Successful vendor programs turn on technology products that track spend and keep relationships humming for the benefit of all concerned. Both Cisco and Oracle rely on the StarCite meetings management system and American Express Corporate Meeting Card to manage their vendor programs.
“StarCite gives us the meetings budget, AMEX pays the bills,” says Cisco Systems’ Michele Snock.
According to Mike Malinchok, vice president of business development for StarCite, its system helps meetings managers establish a budget by forecasting supply costs such as average room rates, the cost of F&B and AV markups in a particular location.
“Our cost estimation tool allows you to compare cities, and then provide a budget based on the number of people, room nights and the costs for getting them to the location,” he says.
The AMEX Corporate Meeting Card allows event organizers to put big spend on a card without raising red flags on the activity—on either a no-limit card or a stored value card whose amount is based on the approved meetings budget. The balance declines as charges mount—a sort of meetings debit card, if you will. Either product separates meetings spend from traditional T&E spend, so managers can use that for sourcing and supplier negotiations. It also generates spend reports, billing and payment efficiencies, and protection from fraud.
“Another advantage of the commercial card,” says Lisa Steury, director of product strategy and management for AMEX Global Commercial Card, “is that this card doesn’t offer membership rewards, which can be expensive for the holder.”
Snock likes what the card does for both her vendor relationships and her company’s bottom line.
“AMEX is my personal favorite because I don’t have to raise a purchase order [often a costly process], and it gives me a means of supplier payment within 30 days,” she says.
