Sales and Procurement: Turning Collaboration into a Competitive Advantage
- Lauri Vihonen
- Mar 18
- 4 min read
Trust | Positioning | Alignment
The traditional divide between sales and procurement no longer serves business success. This guide provides practical insights on how to enhance collaboration between procurement and sales—and how it impacts business results.
Sales and procurement operate from different perspectives, often leading to friction in collaboration. Sales aims to grow customer relationships and sell new solutions, while procurement focuses on cost optimization and risk management.
Sales often perceives procurement as price-driven and a barrier, while procurement sees salespeople as aggressive sellers who only try to maximize sales. In reality, the best business outcomes arise when these two functions work together.
When sales understands procurement’s decision-making logic and procurement learns to appreciate the business impact of sales, the result is not just better contracts—but a competitive advantage built on trust, positioning, and alignment.
💡 Rubik’s Cube Thinking Helps
Sales-procurement collaboration is like solving a Rubik’s Cube—all pieces must align correctly for a successful outcome. Collaboration isn’t simple; it requires aligning multiple factors like:
🔹 Supplier classification (operational, tactical, strategic)
🔹 Customer segmentation (SME customers, strategic customers, breakthrough customers)
🔹 Procurement category specifics
🔹 Procurement maturity (is the focus on cost savings, partnerships, or both?)
🔹 Sales culture (is the approach product-driven or solution-driven?)
📌 For Procurement Leaders: Key Factors & Tips for Successful Collaboration
Procurement strengthens its organization’s competitive edge only when it understands not just internal goals but also how sales operates and how to identify strategic suppliers. Without trust and clear positioning, suppliers cannot provide real added value. The goal is to move beyond price negotiations and leverage suppliers for business development.
💡 Trust: Without it, collaboration remains at the level of price negotiations
✔ Build long-term relationships—don’t see sales only as a cost factor.
✔ Open and transparent communication helps sales understand procurement’s decision-making process.
✔ Don’t hide behind the RFQ process—engage with suppliers as business development partners.
💡 Positioning: Ensure suppliers understand their role and path to growth
✔ Clearly define what a strategic supplier means for your organization.
✔ If you seek innovation, reward partnerships—not just price competition.
✔ Make the supplier hierarchy visible—how can suppliers evolve from operational to strategic partners?
💡 Alignment: Procurement goals are about more than just cost control
✔ Understand what sales needs to be effective—and how it supports your business objectives.
✔ Coordinate internally—ensure that all departments align with procurement’s decisions.
✔ Focus not only on short-term savings but also on long-term business impact.
🚀 Preparing for Meetings – Procurement’s Perspective:
✅ Inform the salesperson in advance about what you expect from the meeting.
✅ Understand how the supplier sees you—is your account strategic to them?
📌 For Sales Leaders: Key Factors & Tips for Successful Collaboration
One of the biggest challenges for sales is understanding how procurement makes decisions and how they are perceived within the buyer’s organization. Without this knowledge, sales may remain stuck in price negotiations, even when offering more value. The goal is to help sales leaders enhance customer understanding and position their organization effectively—potentially as a strategic partner.
💡 Trust: Build real partnerships—don’t just sell
✔ Don’t try to win deals based on price alone—demonstrate how your product or service creates business value.
✔ Listen to customer needs and tailor your proposal accordingly.
✔ Be consistent—your reputation as a salesperson is built over time.
💡 Positioning: Understand how the customer perceives you and adjust your approach
✔ If you are an operational supplier, expect price-driven negotiations—but don’t get stuck there.
✔ If you want to be a strategic partner, offer solutions that support the customer’s long-term goals.
✔ Speak the customer’s language—avoid product-centered pitches and focus on how your solution benefits their business.
💡 Alignment: Sales is not just selling—it’s business development
✔ Don’t just focus on your company’s sales targets—think about how you can genuinely help the customer succeed.
✔ Be proactive—don’t wait for procurement to take the first step in deepening the collaboration.
✔ Use data and customer insights—support decision-making with concrete business benefits.
✔ Prepare thoroughly—know what procurement expects and what they need to make decisions.
🚀 Preparing for Meetings – Sales Perspective:
✅ Understand the customer’s procurement process—where do you fit in their segmentation?
✅ Identify procurement’s key decision-making criteria.
✅ 10-Point Checklist – Are Sales and Procurement Aligned?
✔ Do we have a shared understanding of our collaboration goals?
✔ Do we understand how the other party makes decisions?
✔ Have we agreed on how to develop the partnership?
✔ Are we only focusing on price, or do we also discuss value?
✔ Is our communication open and transparent?
✔ Do we know the key success metrics?
✔ Do we understand each other’s processes and workflows?
✔ Are roles and responsibilities clearly defined?
✔ Are we leveraging data for decision-making and collaboration improvement?
✔ Are internal stakeholders aligned with sales and procurement objectives?
📢 Summary and Next Steps
When sales and procurement build trust, position themselves strategically, and align their goals, they create a true partnership that delivers measurable business benefits.
📌 Want to deepen your understanding of sales-procurement collaboration?
✅ Join Lauri’s procurement training, customized to your company’s needs—gain practical knowledge and insightful discussions.
✅ Host a sales-procurement workshop—help sales professionals understand how professional procurement works, which can make the difference in closing deals. Ask Lauri to facilitate.
✅ Invite Lauri to facilitate a strategic dialogue to enhance collaboration—whether between sales and procurement or procurement and suppliers.
📩 Contact Lauri today and let’s build better collaboration!
Lauri Vihonen
📞 +358 50 4381912
or simply click here.
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