A supplier scorecard records four things each quarter: whether deliveries arrived on the confirmed date, whether quantities and quality matched the order, how long they took to answer, and what went wrong. It turns a supplier conversation from an exchange of impressions into one about a record, which is the only version that changes anything.
When to use it
Use it for any supplier you order from regularly, and particularly one you are unhappy with but keep using. That combination is usually a sign that nobody has the evidence to justify the switch.
Fill it in as the quarter goes rather than at the end. Reconstructing three months of deliveries from memory produces a scorecard that measures your mood.
The template
One per supplier per quarter. The numbers come from your own records, not from what they tell you.
SUPPLIER SCORECARD Supplier: [name] Quarter: [ ] Completed by: [name] 1. DID IT ARRIVE WHEN THEY SAID Orders placed this quarter: [ ] Arrived on the confirmed date: [ ] Arrived late: [ ] Worst delay: [ ] days Told us in advance when late: [ ] of [ ] 2. WAS IT WHAT WE ORDERED Short-shipped: [ ] Wrong items: [ ] Quality rejections: [ ] 3. HOW THEY ARE TO DEAL WITH Typical reply time: [ ] Chases needed per order (average): [ ] Raised a problem before we found it: [ ] yes [ ] no 4. WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENED [free text: the specific incidents, with dates] VERDICT [ ] Keep, no action [ ] Keep, raise [specific issue] with [name] by [date] [ ] Find a second source for [items] [ ] Replace Next review: [date]
How to adapt it
- Measure against the confirmed date, not the quoted lead time. A supplier who quotes fourteen days, confirms twenty-one and delivers on day twenty-one is reliable. Scoring them against fourteen makes them look late when they are not.
- Keep the told-us-in-advance line. It is the most useful number here. A late supplier who warns you is a planning problem; one who goes quiet is a risk.
- Do not add a total score. Rolling four measures into one number hides which one is bad, and the whole point is to know what to raise.
- Write the incidents down. The free text is what makes the conversation specific, and a supplier responds very differently to a date than to a complaint.
Why it is this short
It is four sections because the conversation only ever concerns four things: did it come on time, was it right, are they responsive, and what went wrong. Measuring more produces a form nobody completes.
The verdict box is there because a review with no decision is a record, and records do not change anything on their own.
Common questions
What should a supplier scorecard measure?
Delivery against the confirmed date, accuracy of what arrived, responsiveness, and the specific incidents. Four measures is enough to decide anything you would actually act on.
Should supplier performance be scored against the quoted lead time?
No, against the date they confirmed. A supplier who confirms a longer date and hits it is reliable, and scoring them against the quote makes reliability look like lateness.
How often should suppliers be reviewed?
Quarterly for anyone you order from regularly. Fill it in as the quarter goes, because reconstructing three months from memory measures your mood rather than their performance.
What is the most useful single measure?
Whether they tell you in advance when something will be late. A late supplier who warns you is a planning problem you can solve; one who goes quiet is a risk you cannot.