Corporate Supply Chain Sustainability Strategies & Programs: Count as a Cost or Strategic Investment?
Corporate Supply Chain Sustainability Strategies & Programs: Count as a Cost or Strategic Investment? Consultant to Large-Cap Companies Provides Some Helpful Answers for Corporate Managers Question: Does a corporate sustainability program “cost” (and thus shows up on the “expense” side of the ledger) or are there measurable “returns” on the investments that companies are making to develop or adjust strategies, assemble teams and launch sustainability programs? (Especially those that have set goals and where progress is measured and then publicly reported.) We frequently hear this kind of discussion in the phone calls we have with corporate managers, especially those at companies where management is now considering what to do or perhaps just starting out on their sustainability journey. Senior managements often begin internal discussions with the questions for their managers:
Working with client organizations we see the firms’ customers and clients asking their supply chain partners about their respective sustainability efforts and requesting extensive information, directly of the firms (with detailed questionnaires) and through third parties such as EcoVadis and CDP Supply Chains. The questions are coming faster and more detailed than in previous years. The important customer with a range of sustainability-themed “asks” of course considers their supply partners to be part of their (the customer’s) overall sustainability footprint – and so the questions. Corporate sustainability leaders understand the importance of the “ask” and provide detailed answers to their valued customers. If the questions internally at the supplier company are along the lines of: “why” or “who is asking” and “what will this cost us” or “what is the return”…consider:
That’s some of the essence of a timely report – “Sustainability: The Missing Link” – that was authored by the Economist Intelligence Unit and sponsored by LLamasoft, an Ann Arbor, Michigan-based supply chain management software provider serving such clients as Ford Motor, 3M, Intel, Bayer, and Kellogg’s. Highlights of the report and important background come to us this week from Supply Chain & Demand Executive magazine, with an interview with Dr. Madhav Durbha, Group VP at LLamsoft. The interviewer explores how sustainability considerations cause companies to think differently about their supply chains and examples of global companies are managing the triple bottom line. The questions asked of Dr. Durbha by the magazine’s Amy Wunderlin:
An important take away from the interview:
There are numerous helpful hints for you in this week’s Top Story. Profitability or Sustainability? It Doesn’t Have to be a Choice Here is the link to the report: http://www2.llamasoft.com/Sustainability:TheMissingLink-NA
Sustainability Training HQ Highlight A Deeper Shade of Green: The Social Layer of Green FSAs This is the “final paper” authored by sustainability / CSR professional Ruth Rennie as she completed the on-line, self-study “Certification in Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability Strategies” hosted by Governance & Accountability Institute and developed by Professor Nitish Singh, Ph.D., Associate Professor of International Business at the Boeing Institute of International Business at Saint Louis University, and founder and consultant at IntegTree LLC; and, Instructor Brendan M. Keating, Adjunct Professor at Wilmington University and VP of IntegTree. The professionals completing the course work receive certificates from the Swain Center for Executive & Professional Education at the University of North Carolina Wilmington and from G&A Institute. The certification program provides a broad overview of key corporate responsibility challenges and strategies that will enable organizations to succeed in the 21st Century Green Economy. More information about the on-line course is available here.
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________________________________________ _________________________________________ Louis Coppola from G&A Institute Goes In Depth on How to Improve ESG Performance
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_________________________________________ FLASH REPORT: 85% of S&P 500 Index® Companies Publish Sustainability Reports in 2017
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