Almost half of small businesses believe they can increase their efficiency by reducing their number of suppliers, according to new research.
A study by BT Business has found that a quarter of small companies have more than 12 suppliers for their business services, and nearly two-thirds have more than four suppliers for telecoms and IT, alone.
According to the poll, some 42% of small companies say they can increase their business’ efficiency by shedding some of these suppliers.
“What many businesses don’t take into account when looking at the cost of suppliers is the time it takes to deal with each one,” said Bill Murphy, managing director of BT Business.
“Having fewer suppliers means less paperwork, processing and admin, as well as reducing the cost of actual supplies.”
The study found that businesses spend, on average, more than one working day per year dealing with each of its suppliers, while 7% of firms spend more than 24 days each year processing invoices, administration and making payments to their suppliers.