Improving performance by improving the relationship with the companies in the supply chain

This paper will address issues related to strategy, quality and management of customers and suppliers, and its main objective is to demonstrate the benefits of cooperation between customers and suppliers in the supply chain. A case is presented about a Brazilian company with assets in several sectors of the economy that implemented a program to reward the cooperation of its key suppliers and obtained several benefits with this program. Finally, it is concluded that issues such as identification of the real needs and expectations of stakeholders, the philosophy of quality at source, consolidation of the customer base and suppliers and cooperation between companies are key points for improving business performance, at every link in the supply chain.