Is Your SRM Program Just Useless Theater?
Wed Feb 04 2026
Why Your SRM Program is Useless Theater?
Why has Supplier Relationship Management (SRM) progressed so little in the last 20 years? And what can procurement leaders learn from the messy "divorce" between Amazon and UPS?
In this episode of Proc & Roll, hosts Conrad Smith, Natasha Gurevich, and Zachary Bachir tackle the stagnation of supplier management. They debate why most QBRs are just "useless theater," why indirect procurement struggles to build real partnerships compared to direct procurement, and how to stop trying to manage 20,000 suppliers and start focusing on the few that matter.
Plus, we break down the strategic shift in the Amazon vs. UPS partnership, and why knowing when to end a relationship is just as important as starting one.
In this episode, we cover:
Amazon & UPS Split: Why Amazon is UPS’s largest customer but least profitable, and what it teaches us about ending partnerships.
The "Useless Theater" of SRM: Why running QBRs without business buy-in is a waste of time.
Direct vs. Indirect: Why manufacturing teams are often decades ahead of indirect procurement in managing relationships.
The "Data God" Strategy: Natasha reveals why you don't need to be a data expert to lead SRM; you just need a "Data God" on your team.
Practical Advice: Stop overcomplicating segmentation. Start with one supplier, one stakeholder, and one spreadsheet.
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Why Your SRM Program is Useless Theater? Why has Supplier Relationship Management (SRM) progressed so little in the last 20 years? And what can procurement leaders learn from the messy "divorce" between Amazon and UPS? In this episode of Proc & Roll, hosts Conrad Smith, Natasha Gurevich, and Zachary Bachir tackle the stagnation of supplier management. They debate why most QBRs are just "useless theater," why indirect procurement struggles to build real partnerships compared to direct procurement, and how to stop trying to manage 20,000 suppliers and start focusing on the few that matter. Plus, we break down the strategic shift in the Amazon vs. UPS partnership, and why knowing when to end a relationship is just as important as starting one. In this episode, we cover: Amazon & UPS Split: Why Amazon is UPS’s largest customer but least profitable, and what it teaches us about ending partnerships. The "Useless Theater" of SRM: Why running QBRs without business buy-in is a waste of time. Direct vs. Indirect: Why manufacturing teams are often decades ahead of indirect procurement in managing relationships. The "Data God" Strategy: Natasha reveals why you don't need to be a data expert to lead SRM; you just need a "Data God" on your team. Practical Advice: Stop overcomplicating segmentation. Start with one supplier, one stakeholder, and one spreadsheet.