Dual Sourcing — Everything a Procurement Professional Should Know (2024)

The Difference Between Dual Sourcing and Single Sourcing

The difference between dual sourcing and single sourcing is clearly the number of suppliers. In single sourcing, the business will choose one among other suppliers that provide the same goods or services.

On the other hand, Dual sourcing refers to an approach where it uses preferred suppliers to provide the same product or services.

Many purchasers are still undecided whether to use dual sourcing or single sourcing. With single sourcing, purchasers can lower the costs due to leveraging the volume of products.

However, dual sourcing lessens the risk of blockage in the production of a business. When one supplier cannot fulfill its obligations, then the other one will take responsibility. Dual sourcing allows the company to sustain production when an emergency occurs.

The Advantages of Dual Sourcing

1. Cost flexibility and savings

Dual sourcing requires you to work with multiple suppliers to check the best price and quality in the market.

When you deal with multiple suppliers, they will bid against each other to be your supplier. For them to achieve this, they will lower the prices of their goods or services which will save you money.

Dual sourcing also prevents the monopoly of supplies which makes the prices higher. When you have more than one supplier, no one can pressure you to pay more for the same products or quality. This is because no one can leverage it as you can always source the products or services from your other supplier.

2. Supports distinct regions

Dual sourcing is an effective approach for businesses that sell their products to multiple regions. Hiring two suppliers and then dividing them into your distinct area will allow you to minimize shipping costs.

Dual sourcing can also be useful for international companies who want to decrease tariff costs. Instead of importing materials, they can search for suppliers that produce them within the country.

3. Security in supplies

Dual sourcing involves working with more than one supplier. This allows the company to source materials even if the other supplier cannot commit due to the occurrence of emergencies.

When a supplier has difficulty in meeting your demands, you can ask your other supplier to fulfill it. This will give the company an opportunity to scale production.

4. Reduces lead time

Most manufacturing companies have a lead time of 1 month between shipments. This process is accepted by the industry standards but you can make it faster with dual sourcing.

You can adjust your calendar so your products can be shipped every two weeks. This approach increases the output and revenue of manufacturing companies.

The Disadvantages of Dual Sourcing

1. Less quality control

Quality control becomes complicated in dual sourcing. You will need to check if the materials that arrived are identical to one another in terms of quality. If it is not checked accurately, the customer may notice it which may affect customer satisfaction.

2. Requires thorough negotiations with suppliers

Dual sourcing requires you to negotiate contracts and maintain relations with your two distinct suppliers. This may increase your transaction costs that are due to the supply relationship.

3. Prices may be greater

Dual sourcing may have two suppliers but both of them will divide the needs of your business. This opens the possibility of higher prices due to buying lower quantities.

Dual Sourcing — Everything a Procurement Professional Should Know (2024)

FAQs

Dual Sourcing — Everything a Procurement Professional Should Know? ›

Dual sourcing simply means operating with two suppliers for the same product.

What is dual sourcing in procurement? ›

Dual sourcing simply means operating with two suppliers for the same product.

What are dual sourcing strategies? ›

Dual sourcing is the supply chain management practice of using two suppliers for a given component, raw material, product or service. The term dual sourcing is often used outside its strict definition to be synonymous with multi sourcing, which can be more than two.

What are the challenges of dual sourcing? ›

One of the biggest disadvantages of dual sourcing is the possibility of inconsistent quality between your two suppliers. If one of your suppliers provides superior quality, but your other supplier's quality isn't quite as good, that may cause you problems.

What are the basics of sourcing and procurement? ›

Sourcing is the process of evaluating and hiring individual businesses to supply goods and services to your business. Procurement is the process of actually purchasing those goods and services.

What are the three types of sourcing? ›

Some sourcing strategies to consider:
  • Outsourcing. Having suppliers provide goods and services that were previously provided internally.
  • Insourcing. Delegating a job to someone within the company.
  • Nearsourcing. A business places some operations close to where its end products are sold to save time and money.
May 4, 2017

What are two goals of sourcing? ›

Sourcing is a strategic process with long-term goals such as creating relationships with the most suitable suppliers and building and maintaining a resilient supply chain.

What are the 5 core processes for Strategic sourcing? ›

Strategic Sourcing: Five Steps to Secure the Best Suppliers
  • Evaluate, collect data and build a strategy. ...
  • Determine the right engagement model. ...
  • Research and award your supplier. ...
  • Contract implementation. ...
  • Invoice set up and monitoring.
Oct 8, 2020

What are the five options of sourcing? ›

So, after careful thought, our five principles of sourcing are Coherence, Alignment, Rigour, Openness and Commerciality.

What are the 4 steps of Strategic sourcing? ›

Although strategic sourcing processes will vary from organisation to organisation, they all typically follow the same overall structure.
  • Analyse Your Internal Needs And The Market. ...
  • Identify Potential Suppliers. ...
  • Develop A Strategic Sourcing Strategy. ...
  • Negotiate With Suppliers. ...
  • Implement The Strategy.

What are two advantages of dual sourcing? ›

The Advantages of Dual Sourcing
  • Cost flexibility and savings.
  • Supports distinct regions.
  • Security in supplies.
  • Reduces lead time.
  • Less quality control.
  • Requires thorough negotiations with suppliers.
  • Prices may be greater.

What arguments favor dual sourcing? ›

The arguments that favor dual sourcing would be the benefits that companies can achieve by using the "70-30" approach. With this approach, one supplier is awarded 70 percent of a buyer's volume, while a second supplier is awarded the other 30 percent of the buyer's volume.

What are the 4 pillars of sourcing? ›

However, strategic sourcing is a mansion supported by 4 pillars- Spend analysis, sourcing, contract management supplier management.

What are the 5 main things in procurement? ›

They are as follows: Define requirements, select supplier, produce agreement, administer day-to-day, and assess performance.

What are the 6 sourcing strategies? ›

Six essential steps towards a successful sourcing strategy
  • Spend analysis. ...
  • Supplier market share analysis. ...
  • Supplier-spend share analysis. ...
  • Procurement organization's demand. ...
  • Category risk analysis. ...
  • Vendor qualification.
Jun 19, 2019

What are the six sourcing steps? ›

These steps include:
  • Define Business Requirements.
  • Sourcing Project Team Formation.
  • Sourcing Project Data Gathering & Analysis.
  • Source Plan Development & Approval.
  • Contract Management & Execution.
  • Supplier Relationship Management.
Apr 11, 2019

What are the 3 stages of a sourcing process? ›

The general sourcing process can be divided into the following 5 stages, explained below.
  • Stage 1: Preliminary Research – Investigation and Tendering. ...
  • Stage 2: Market and Supplier Evaluation. ...
  • Stage 3: Selection of the Supplier (Sourcing Event) ...
  • Stage 4: Implementation. ...
  • Stage 5: Performance Monitoring.
Sep 15, 2015

What is KPI in sourcing? ›

Procurement Key Performance Indicators and Metrics

A procurement KPI or metric is a measurable value that tracks all relevant aspects of obtaining or buying goods and services. These KPIs enable the procurement department to control and optimize the quantity, quality, costs, timing and sourcing of purchasing processes.

What are the 3 main elements of a sourcing plan? ›

Three essential steps to creating a sourcing and procurement plan
  • Step 1: Identifying opportunities. The organization's requirements for a service or product usually trigger opportunities or needs. ...
  • Step 2: Specification and need analysis. ...
  • Step 3: Strategic Analysis.
Jan 13, 2017

What is a typical sourcing strategy? ›

Simple sourcing strategy involves finding the most cost-effective supplier of goods. It's carried out in many different areas and for a variety of business needs. One of the most common forms of sourcing is known as supply chain management.

How can I be a good sourcing manager? ›

Crucial sourcing manager skills for success
  1. Contracting and procurement negotiation.
  2. Risk management.
  3. Strategic sourcing software experience.
  4. Business ethics and transparency.
  5. Forecasting and planning.
  6. Category management.
  7. Project management.
  8. Data analysis.
Dec 3, 2020

How do you structure a sourcing strategy? ›

Strategic sourcing process steps
  1. Analyze product categories used by the business, spending patterns, and the processes and departments involved.
  2. Develop a sourcing strategy based on business goals.
  3. Analyze the supplier market and create a supplier portfolio.
  4. Define request for proposal criteria and templates.

How do you create a procurement sourcing strategy? ›

The 7 steps of a strategic procurement process
  1. Step 1: Conduct an internal needs analysis. ...
  2. Step 2: Conduct an assessment of the supplier's market. ...
  3. Step 3: Collect supplier information. ...
  4. Step 4: Develop a sourcing/outsourcing strategy. ...
  5. Step 5: Implement the sourcing strategy.
Jun 2, 2017

What are sourcing skills? ›

Sourcing is the proactive searching for qualified job candidates for current or planned open positions; it is not the reactive function of reviewing resumes and applications sent to the company in response to a job posting or pre-screening candidates.

What are the pros and cons of multiple sourcing? ›

Multiple supply sourcing may benefit dependency, flexibility and capacity, but it can complicate supplier relationships and require greater resources to manage them. As supplier numbers grow, the price tag often goes up and the following drawbacks can occur: information sharing may become more complex.

Is multiple sourcing better than single sourcing? ›

Single sourcing, a powerful approach in a stable environment, can amplify a firm's exposure to risk (e.g., supplier's default) in the presence of uncertainty. Multiple sourcing, however, presents higher costs due to the management of more than one supplier.

What is a dual source supplier? ›

What is a Dual Source Supplier? A dual source supplier is exactly as it sounds: using another supplier for your roll-forming needs.

What is the most significant sourcing decision? ›

in-house or outsource The most significant sourcing decision for a firm is whether to perform a task in-house or outsource it to a third party. Within a task such as transportation, man- agers must decide whether to outsource all of it, outsource only the responsive component, or outsource only the efficient component.

What is the hardest aspect of procurement? ›

Why is Procurement Difficult? The procurement process is challenging because it involves teams who manage various responsibilities. From communicating with vendors to running compliance checks, processing payments, and analyzing market trends, a lot goes into running a function with such high stakes.

What are the four 4 sources of risk in procurement? ›

The four sources of risk in procurement are poor vendor management, inadequate contract management, inadequate systems and controls, and fraud.

How can I improve my procurement skills? ›

Improving Your Procurement Performance
  1. Prioritize Supplier Relationships. Supplier relationship management, or SRM, is the process of developing and maintaining ongoing relationships between suppliers and buyers. ...
  2. Utilize Global Sourcing. ...
  3. Develop Strong Risk Management Policies. ...
  4. Embrace Technology. ...
  5. Centralize Purchasing.
Jan 13, 2023

What are the 4 quadrants of suppliers? ›

The four quadrants are: Strategic Items, Leverage Items, Bottleneck Items and Non-Critical Items.

What are the 4 main roles of procurement? ›

The four main roles of procurement are sourcing, negotiation, contract management and supplier relationship management. These activities require a strong understanding of market trends, organizational objectives and supplier capabilities to ensure success.

What is the difference between procurement and sourcing? ›

Sourcing is the process of locating products or services outside of your company. Procurement is negotiating contracts and getting the best price for what you need. Together, these two processes can help your business save money and improve efficiency.

What is procurement cycle? ›

The procurement cycle consists of many steps, which can be grouped into five broad stages: definition of business needs, supplier evaluation and selection, management of supplier relationships, delivery of goods and services, and assessment and refinement of procurement processes.

What are the three P's in procurement? ›

The Three P's of Procurement

There are three Ps in the procurement management process; people, process, and paper.

What are the 11 steps procurement process? ›

The procurement cycle
  1. Determine Your Business Needs. ...
  2. Complete a market analysis. ...
  3. Compile a list of suitable suppliers. ...
  4. Produce Tender Documents. ...
  5. Issue RFI, RFQ, or RFP. ...
  6. Negotiate and award the contract to your preferred supplier. ...
  7. Finalize the purchase order. ...
  8. Process Payment.

What is a procurement checklist? ›

What is a Procurement Checklist? A procurement checklist is a list of requirements that must be completed to successfully “procure” goods or services. It outlines the steps necessary for procurement and ensures each step is followed correctly.

What is the difference between single sourcing and dual sourcing? ›

To dual source means to use two preferred suppliers to provide the same product or service. To single source means to use just one preferred supplier, despite there being multiple capable suppliers available.

What is P2P and S2P in procurement? ›

While P2P focuses on what happens between purchase requisitions and the final payment, S2P considers supplier management from its earliest stage. S2P covers the critical period between identifying a need and committing to a purchase with a specific supplier.

What are the pros and cons of multi-sourcing? ›

Multiple supply sourcing may benefit dependency, flexibility and capacity, but it can complicate supplier relationships and require greater resources to manage them. As supplier numbers grow, the price tag often goes up and the following drawbacks can occur: information sharing may become more complex.

What are the two 2 advantages and two 2 disadvantages of global sourcing? ›

The advantages of conducting sourcing activities in a foreign destination are listed as follows:
  • Cheaper Cost: ...
  • A Skilled Workforce: ...
  • Increased Production Capacity: ...
  • Infrastructure: ...
  • Technology: ...
  • Language Barrier: ...
  • Local Tariff And Tax: ...
  • Political Instability:
Apr 28, 2020

What are the different types of sourcing methods? ›

Different Types of Sourcing Methods
  • Low-cost Country Sourcing. ...
  • Global Sourcing. ...
  • Prime/Sub Arrangements. ...
  • Captive Service Operations. ...
  • Conventional Agreements. ...
  • Operational. ...
  • Professional Services. ...
  • Manufacturing.

What is a tier 2 supplier example? ›

It's simplest to identify Tier 2 suppliers as the sources where your Tier 1 suppliers get their materials. Again, using the apparel company example: That t-shirt factory receives its materials from a fabric mill. That mill is a Tier 2 supplier to the apparel company.

What are the two 2 classifications for supply chain software? ›

Types. There are two main types of SCM software applications: planning and execution. The planning software applications use advanced algorithms to determine the best way to fulfill a product order.

What is the S2P life cycle? ›

Source-to-pay (S2P) is a process that starts with finding, negotiating with, and contracting the supplier of goods, and culminates in final payment for those goods. S2P software relies on technology, big data, and digital networks to create procurement efficiency.

What is SR in procurement? ›

Sanction Request (SR) refers to a concise and confidential note that's used for taking approval from management before processing purchase order against a purchase request.

What are the steps in S2P? ›

Source to pay steps are:
  • Demand.
  • Sourcing.
  • Preparing a bid.
  • Decision making.
  • Contract management.
  • Contract signing.
  • Transition to procure to pay.
  • Procurement.

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