Business Chief US+CAN Magazine June 2021 | Page 387

DRIL-QUIP

MICHAEL WELLS VICE PRESIDENT SUPPLY CHAIN ,

DRIL-QUIP

“ We don ' t look at our suppliers as vendors . We buy hot dogs from vendors ,” Wells jokes . “ We don ’ t just say to them , ‘ Just give us what we ordered , and we ’ ll pay for it ’. We want something more from our suppliers and vendors ; we want partners that truly connect with us . Traditionally , what you see is that a partnership is very ‘ give and take ’. It goes , ‘ We want this , we want this , we want that ’.

What we ' re trying to do is move towards an achievement-orientated relationship with our suppliers where we are working together toward the same goals .”

Würth , a leading supplier of everything from chemicals and components to tools , screws , and fasteners , is one such strategic partner that illustrates how this process of defining and working towards shared goals is working well . “ With Würth , it ' s not them telling us what they ' re doing and how they ' re going to do it . It ' s not us telling them what we ' re doing , how we ' re going to do it . It ' s a shared sense of improving things for both companies by asking , ‘ Why are we doing this ?’.”

Collaboration between aligned partners is nothing new in business , but Wells explains that sharing values is not enough . In a healthy relationship , participants do not simply go with the flow . Wells is not only comfortable with constructive criticism , he encourages it .

“ The most important question we ask is not , ‘ Who is right ?’, but ‘ What is right ?’,” he says . “ Würth feels comfortable telling us where we ' re missing the mark because we ' ve developed that relationship , and we ' re comfortable enough to listen to them because we value their opinion , and that ’ s powerful . That ' s a powerful way of looking at a partnership : to be able to say , ‘ You supply us , and we ' re the customer , but your opinion

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