The changes are so dramatic there may be a day when companies outsource every aspect of the supply chain. Ford, General Motors and Sear Roebuck are pioneering e-xchanges. These major players are helping their vendors and suppliers band together to aggregate their total demand. These buying groups reap rewards in rebates, volume discounts and other preferential treatment from suppliers. These buying consortiums deliver big business benefits to even the smallest member of the e-xchange.
Suppliers benefit too because they can cut the cost of overhead by handling fewer purchase orders.
The cost savings can be tremendous. Cost reduction pressures will force companies to turn to outsourcing and B2B e-commerce to preserve precious cash. The move to outsourcing implies the purchasing and supply management staff will be more business-strategy oriented. The traditional role of being a good buyer and negotiator may vanish. Instead, the key responsibility on the customer side becomes managing the outsourcing relationship.