Do I Need a Vendor Management System? 15 Questions to Ask
Managing staffing agencies, contingent workers and workforce costs through spreadsheets and email can become harder as your program grows.
You may not be looking for a vendor management system yet. You may simply want less administration, better visibility into spending or an easier way to manage your staffing agencies.
These 15 questions will help you identify where your current processes are causing problems and understand how a VMS could help.
When Might You Need a VMS?
A vendor management system helps organizations manage their contingent workforce and staffing suppliers in one platform. It connects activities such as staffing requests, worker onboarding, time approvals, invoicing and reporting.
You may benefit from a VMS when these activities take too much manual effort, information is difficult to find or processes vary across departments and locations.
The starting point is understanding where your current approach is falling short.
“We’re spending too much time on manual work.”
1. Are you managing contingent workers and staffing agencies through spreadsheets and email?
If worker records, staffing requests and supplier information live in separate files and inboxes, your team may spend more time updating information than using it. Duplicate entries and outdated spreadsheets can also make it difficult to know which information is correct.
How a VMS can help: A VMS centralizes worker and supplier records and connects workflows, reducing duplicate data entry and helping teams work from shared information.
2. Do staffing requests and approvals regularly get delayed?
Requests can stall when approvals depend on email chains or individual managers. Your team may need to chase updates, resend information or work out who needs to approve the next step.
How a VMS can help: A VMS routes requests through defined approval steps and makes their status visible, helping teams identify what is waiting and who needs to act.
3. Does your team spend hours checking timesheets and reconciling invoices?
Incorrect rates, missing approvals and mismatched records can turn each billing cycle into a manual investigation. As your workforce grows, these checks can take more of your team’s time.
How a VMS can help: A VMS connects time records, approved rates and invoicing workflows, making discrepancies easier to identify and resolve.
“We don’t have a clear picture of our workforce or what we’re spending.”
4. Is it difficult to see how many contingent workers you have and where they work?
Answering a basic headcount question may require contacting several departments, checking supplier reports and comparing spreadsheets. By the time you have an answer, the information may already have changed.
How a VMS can help: A VMS maintains a centralized view of active workers, assignments, locations and staffing suppliers, making workforce information easier to access.
5. Is it difficult to report on your total contingent workforce spend?
When costs are spread across suppliers, departments and locations, understanding total spend can take considerable effort. You may be able to see individual invoices without having a clear picture of the overall program.
How a VMS can help: A VMS consolidates workforce cost information so you can report on spending by supplier, location, department and other relevant categories.
6. Are you unsure whether you’re paying consistent rates for similar roles?
Different departments or locations may agree to different rates without realizing it. Without a clear comparison, it can be difficult to identify unexpected charges or understand why costs vary.
How a VMS can help: A VMS makes rates and workforce costs easier to compare and supports approved rate structures, helping your team investigate differences and manage exceptions.
“We don’t know whether we’re getting the best from our staffing agencies.”
7. Is coordinating multiple staffing agencies becoming difficult?
Sending requests separately, following up on responses and reviewing candidates in different formats can create extra administration. It can also make it harder to give suppliers consistent information.
How a VMS can help: A VMS manages staffing requests and supplier submissions through a shared process, making responses easier to track and compare.
8. Is it hard to compare staffing agency performance?
Your team may have a sense of which suppliers perform well without consistent information to support those views. That makes it difficult to identify service issues or have productive performance discussions.
How a VMS can help: A VMS provides reporting on measures such as response times, fill rates and assignment outcomes, giving you a clearer basis for supplier reviews.
9. Do disagreements about rates, requests or approvals take too long to resolve?
When details are scattered across inboxes and spreadsheets, establishing what was requested or approved can take time. Missing information can create frustration for both your team and your staffing agencies.
How a VMS can help: A VMS keeps relevant records and activity history together, making it easier to clarify decisions and resolve questions.
“We’re worried important requirements are slipping through the cracks.”
10. Are required worker documents and onboarding checks tracked manually?
If your team relies on spreadsheets and email reminders, missing or expired documents can be easy to overlook. Different departments may also follow different onboarding processes.
How a VMS can help: A VMS organizes required documents, tracks onboarding steps and flags outstanding items, helping teams follow a consistent process.
11. Are assignment end dates, extensions or offboarding steps easy to miss?
Without a reliable way to track assignments, workers may remain active beyond their expected end dates or extensions may proceed without the right approvals. Offboarding tasks can also be overlooked.
How a VMS can help: A VMS makes assignment dates and status visible and supports defined extension and offboarding workflows.
12. Would gathering records for an audit or internal review be difficult?
Finding worker documents, time approvals and assignment records may mean searching several systems and asking colleagues to retrieve information. Gaps can be difficult to identify until someone requests the records.
How a VMS can help: A VMS centralizes records and approval histories to support reviews and compliance tracking. Your organization remains responsible for determining and meeting its legal and regulatory obligations.
“Our current processes can’t keep up with our growth.”
13. Are more locations, departments or shifts making your program harder to manage?
A process that worked for one location may become difficult to maintain across several. Teams may develop their own spreadsheets and workarounds, making consistent oversight harder.
How a VMS can help: A VMS provides shared workflows and reporting while accommodating relevant differences between locations, departments and teams.
14. Do HR, procurement, finance and hiring managers work from different information?
When each team maintains its own records, updates may not reach everyone who needs them. This can lead to conflicting information, duplicate work and unclear responsibilities.
How a VMS can help: A VMS gives authorized users access to shared records, with defined roles and approval responsibilities.
15. Is your contingent workforce growing faster than your team can manage it?
If every new worker, supplier or location adds more administration, your team may struggle to keep up. Routine tasks can leave little time to review costs, address supplier issues or plan ahead.
How a VMS can help: A VMS automates repeatable tasks and standardizes workflows, helping your team manage a growing program with less manual administration.
Recognize Any of These Challenges?
There is no single number of workers, staffing agencies or dollars of spend that determines whether you need a VMS.
Consider the problems you recognized:
- How often do they happen?
- How much time does your team spend resolving them?
- Do they affect staffing, costs or required controls?
- Are they becoming harder to manage as your program grows?
Several recurring problems may be a reason to explore a VMS. One particularly costly or disruptive issue may also justify a closer look.
Start by identifying the three challenges you would most like to solve. That will help you understand whether a VMS could make a meaningful difference to your organization.
Explore What a VMS Could Do for Your Organization
You do not need to be ready to buy a system to learn about your options.
Our Getting Started with Your First VMS guide explains what a vendor management system does, how it can help and what to consider as you explore whether one is right for your organization.
How Conexis VMS Can Help
If you recognize these challenges but are unsure where to start, we can help you understand how a VMS could support your program.
Conexis VMS brings contingent workforce processes into one platform. Our Easy Start program supports organizations getting started with their first VMS, with no setup fees and free implementation, training and support.
Tell us what is creating the most work for your team, where you lack visibility or what is becoming harder to manage.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I know if I need a vendor management system?
You likely need a VMS if you work with several staffing agencies, track workers or invoices in spreadsheets, can't quickly report on contingent spend, or worry about supplier compliance. If 3 or more of the 15 questions on this page apply to you, it's worth a conversation.
Is a VMS only for large enterprises?
No. Mid-sized organizations, staffing agencies and MSPs use a VMS too. The deciding factor is how complex your program is, not how big your company is.
How much does a vendor management system cost?
Pricing models vary by provider. Conexis VMS uses pay-as-you-go pricing with no setup fees and free implementation, training and support. [link: How Much Does a VMS Cost?]
How long does it take to implement a VMS?
Traditional enterprise VMS rollouts often take several months. Conexis VMS standard implementations go live in under 30 days.
What's the difference between a VMS and an MSP?
A VMS is software that manages requisitions, suppliers, workers, timesheets and invoices. An MSP is a service provider that runs your contingent workforce program for you, often using a VMS to do it.
What should I do first if I think I need a VMS?
Start by writing down how your program works today: your suppliers, approval steps, worker types and pain points. Then read our First-Time VMS Buyer's Guide or book a demo and we'll map it with you.