Contracting with your company can fundamentally change the trajectory of a supplier’s business. It can also change yours, in vastly positive ways for your business, your employees, and your community.
Resources
- Read this “Why Companies Should Focus On Supply Chain Equity” on Forbes (article, < 10 minutes). It says, “Corporations that take responsibility for making supply chains more equitable is one effective step in tackling the issue—after all, corporations are often the ones contracting with the suppliers. And the outcomes of those efforts can be transformative for minority-owned businesses”
- Read Why you Need a Supplier-Diversity Program from HBR (article, < 10 minutes). This article defines why an inclusive procurement strategy widens the pool of potential suppliers and promotes competition in the supply base, which can improve product quality and drive down costs. And by providing more sourcing options, inclusiveness can make supply chains more resilient and agile — an increasingly important advantage in these uncertain times. Inclusive procurement also delivers broader societal benefits by generating economic opportunity for disadvantaged communities. Finally, customers and employees value a diverse supply chain, with a 2019 study for Coca-Cola via Hootology finding that individuals who were aware of Coca-Cola’s supplier diversity initiatives were 49 percent more likely to use Coca-Cola products.
- The Hackett Group completes regular surveys of companies related to their supplier diversity programs. Their 2016 study provides a good graphic of the high performance of diverse suppliers (article, < 10 minutes):
