Seven Steps to Design, Adopt, and Implement an ESG Procurement Policy Strategy
1. Develop an understanding of ESG. What are the key ESG issues that are relevant to your business and your supply chain?
2. Develop ESG criteria. Once you have an understanding of ESG, you can develop ESG criteria that will be used to assess your suppliers.
3. Communicate your ESG expectations. Communicate your ESG expectations to your suppliers early and often. You can do this through your procurement process, through your supplier code of conduct, and through direct communication.
4. Monitor and enforce ESG compliance. Monitor your suppliers' ESG performance and enforce your ESG policy. You can do this through audits, questionnaires, and other means.
5. Get buy-in from your suppliers. Collaborate with your suppliers to help them improve their ESG performance.
You can do this by providing support and resources, recognizing and rewarding good ESG performance, and collaborating with other businesses.
6. Implement your ESG procurement policy. Once you have developed your ESG procurement policy strategy, you need to implement it.
This involves training your procurement team, updating your procurement processes, aligning your bid documents as well as service level agreements (SLAs), and communicating your policy to your suppliers.
7. Review and update your ESG procurement policy strategy regularly. ESG is a constantly evolving field, so it is important to review and update your ESG procurement policy strategy regularly to ensure that it is still aligned with your business goals and the latest ESG trends.
Here are some additional tips for designing, adopting, and implementing an ESG procurement policy strategy:
• Start small. It is better to start small and focus on a few key ESG issues than to try to do too much too soon.
• Get buy-in from senior management. It is important to get buy-in from senior management for your ESG procurement policy strategy. This will help to ensure that you have the resources and support you need to implement it effectively.
• Involve your procurement team. Your procurement team will be responsible for implementing and enforcing your ESG procurement policy. It is important to involve them in the development process so that they understand the policy and are committed to its success.
• Communicate with your suppliers. It is important to communicate your ESG expectations to your suppliers early and often. You can do this through your procurement process, through your supplier code of conduct, and through direct communication.
• Be flexible. ESG is a complex and evolving field. It is important to be flexible and adaptable so that you can adjust your ESG procurement policy strategy as needed.
By following these steps, you can design, adopt, and implement an ESG procurement policy strategy that will help you reduce your environmental impact, improve social and governance standards in your supply chain, and build a more sustainable future for your business.
If you are interested in broadening your team’s understanding of an ESG Procurement policy and strategy, we could assist by presenting the following:
- A 45-60 keynote presentation
- A two-day masterclass
- A one-day session for your suppliers on how to come on board with the process.
For further details, Contact: Gerrit Davids
Lead Advisor
TaranisCo Advisory CC
Mobile. +27 (0) 82 496 1657 E-mail: gerrit@taranisco.co.za