If your supplier onboarding process still relies on spreadsheets, shared drives, and email tag, you’re not alone. Research shows that nearly 60% of organizations experience onboarding delays because of manual processes, and more than 20% of companies face compliance fines every year due to incomplete or inaccurate supplier data.

The problem is that spreadsheets aren’t just inefficient, they’re risky. From hidden sanctions to bank fraud, manual onboarding leaves too much room for costly mistakes. That’s why growing businesses are turning to supplier onboarding software (sometimes referred to as vendor onboarding software) like TYS Essentials to streamline the process and strengthen supplier trust.

Here are five smarter ways modern teams are ditching the spreadsheet for good and the real impact it’s having.

---

1. Let Suppliers Manage Their Own Profiles with Smart Intake

Chasing suppliers with spreadsheets and email attachments is exhausting. A network-based intake form lets suppliers upload their own information, such as business data, W-9s, licenses, and policies, without anyone retyping the same details twice. Tax IDs and addresses are validated automatically, reducing errors and wasted time.

💡 Customer Impact: A major telecom company used Trust Your Supplier (TYS) to clean and centralize supplier data, enabling them to respond to a sudden shortage of cybersecurity services quickly. Instead of scrambling through outdated files, they had accurate contacts ready, avoiding delays that could have compromised their operations.

2. Automate Compliance and Risk Checks

Spreadsheets can’t flag suppliers tied to hidden risks, but onboarding software with integrated compliance and risk checks can. Automated screening detects sanctions, ESG red flags, cyber risk, and financial instability before contracts are signed.

💡 Customer Impact: A global utilities company used TYS to uncover that a supplier’s parent company was tied to human trafficking and unauthorized labor practices, serious risks they would never have spotted through spreadsheets alone.

3. Streamline Approvals with Workflows

Instead of chasing down approvals, digital workflows automatically route supplier submissions to Legal, Finance, and other stakeholders. Every step is logged, so you always know who approved what and when, keeping the process transparent and audit-ready.

4. Reduce Fraud with Bank Account Validation

Payment fraud is one of the biggest risks of manual onboarding. A mistyped routing number or a fraudulent account request can cost companies millions. With real-time bank account validation in TYS Essentials, mismatches are flagged instantly so your team pays the right supplier every time.

5. Make Faster, Smarter Decisions with Analytics

Manual reporting can’t keep up with the pace of procurement. Modern supplier onboarding solutions provide dynamic dashboards and AI-driven insights, giving teams a single view of supplier risk, compliance, and performance.

💡 Customer Impact: A major insurance enterprise discovered that their top RFP candidate had existing sanctions, something their spreadsheets had missed. Thanks to TYS’s integrated data, they avoided selecting a high-risk supplier and moved forward with a safer alternative.

Why It’s Time to Ditch the Spreadsheet

Spreadsheets may feel familiar, but they don’t protect your business from risk, fraud, or wasted time. By moving to supplier onboarding software, mid-size businesses can:

• Shorten onboarding timelines by weeks

• Reduce exposure to compliance fines and fraud

• Gain confidence in supplier relationships

• Scale onboarding without scaling headcount

With TYS Essentials, you get a modern, scalable supplier onboarding platform designed to remove friction, automate compliance, and keep your supply chain secure.

Curious how your supplier onboarding process stacks up? Try our interactive 5 Ways to Ditch Supplier Onboarding Spreadsheets checklist to quickly see which capabilities you already have and where automation could help. Then, explore our interactive Supplier Onboarding Tour:

You already know it’s time to modernize supplier management.

The signs are everywhere: regulatory fines making headlines, supply chain disruptions linked to cyber incidents, and increasing pressure to deliver ESG transparency. Internally, the inefficiencies are just as clear. Think about the time spent chasing documents from new suppliers or sending repetitive email reminders for updated certifications.

The risks are real. But how do you quantify the value of switching to intelligent, automated supplier management tools?

More importantly, how do you get buy-in from the rest of your organization?

If you're looking to make a strong business case, start here.

---

Five Building Blocks of ROI

When evaluating supplier management tools like TYS Essentials, focus on these key value drivers:

Cost Avoidance
The right system helps you avoid:

• Regulatory fines for missing documentation or outdated supplier data
• Fraud, through stronger identity verification and compliance screens
• Cyber risk, by surfacing vulnerabilities before they become breaches
• Reputational damage from supplier missteps or ESG failures

While cost avoidance can feel intangible, the financial impact of inaction is measurable and often significant. Our whitepaper, Building ROI and a Business Case for Digitizing Supplier Management, breaks down real-world examples of fines tied to OFAC, FCPA, and GDPR violations and shows how companies are using TYS Essentials to stay ahead of risk.

---

Process Efficiency

Manual onboarding and supplier updates consume time across every department. Automated workflows and centralized portals eliminate:

• Endless emails to chase missing information
• Siloed data stored in spreadsheets and shared drives
• Bottlenecks in approvals or risk reviews

McKinsey research shows digital onboarding tools can reduce administrative cycle time by up to 60 percent. That’s a clear productivity win.

---

Data Intelligence

Modern platforms integrate risk data from financial, ESG, and cybersecurity sources. This transforms supplier insight into actionable intelligence and eliminates outdated records during audits.

---

Supplier Retention

Suppliers value transparency and simplicity. A guided onboarding portal with one-time submissions and automated updates makes it easier for them to do business with you. A streamlined vendor onboarding process strengthens relationships and reduces attrition.

---

Strategic Positioning

Supplier management is more than setting up A/P entries. It’s a strategic function. With the right supplier management platform, you can:

• Align procurement with risk, compliance, and finance
• Support ESG and regulatory reporting
• Build a more resilient, competitive supply base

---

Build Your Case with Confidence

Once you’ve mapped out the value, it’s time to structure your internal case. Here’s how:

1. Determine Your Current Costs
   Use the TYS ROI Calculator to establish your baseline across time, labor, and risk exposure.
2. Quantify the Cost of Inaction
   What does it cost to onboard one supplier manually? How many alerts were missed due to outdated data? These inefficiencies have a real price tag.
3. Show Cost Avoidance with Real Examples
   Pull in industry benchmarks and case studies. Our whitepaper includes examples of how organizations avoided costly mistakes using TYS Essentials and the financial impact of failing to act. See the case studies in our whitepaper.
4. Start Small and Prove Impact
   Pilot programs generate proof. Track metrics like onboarding time, document accuracy, and stakeholder touchpoints to quantify improvements.
5. Sell Cross-Functionally
   Procurement may lead the charge, but the benefits of automated supplier compliance and centralized data extend to risk, IT, and finance. Position your case as a strategic enabler, not just a departmental upgrade.

---

Final Thought: Results Speak Louder Than Risk

Modern supplier onboarding is more than a nice-to-have. It’s a competitive edge.

By showing how smarter tools can reduce costs, improve data quality, and prevent disruptions, you’ll build a stronger case and accelerate approval.

TYS Essentials helps you calculate your ROI—and deliver it.

Ready to make the case with confidence?
Explore the case studies, ROI drivers, and compliance benchmarks that can strengthen your internal pitch.
Get the full whitepaper → Download

by Gigo Joseph

As Vice President of Business Development, who works with companies on supplier management challenges, I’ve recently spent more time than expected helping them untangle their historical supplier data.

Not the cutting-edge, forward-looking tools—like real-time risk alerts or ESG dashboards. I’m talking about old email threads, unlabeled spreadsheets from 2013, and long-forgotten shared folders. Why? Because the next wave of supply chain regulation doesn’t just expect you to know your suppliers today. It expects you to understand their business practices and activities from a decade ago.

Take the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) new rule under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). It requires companies to report detailed data on PFAS, also known as “forever chemicals”, dating back to 2014. That includes volumes, usage, disposal methods, and more. While it’s a one-time disclosure, the data requirements are anything but simple. Most organizations aren’t ready for that kind of backward-looking audit.

And yet, this is where supplier risk and compliance regulation is headed: deeper, broader, and more historical.

Even as some high-profile rules stall, such as the SEC’s climate disclosure requirements, which are currently on hold, momentum continues, and companies need to prepare. Pressure from global markets, investors, and state-level legislation hasn’t let up. ESG accountability is still advancing, though through a more fragmented and nuanced landscape.

At the state level, new laws in California, New York, and Washington are raising expectations around labor practices and human rights compliance. Federal regulations such as the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) are tightening the screws further, pushing companies to know not just their Tier 1 suppliers, but also the origins of materials and labor throughout their entire supply chain.

What’s the big shift? Compliance is moving from policy to proof.

From “we have a statement on our website” to “we can document and verify our actions.” Auditors and regulators want more than words—they want evidence. It’s no longer enough to report company actions; it’s imperative to verify compliance within your entire supply chain.

That’s a tall order for most procurement and compliance teams. Many still rely on manual processes, fragmented systems, and tribal knowledge buried in inboxes. Multi-tier supplier visibility is limited. And retrospective data? Often nonexistent.

But this isn’t just a legal or financial problem anymore. It’s a supply chain issue and increasingly, a trust issue.

Can you confidently identify your suppliers, describe the risks they pose, and provide the necessary documentation to support your compliance claims? Could you provide proof to external auditors?

There’s no silver bullet, but there is a clear path forward. In my work supporting supplier ecosystems, I’ve seen how powerful tools like TYS Essentials make a real difference, especially when it comes to compliance workflows, document traceability, and multi-tier transparency.

Supplier management platforms such as Trust Your Supplier enable companies to manage onboarding, collect certifications, and retain auditable records. These capabilities allow you to respond to disclosure requirements with speed and confidence.

Tools alone won’t solve the growing need for historical information, but they provide the foundation to act proactively instead of reactively.

We’re entering a new era of accountability. Supplier compliance isn’t just about avoiding penalties anymore; it’s about building resilience, earning trust, and future-proofing your operations.

If you haven’t started preparing for this shift, now is the time. Your customers, investors, and regulators are expecting it.

Explore How Trust Your Supplier (TYS) Essentials Can Help

If you're facing increasing demands around supplier data, documentation, and compliance, you’re not alone. TYS Essentials is designed to simplify supplier onboarding, centralize critical records, and give you the visibility needed to meet today’s—and tomorrow’s—regulatory expectations.

✅ Automate onboarding workflows
✅ Maintain auditable compliance records
✅ Improve supplier data quality and traceability
✅ Gain multi-tier visibility without the spreadsheet chaos

Learn more about how TYS Essentials supports smarter, compliance-ready supplier management. Request a demo.