2. Relationship Management

Who will be responsible for managing the relationship? Who will be the company’s liaison with the vendor or provider? Weinstein said both parties in the relationship, customer and provider, need to answer this question. That also helps to answer how the governance of agreements is handled and how conflicts should be escalated up the management hierarchy.

Midsized organizations may not have the resource depth to own a vendor relationship, Weinstein said, but, as an example, someone who is “incredibly talented with security” can own an engagement with a security specialist.

Part of relationship management is understanding how the other side sees you, Weinstein said. “Know how they perceive you,” and if they don’t see you as important because, for example, your company doesn’t spend as much with them as other customers do, ”make sure you understand that too.”