Hospital Supplier Relationship Management: Cooperation, Coordination, and Communication

The structural transformation of modern societies (e.g., aging of population, mobility) as well as continuously increasing market dynamics (e.g., mergers, technological advancement) induces health care organizations to reduce their costs while enhancing service delivery. In other industrial sectors this was achieved by optimizing cooperation, coordination, and communication particularly with regard to the supplier base. However, as the pressure to innovate will increase extensively in the next years, similar developments are becoming relevant for the health care supply chain. In this paper, the authors adapt the current findings on supplier relationship management (SRM) to the health care context. The authors analyze theoretical foundations of SRM and explore a particular area of application in health care, namely the ordering of pharmaceuticals by hospitals. Finally, on the basis of a case study, applications of different SRM services are discussed.