Supplier management and procurement quality have never been more important than now. In a global economy where business is more focused on price, it is important to find out how quality fits into the new economy and adapts to changes. In the past, sales reps would argue on features and benefits over prices. In today`s global economy and more so in the future, sales reps will need to justify the quality of the product based on how it is designed and produced, including the materials procured from suppliers to create it. Now, there is a need to purchase high-quality materials as well as a need for a high-quality organization to purchase products. Procurement quality includes any and all aspects that deal with purchasing products. Organizations need to develop a supplier strategy for maximizing the actions they have control over, and minimizing those they don`t through guidelines that dictate where the organization needs to be. This new edition of The Supplier Management Handbook addresses the evolving role of the purchasing agent and discusses the future of customer-supplier relationships. Specifically, the book provides an overview of several basic supplier management issues including: specifications, record keeping, site inspection, measurement assurance, supplier rating, communications, ship-to-stock versus just-in-time, and data evaluation. This handbook serves as a comprehensive resource for any quality professional needing to identify a step-by-step process for supplier certification, including how to do a service certification. Two certification approaches are described as well as how to conduct a supplier survey and evaluate a supplier`s product. Several chapters focus on specific supplier management applications including establishing effective quality control for the small supplier, procurement quality in the food industry, management of service suppliers, and software supplier management. Appendices include procurement quality definitions, audit guidelines, food industry associations, and federal government agencies involved with food safety.