people feel they have permission to ask for help, that gives them more control of the conversation as well as a sense of curiosity,” Harvey says. After getting agreement to discuss ways suppliers may help, Stanwell worked with State of Flux to road-test supplier relationship management and demonstrate its value to the business. Not a big bang approach – rather more of an opportunity role model. The next step was to select three suppliers to work with. Harvey’s team picked one supplier of a highly complex product, one that was high risk and one that was high value. Then an open dialogue began to uncover what the suppliers found difficult about working with Stanwell and where the energy firm could improve its performance. Two of these projects have concluded, and one is still ongoing after two years. Sample supplier survey Early progress with these three suppliers was well received by the business allowing the procurement team to work with State of Flux to develop a voice of the supplier survey to sample the supply base of 5,000 suppliers. With around 160 responses, Stanwell began to understand how suppliers perceived the company, if it was treating them well, or if it was not talking to them regularly enough. It wanted to understand on a broad scale what issues suppliers might have in working with Stanwell. This could extend from suppliers potentially having problems with payments and other transactional interactions to if they were getting enough communication about the Stanwell strategy and priorities. “It was about having permission for a different conversation with suppliers. Not everyone is going to have a strategic relationship or alliance. Some suppliers are happy to be dealt with on a transactional basis, but they want to get paid on time, and we want a quality
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