A sourcing agent helps a business find low-cost sources for items and materials so that it may save money on manufacturing. A single business may employ agents in this field, or they may own a company that provides its services to several clients. The sourcing agent should know multiple languages, have solid business acumen, and have coordination abilities. Most of the time, payment is based on a contract, and the sourcing agency gets a portion of the cost of the order.
Here, we will go through some of the critical tasks of a sourcing agent.
Conduct an audit of the project and the factories
One of the many duties a sourcing agent has is to analyze and filter various projects to find a company that is best suited to handle them. Ideally, any company wants to work on every project that comes its way, but different businesses have different strengths that can work optimally; therefore, every task may not be a good fit for every company. A sourcing agent matches a business to the right procurement source.
Often, a client sends incomplete engineer files from which a quote must be made. Because there is not enough information, the factory must guess the sizes, which can have terrible results.
A sourcing agent can help the clients with their designs, guaranteeing the customer will get what they need. Similarly, a sourcing agent carefully examines the track record of numerous manufacturers before selecting one for the client’s project, ensuring that the factory has a solid track record of delivering high-quality goods on schedule. Also, the sourcing agency checks to ensure that the manufacturer has the right technology, capacity, and flexibility to adjust for any tolerance issues.
The main job of a sourcing agent is to find a manufacturer that meets the customer’s needs.
Communication
Another essential duty of a sourcing agent is communicating information effectively and promptly. A business hires the services of a sourcing agency to understand the processes required for sourcing and to know what is going on at that moment. If you have a good sourcing agent, they will explain the steps involved in the sourcing process and update you on any developments.
The sourcing agent must ensure that the prospective factories understand the requests from the client. The sourcing agent also helps the client to understand the processes followed by the factories to provide them with the items they want. The role of the sourcing agent is to bridge the language barrier and guarantee that no inquiries asked by the factory are misunderstood by the customer while they are sourcing from another nation. The sourcing agent also negotiates a good deal with the factory so that the customer gets the items or materials they are looking for at the right price.
Logistics
A sourcing agent is also involved in the logistics part of the sourcing orders. The agent will check whether the factory from which goods are sourced is making shipments on time. To do this job efficiently, the agent should have reliable contacts with freight companies and customs brokers. They also ensure that all the import documents, like ISF, are filed on time.
Getting things fixed
When a company gets its supplies from a different country, there may be problems with shipping or with a dimension that is not within the acceptable range. The sourcing agent’s job is to solve any issues quickly and effectively with sourcing.
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Excellent blog. Almost all of the important factors are already covered up however I would like to add few of the below, I found important as duties of a Sourcing Agent.
1) Sourcing agent should have a variety of vendors in its pool so that an appropriate one can be appointed according to client’s needs and wants. A client should be treated as a premium one by its vendor with the help of sourcing agent. So, you can say that vendor selection is the most important duty of a sourcing agent as this can ease out rest of the sourcing steps.
2) Quality audits by sourcing agent at important production steps can also helpful for both vendor and client.
3) Training sessions to the vendor’s team by sourcing agent can keep the customer-vendor relationship health and pleasant.
Thank you, Ashar.
Sourcing Agent also need to make sure below,
1) Product Development process to get required samples on time.
2) Collecting & Monitoring Necessary Approvals process.
3) Maintaining those approvals during in housing all the materials & during production process.
4) Work on Production Plan to make sure on time delivery of goods.
5) To make sure Customer required quality are maintained during production & as well as in finished goods by doing material inspections, finished goods inspection based on customer required AQL.
Thank you, Ashraful.