When it comes to finding the right medical device vendor for your project, what you don’t know can come to bite you later and cost you heavily. If you have current industry feedback on medical device vendors you want to work with, you can choose the best from the lot without worrying about:
- Quality
- Delays
- Hidden or inflated costs
- Responsiveness
- And more
To do that, you need a failsafe method that actually works. Enter – the Networking Tree.
When you leverage your network of peers and the industry (what Tom fondly likes to call a Networking Tree) the right way, you can get unbiased insight into the quality and reliability of vendors you can work with long-term. To do that, you need to:
Step 1: Create a spreadsheet
Start by creating a spreadsheet that lists all the medical device vendors you’d like information on. Based on your project needs, type of medical device company, and device requirement, make columns for the criteria you’d like to evaluate them on. Include space for details like:
- supplier name
- contact information
- industry classification
- area of specialization
- product line
- time in business
- quality ratings
- certifications
- cost estimates
- schedules
- responsiveness
- customer service ratings
- and other important criteria
Step 2: Create a feedback form to gather specific information on selected medical device vendors
Create a feedback form to gather information on the criteria listed in the spreadsheet. Start by deciding which questions are most important for you to ask. Craft each question carefully so it’s clear what kind of feedback you’re looking for. For example, if you want feedback on the cost of hiring the supplier, ask the participants to rate how closely the overall costs matched the quote provided by the supplier.
Make sure the form is not too lengthy or overwhelming for the people who are going to answer. They are busy. You need to make it easy for them to fill in this form. If you think it’ll be helpful, include clear instructions (with examples, if needed) on how to fill out the form.
Step 3: Send out inquiries
Now this is where the networking tree comes into full play. You can send out inquiries to your immediate network for who has worked with this vendor in the last 2 years. That is the 1st branch of your networking tree. But why stop there?
You can also use your network’s network. AKA, the subsequent branches stemming from branch one of your networking tree. Ask your immediate network if they know someone from THEIR network who has worked with any of the vendors you’re gathering feedback on.
Once you have a list of people who have worked with your potential vendors, you can send them the feedback form or use the feedback form to chat with them 1:1. Remember to use a method they would prefer as they are the ones helping you.
You can also get in touch with the vendors you’re evaluating and ask them to provide you with a list of references of companies they work or have worked with. Once you have your hands on those references, you can ask those companies for references of other companies who have used the same vendor.
For example, If Bob’s Cardiac Design House is using Sam’s Cardiac Components, you can ask Bob’s Cardiac Design House for other companies that use Sam’s Cardiac Components. This way, you’re expanding your tree.
The reason you are not asking the companies the medical device vendor listed is simple – A vendor would never list a company unhappy with their work as a reference. What you need is an unbiased opinion from a spectrum of sources so you can make an informed decision based on your needs and what works for your project.
Step 4: An additional way to gather Current Industry Feedback On Potential Medical Device Vendors
There are several forums, exhibitions, and tradeshows where you can gather current industry feedback on potential medical device vendors. Here are some of them:
Step 5: Follow up and fill in the spreadsheet
Once you start getting the responses, follow up with at least five of them for further details. Ask them more questions. Understand what worked for them for each criterion and what didn’t.
- Did the medical device supplier stay within the quote provided when time came to settle the overall costs? Why, why not?
- How was their responsiveness?
- Did the medical device vendor meet the required quality standards?
- How were they with schedules? Did they honor the deadlines they quoted? If not, why?
Will the same work for your medical device project? How will it fit in with your project needs? Make sure you include other criteria that are important for your project.
Understanding this is the key to easily identify the most suitable (low risk, high profit) vendor for your needs.
Once you have all the information available, you can fill in the spreadsheet with it.
Step 6: Bypass all this hard work with this simple step
If you don’t want to waste time – and hard to come by man power – on gathering and sorting vast amounts of supplier data, or you don’t have a big enough network to create the tree, you can always hire Waddell Group. We use our extensive network of medical device companies, manufacturers, and suppliers to gather comprehensive industry feedback (all current) customized for your project needs and analyze them to select the best medical device vendor for your project.
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