Earlier this year, VCF (formerly the Vendor Compliance Federation), did a study of the "Compliance Policies" of 35 different retailers across many retail segments. Compliance Policies refer to specific categories of supply chain and logistics requirements - and the potential for fines - that retailers define for their suppliers. Those requirements range from obvious categories such as on-time delivery to carton labeling, item price ticketing, advance ship notices, and many more.

"And many more" may be the key phrase. Over the past decade, the number of compliance categories for retailers has expanded substantially - with an average of 67 policies per retailer, according to the VCF study. Worse for consumer goods manufacturers, there is little commonality across retailers, as shown in the graphic below.

Retail Chargebacks Lack Commonality

Based on the VCF analysis, what this chart shows is that, for example, there was only one compliance category that was common among 27 or more of the 35 retailers in the study. Conversely, an incredible 315 compliances categories were common among 3 retailers or less among the 35.

This issue, and evolving trends towards use of scorecards, is discussed in detail in our four-part videocast series on Strategic Supplier Management. To register for upcoming broadcasts, or view On-Demand versions after the initial broadcast date, see our Videocast Schedule page.

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