Lapasar
Sourcing & Suppliers

Sourcing

Sourcing is the activity of finding, evaluating and selecting the suppliers who will provide the goods or services an organisation needs.

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Sourcing sits at the front of the procurement process. It answers the questions of who can supply a requirement, at what price and on what terms, and how reliable each option is. Sourcing can be as simple as getting three quotes, or as structured as running a formal tender with weighted evaluation criteria.

Good sourcing balances price against quality, delivery reliability, financial stability and compliance. Marketplaces and consolidated catalogues shorten sourcing by putting many pre-vetted suppliers, with comparable pricing, in one place — reducing the time buyers spend chasing individual quotations.

Frequently asked questions

What does sourcing mean in procurement?
Sourcing is the process of identifying, evaluating and choosing suppliers for a requirement — comparing them on price, quality, reliability and compliance before an order is placed.
What is the difference between sourcing and procurement?
Sourcing is one stage of procurement — the finding and selecting of suppliers. Procurement is the full cycle that also includes ordering, receiving and paying.

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Explore related across the knowledge graph

GlossaryCategory StrategyA category strategy is a tailored plan for managing all the spend within one procurement category to maximise value over time.GlossaryDual SourcingDual sourcing is the practice of using two suppliers for the same item to balance competitive pricing against supply resilience.GlossaryLow-Cost Country SourcingLow-cost country sourcing is the practice of buying goods or services from suppliers in countries with lower production costs to reduce unit prices.GuideCategory managementGrouping related spend into categories and running a dedicated, expert strategy for each one.GuideProcurement AcademyGuides, research and comparisons organised by procurement topic — the education hub for the knowledge graph.GuideSource-to-payThe full lifecycle from identifying a need and sourcing a supplier through to raising the order, receiving goods and paying the invoice.SolutionBecome a Lapasar VendorSell to enterprise and GLC buyers through Lapasar's managed marketplace, with fulfilment and payment handled for you.ToolFree Procurement Tools & TemplatesEvery Lapasar procurement calculator plus editable RFQ, purchase order, policy and evaluation templates.ToolSupplier Consolidation CalculatorModel the savings from rationalising a fragmented supplier base.ToolSupplier Performance ScorecardScore a supplier on OTIF, quality, price and responsiveness.TemplateSupplier Evaluation TemplateA weighted, criteria-based Excel scorecard to compare and select suppliers objectively.TemplateSupplier Registration FormAn editable Word and PDF form to collect every detail you need to register and onboard a new supplier.TemplateSupplier Scorecard TemplateAn Excel scorecard to track a supplier's ongoing performance on weighted KPIs, with an automatic rating.ComparisonBest B2B Marketplace in MalaysiaHow to evaluate B2B procurement marketplaces in Malaysia — owned infrastructure, sourcing depth and enterprise fit.ComparisonLapasar vs procurement suitesA balanced, factual comparison of Lapasar and global source-to-pay procurement suites for Malaysian procurement — an operating marketplace with owned fulfilment versus configurable software and a global supplier network.
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