What are the key skills needed for vendor management?

While browsing the Internet, I came across a list of attributes that a successful Vendor Manager should have, and I found it very interesting.
Some of these skills are also important for other roles, but I find them especially important for any role within the translation vendor management field. 

👋Excellent communication skills👋

Vendor Managers need to communicate with different parties: teammates, colleagues, suppliers and clients.
Being the administrator of the database gives the Vendor Manager a lot of knowledge about the company’s suppliers (or what is missing), so they are the best people to answer their colleagues' questions. For example, when the sales team wants to check the number of resources the company has for certain language combinations, or when project managers can't find a suitable supplier for their job.

😀Ability to develop and maintain strong and successful working relationships😀

This is one of the main duties of the Vendor Manager. Recruiting suppliers requires the Vendor Manager to be able to create business relationships with new suppliers, as well as be able to maintain and improve them during their collaboration. 
This skill links to the previous one, communication, as the Vendor Manager needs to be able to attract suitable suppliers, give feedback in a tactful manner and interact with people from different countries, to name a few of the job requirements. 

👀Industry awareness👀

The translation industry works as a supply chain, which means, from the end client to the translator working on the text, there might be a few different roles in between. Although our industry is quite small, every week, new translation companies and freelance translators are entering the market all over the world! The Vendor Manager needs to be aware of how the industry operates in every country in order to recruit efficiently. This can save their company a lot of money on recruitment costs. The Vendor Manager also needs to be aware of other roles within the industry to be able to provide the best help possible.

👂Ability to adapt and be resourceful👂

Vendor Management can be a very stressful and fast-paced field. On top of tight turnaround times, projects can come in any shape or form. Recruitment of suppliers can be done in very different ways depending on the specifications of each job. A successful Vendor Manager should be able to find suitable translators for the most singular language combinations and subject matters fairly quickly. 

💬Numeracy skills💬

Part of the responsibilities of a Vendor Manager is being able to analyse e data and figures in order to be able to spot trends and negotiation opportunities. These numbers are usually shared with the rest of the company, so the Vendor Manager should be able to present these figures clearly and accurately. This is what the vendor management team use to draw up KPIs and objectives.

✌A flair for negotiation and networking✌

As mentioned  before, starting and building relationships with suppliers is key to the Vendor Manager role. For these relationships to be successful, the Vendor Manager should understand the main negotiation principles as well as know how to network successfully in a business environment. 

😎Make important decisions and cope with the pressure of demanding targets and tight deadlines😎

Given that the database is one of the most valuable assets of a company, the Vendor Manager's role bears a big responsibility for managing and improving it to suit the company's needs. 
Similar to other roles within the translation industry, tight deadlines are very common, so Vendor Managers need to be ready to recruit suppliers against the clock. This is why good multitasking and time management are also very important.