“We’ve got a supplier relationship we really value. If we join a GPO, do we lose the rep, the responsiveness, and the flexibility we’ve built over years?”
Totally fair concern. Strong supplier relationships are often the difference between smooth operations and constant firefighting, especially when inventory is tight, lead times shift, or there is an urgent need.
Luckily, joining a group purchasing organization (GPO) like Una doesn’t eliminate the need for Supplier Relationship Management (SRM). There will always be a need for SRM, because SRM is how you get the best possible value out of any supplier arrangement, GPO contract or not.
A GPO can give you a better commercial starting point. SRM is how you make that starting point pay off, day after day.
The Benefits of SRM
SRM is often misunderstood as a procurement “nice-to-have” that matters only when you’re negotiating. In reality, SRM is what helps you get the best total value from a supplier relationship.
SRM is the discipline of managing the relationship so you can improve and protect things like:
- Quality and consistency (fewer defects, fewer substitutions, fewer surprises)
- Reliability (on-time delivery, accurate orders, stable supply)
- Issue resolution (clear escalation paths, faster fixes when things go wrong)
- Flexibility (reasonable accommodations for urgent needs or changes)
- Innovation and continuous improvement (new solutions, better processes, smarter ways of working)
- Risk management (resilience and compliance).
If I Join a GPO, Do I Still Need SRM?
Yes, because contracts don’t manage performance. People do.
Even a great contract can underperform. Common issues include:
- Contract leakage (maverick buying, wrong SKUs, inconsistent compliance)
- Service inconsistency across locations
- Quality drift that goes unaddressed until it becomes expensive
- Slow issue resolution
- Invoice noise that drains time and goodwill
Wait a minute - am I likely to experience these issues if I engage with Una’s suppliers?
Rest assured, we carry out a rigorous vetting process. Every supplier undergoes a strict selection process to ensure they offer compliant, high-quality, value-added services and align with our standards, which minimizes the likelihood of the above.
SRM keeps the relationship healthy, measurable, and continuously improving, so the benefits of better terms don’t get quietly eroded. In other words, SRM is how procurement protects value after the contract is signed.
Where Una Fits In
A big fear with GPOs is that we’ll get between you and your suppliers. Una is built to do the opposite.
Una gives members access to 2,500+ pre-negotiated contracts across hundreds of the nation’s top suppliers, offering deep discounts made possible by the power of volume purchasing. Importantly, members can choose whether or not to use Una’s pre-negotiated contracts, with zero obligations.
And when it comes to supplier interaction, Una is flexible by design.
Flexible Involvement
We like to think of ourselves as an intermediary if you want us to be. That means we can step in to handle interactions with suppliers in our portfolio, but only if you want that support.
Imagine you have a concern about a decline in quality with one of the suppliers from our portfolio. You can:
- Address it directly with the supplier, or
- Raise it with Una and our Member Experience team, and we’ll work with the supplier with you to help ensure performance is measured and improved.
If you’d rather maintain direct communication with suppliers, that’s completely fine. You engage with suppliers on your own terms. A GPO is an optional reinforcement for SRM, rather than a replacement.
Better Contracts & Negotiation Experiences
One of the biggest headaches in procurement is contract negotiation. It’s time-consuming, often complicated, and can feel like a full-time job. With Una, you won’t have to worry about sifting through legal jargon or haggling for better prices. We take care of that, allowing you to focus on what you do best: driving measurable value.
Same Ways of Working
We said above that our members can choose whether or not to use Una’s pre-negotiated contracts, with zero obligations. In practice, this means:
- If you have a favorite supplier that Una doesn’t (yet) have a contract with, you can keep using them.
- If you have a favorite supplier that Una does have a contract with, you can move onto one of our pre-negotiated contracts once you become a member and enjoy MUCH better pricing than before. Your day-to-day interactions with the supplier don’t need to change. You’ll probably even keep the same rep.
- If you choose to use an Una supplier contract, we don’t get in the way of the relationship. You can run SRM like you normally would to get the best performance and outcomes.
“Will a GPO Lock Me In to Contract Terms?”
In Una’s case: no.
A GPO member can choose to participate in one supplier agreement or many, and is free to use those agreements as much or as little as desired.
This flexibility is precisely why SRM still matters: you can keep strategic relationships where they’re working, bring in a new supplier where it improves outcomes, and manage all of it intentionally.
The Real Win: Let SRM Focus on Outcomes (Not Just Negotiation)
One underrated benefit of using pre-negotiated contracts is that procurement can spend less time grinding through commercial back-and-forth and more time doing the work that actually moves the needle, such as collaborating on innovation and process efficiency, or shifting your approach from reactive buying to proactive procurement with strategic suppliers.
Remember, Una can help with the contract baseline. SRM is how you maximize the relationship. You need both!
If you want better pricing without sacrificing the supplier relationships and SRM practices that keep your operation running, contact us and find out more about Una membership today.
