Report on sustainability and the supply chain

Sustainability at Work, with the support of the NSW Office of Environment and Heritage, has launched the report ‘The Sustainability and Supply Chain Divide: Insights into the gaps, challenges and opportunities for Australian companies’. It is based on 28 in-depth interviews with sustainability specialists and supply chain managers from across 17 industries in NSW, Queensland and Victoria.

According to the lead author of the report, Tania Crosbie, supply chain management is one of the biggest obstacles to more sustainable business practices. Sustainability managers across the country face similar challenges when looking to improve the sustainability of their supply chains, she said - and can seize similar opportunities.

“Our research has revealed that a number of overriding factors prevent sustainability managers and their supply chains from working more closely,” Crosbie said. “These factors include a lack of leadership, divergent language around sustainability, disconnected procurement policies and traditional contractual models.

“We also found many sustainability managers were hesitant to engage with their supply chain until their own shop was in order.”

The study also unmasked some best-practice behaviours, including employing sustainable supply chain managers, auditing supply chains thoroughly, enforcing sustainable procurement guidelines at tender time and collaborating with the supply chain for global better outcomes.

“Collaboration was a recurrent theme from those interviewed,” said Sustainability at Work Director Melissa Houghton. “Again and again, we were told that bringing together key - or high-risk - suppliers to create a shared vision leads to better outcomes for all organisations along the supply chain.

“The underlying message from the report is unequivocal. Companies are beginning to understand their responsibility to leave a sustainable legacy for future generations. Suppliers who don’t work with their partners, customers and the community to achieve more sustainable outcomes run the risk of operating an ever-shrinking market.”

The report can be accessed here.