Suppliers’ sustainable business acumen is critical to the success and integrity of sustainable procurement. By developing and enforcing a Supplier Code of Conduct, procurement departments mitigate unwanted risk and support suppliers in maintaining a high level of sustainability integrity.
Following are important components of a Supplier Code of Conduct:
- Systematic coverage across all business units and categories,
- Mandatory supplier self-assessment questionnaire,
- Supplier registration process is consolidated in a centralized database and system is linked to sourcing, procure-to-pay and risk modules,
- Complete qualification and due diligence process in place covering all supplier risk and quality aspects against clear internal quality requirements and external standards e.g. industry specific ISO certifications,
- Sustainability fields and data points are mandatory and detailed documentation and proof is requested,
- A dedicated and empowered team is in charge of the validation,
- Absence or incompleteness of sustainability data points blocks the supplier validation and disables the creation of purchase orders.
To learn more about defining a clear code of conduct for your suppliers, visit the EcoVadis Academy.
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