Hire Ground Turns To SMBs To Diversify Supply Chains

Software-as-a-Service firm Hire Ground is launching a new component of its supply chain diversity initiative aimed at enabling small and medium-sized businesses to connect to more business customers, and at helping those business customers diversify their supply chains.

In a press release issued Tuesday (Sept. 24), Hire Ground said it is rolling out the Supplier side of its supply chain diversity offering, focusing on SMBs as suppliers to connect them to Fortune 500 business clients in search of more diverse supply chains. Hire Ground’s platform also aims to work with certification groups and associations to facilitate those buyer-supplier connections.

“We launched the Supplier side of our platform to the Supplier Diversity community to provide an easier way for enterprise and small-to-medium-sized businesses to connect,” said Hire Ground CEO Cloe Guidry-Reed in a statement. “We now have an easy way for entrepreneurs and small diverse business owners to get warm introductions to new business prospects, scale their business and report on their growth all within one system.”

Large corporates can mitigate supply chain risks by diversifying their supply chains, but small and medium-sized businesses have an array of challenges that can limit their ability to launch into new supply chains.

In addition to finding new corporate customers, SMBs can struggle to operate across borders and operate on a global scale. Further, smaller suppliers often lack negotiating power and are forced to manage long payment terms from their clients and make sales on credit, often squeezing their cash flows.

Earlier this year, Brian Shanahan, founder of working capital advisory form Informita and founder of supplier payment term database Termscheck, spoke with PYMNTS about this struggle between buyer and supplier.

Solutions must be “beneficial to both sides” when it comes to establishing sustainable payment terms, he said. “The buying company wants longer payment terms, but the seller wants to make sure they’re paid on time. Otherwise, customers are not reliable, and it endangers the financial investment they’re making in the relationship long term.”