What is Vendor Management Appreciation Day?

Vendor Management Appreciation Day is a holiday coined by PaymentWorks. December 12, 2023 is the very first Vendor Management Appreciation Day.

While not officially recognized by a governing body, it serves as a delightful and well-deserved occasion to celebrate, appreciate, and elevate the indispensable contributions of vendor management staff across all organization types and sectors.

Why is Vendor Management Appreciation Day Important?

Vendor management teams often find themselves in a challenging position–overworked, underpaid, and undervalued. Shockingly, the average salary for an Accounts Payable Specialist is $12-$15 per hour, comparable to what fast food employees earn–and they get free food!

At PaymentWorks, we’ve witnessed firsthand the all-consuming nature of vendor desk responsibilities. The workload follows staff members home and even on vacation, with an ever-growing to-do list.

On top of this, vendor teams shoulder the immense responsibility of safeguarding their organizations against business payment fraud. Considering that a staggering 71% of business email compromise attempts in 2022 targeted AP, treasury, and procurement documents, this responsibility is no small feat.

It’s time for change. We must shine a spotlight on the overwhelming expectations faced by vendor management teams and recognize the vital importance of their work. Specifically, we must provide concrete solutions that enable vendor desk teams to work with high efficiency, excel in their professional lives, and impact their organization’s success.

How is Vendor Management Appreciation Day Celebrated?

We love this question. You are in for a major treat, er treats. Vendor Management Appreciation Day isn’t just a day, and it isn’t solely focused on appreciation.

It’s a six-month celebration designed to help your organization increase the efficiency, compliance, and profitability of your vendor management strategy. Here’s what that looks like:

• A free vendor management resource every month. Each month’s resource is designed with intentional progression–to help you audit your current process, make realistic changes, measure your results, and ensure your vendor management strategy is a success for years to come.
• Information-packed interviews on how to protect against payments fraud, advocate for support for the vendor desk, turn the vendor desk into a profit center, and more.
• Lots of surprises. Since this is the inaugural celebration of Vendor Management Appreciation Day, you can expect some fun things. Swag? Awards? Shoutouts on social media with relatable gifs? You’ll have to wait and see.

Why December 12?

To be honest, there’s no hidden meaning to the December 12 date. We wanted Vendor Management Appreciation Day to fall close to the end of the year, but before offices began to slow down for the holidays.

We also wanted it to fall on a weekday so that it can be celebrated with as many vendor management appreciators as possible. December 12 it is!