What is a vendor?
A vendor is a third-party supplier of goods or services to a company — software, infrastructure, raw materials, professional services, etc. Vendor relationships are governed by procurement contracts including master service agreements, statements of work, data-processing agreements and service-level agreements.
Vendor management is a critical operational and risk-management discipline: vendor diligence (financial, security, compliance), contract negotiation, performance monitoring, payment terms, audit rights, termination triggers and substitute-vendor planning.