Maverick spend signals worth reviewing each quarter
Practical signs that purchases are bypassing preferred suppliers—and how to present them without blaming individual buyers.
Maverick spend is rarely a morality play. It is often a symptom of unclear preferred lists, slow catalogs, or urgent operational needs that outran the process.
One reliable signal is a long tail of one-off suppliers inside a category that already has a preferred vendor. Another is invoices coded to a preferred supplier name but paid to a different legal entity.
Present these findings as process observations. Name the volume and the categories; avoid naming individual requesters in leadership packs unless policy requires it.
Pair each signal with a practical question: Is the preferred supplier out of stock? Are lead times too long? Is the catalog missing a common item? Charts open the door; conversations decide the fix.
Quarterly packs work well for this topic because maverick patterns drift. A single annual snapshot can look like a crisis when the underlying issue is seasonal or project-driven.