I am amazed by the amount of energy behind this issue.  I wonder if this is really more about dissatisfaction with suppliers than mere staff turnover at a business partner.  In thinking about these issues I would pose a few questions for all of us to consider.

1.  Are you effectively performing contract management?  Do you have a defined escalation process when contracted service levels are nor met?  Do you have any options beyond terminating your contract for cause (e.g. failure to perform)
2.  Do you believe that your business partner relies upon the belief that the majority of their customers have  not established effective contract management processes?  Does your business partner assume that bills will simply be paid with little thought?
3.  Do you have an effective mechanism for determining if the services you are paying for were actually provided?  The lack of such a mechanism will, in my view, most likely result in overcharges.  
4.  Do you understand your vendor's business model (e.g. how they make money)?  Are sales reps and other staff compensation provided in such a way that it incentivizes them to meet your needs?  No one will wish to speak about this but it may be useful to inquire none the less.  Besides many records managers are former librarians and/or have excellent research skills.  We know that there are ways to obtain some of this information.

Just a few stray thoughts on a Friday morning.

David B. Gaynon
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Huntington Beach CA, USA

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