Charmaine Gadua, manager, Central Marcom and Sustainability Ambassador, Ansell, discusses the urgency of climate action.
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The urgency of climate action has never been greater, and businesses play a crucial role in achieving global sustainability goals. In alignment with The Paris Agreement, businesses must make a concerted efforts to limit global warming and reduce carbon emissions.
A key component of this effort is addressing Scope 1 emissions – those directly produced by a company’s operations – along with Scope 2 emissions. These are indirect emissions from purchased electricity, steam, heating, and cooling.
Sustainable supply chain management is no longer optional. It’s a vital strategy for businesses aiming to comply with evolving regulations, and meet stakeholder expectations.
So what are the best practices for embedding sustainability into the supply chain, and what are the benefits of doing so? We interviewed three sustainability experts to find out.
Building more sustainable supply chains
Kicking off our conversation, Nalise describes a sustainable supply chain as one that promotes social equity, generating economic value in a responsible way, while trying to minimise its footprint.
“This could mean using recycled materials. It could be considering the whole product lifecycle and trying to reduce waste from the outset, or looking at renewable resources.
“Then, when we think about it from, let's say a labour perspective, it’s about trying to promote ethical practices. In many countries, this looks like fair wages. It looks like safe working conditions. It’s about prioritising respect for workers’ rights across all your suppliers.”
She goes on to discuss the importance of the circular economy, drawing on first-hand experience. As a consultant, she’s used to asking the right questions to ensure businesses consider every step in their supply chains.
“One of the key practices is really adopting the principles of a circular economy. Starting to think about how products have been designed – for reuse, to be recycled, or potentially even refurbished.
“Thinking about the lifecycle of a product from the outset, and throughout its whole useful life to the end of life. How can you really minimise the waste associated with that product?”
The environmental benefits of sustainable supply chains
As well as emphasising the importance of continuous improvement, Bora describes the sustainable supply chain as one that considers environmental, social and economic impacts of all company activities, starting from raw material sourcing until reaching the product and the final consumer.
As an example of these impacts, Bora highlights one of Ansell’s key commitments: zero waste to landfill. It’s all about diverting 99% of waste away from landfill sites – the dead end of the not-so-circular economy. Bora champions this scheme as one that facilitates better collaboration: “We are taking an action to work with our material suppliers and we are working with R&D to design environmentally friendly products. We’re reducing energy consumption, converting our energy to renewable energy, water consumption, and then generating less waste. And where there is waste generated, we’re not sending it to landfill. We’re working with consumers especially to dispose of products in an environmentally friendly way.”
As Bora suggests, the benefits of a sustainable supply chain extend far beyond our facilities. Understanding how the environment is impacted by our actions can help us consider our activities more carefully. One important way of benchmarking this is by using the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals:
“We identified seven topics, in line with the Sustainable Development Goals, to work towards a better world through our work and supply chain. These include good health and well-being, clean water and sanitation, affordable clean energy.”
Equally important are sustainability regulations that relate specifically to product development and raw material use, such as the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), which holds businesses accountable for responsible materials sourcing, preserving natural habitats and respecting indigenous communities.
Biodiversity is crucial to maintaining healthy ecosystems, so Nalise advocates strongly for preserving the amazing environments we’re lucky to enjoy – all over the world.
“Whether it be deforestation or overexploitation of resources, supply chain activities can really disrupt habitat, and I’ve seen that first-hand. It's quite striking.
“Alongside that, often linked to biodiversity, is water stewardship. Water is very important, because when we think about water scarcity and pollution, this can have such severe consequences, of course, for businesses and industries, but also for communities.”
So we know our supply chain activities can have a big impact on the environment. But what are the business benefits of working towards a more sustainable supply chain?
How sustainable supply chain management benefits your business
Companies that integrate sustainability into their supply chains can future-proof operations, while reducing their impact on the environment. They can also build greater levels of trust with customers and stakeholders at every level. For Samareh, the benefits are undeniable:
“What we see from the data is that when your supply chain network is diverse, it's the most innovative – the most flexible. So I think even though it can be complex putting the work in it to implement ethical practices, it will pay off in the end. Also, purely from a commercial perspective, there's a reputational advantage to it. We all, as human beings, want to work for companies that represent our values.”
Nalise agrees that ethical supply chain practices make good business sense, considering short-term gains, as well as long-term resilience.
“Sustainability is important because when you incorporate it into your organisation – it doesn't matter how big or small you are – you're really going to be building resilience. You're going to be mitigating risks and hopefully seizing a lot of opportunities for innovation and cost savings.”
And when it comes to these opportunities, each business is unique. Nalise helps her clients strike the right balance between business growth and environmental impact, while ensuring workers remain safe and healthy.
Health and safety awareness during sustainable supply chain management is especially important when it comes to the procurement of products like personal protective equipment (PPE).
In high-risk industries where health and safety are the top priority, the primary goal might be to find products that improve sustainability while maintaining the highest level of protection. As Samareh summarises:
“Knowing your baseline is important – what kind of PPE are your workers using right now? And are those solutions sustainable? From there, you can look for suppliers who are willing to collaborate with you and are able to offer you more sustainable products that meet the safety standards.”
An important part of sustainable supply chain management lies in the procurement process – choosing suppliers that align with your sustainability goals. But what does that look like in practice?
What is sustainable procurement best practice?
Sustainable procurement means taking steps to minimise harm to the environment when selecting suppliers. Without clear guidelines for these decisions, there’s no accountability to ask the important questions. Where do your raw materials come from? Are overseas workers paid a fair wage? Are recycled materials used in the products wherever possible?
It’s therefore best practice to establish a clear framework to keep all business units aligned on your goals, process and policies.
If it only comes down to price point, sustainability won’t always win, so it’s important to define a clear process for comparison. For example, encouraging decision-makers to consider lifetime value vs upfront costs.
Even where health and safety are the top priority, there are opportunities to reduce environmental impact, as Nalise explains: “A good example might be if we think about PPE. There are lots of different options available, which may be more sustainable, biodegradable or recyclable. There are great options, as technologies advance, that don’t compromise safety and well-being. And, specifically in procurement, I've often seen that it’s best to embed sustainability from the start.
“Try to establish really clear policies, and within those policies, make it clear that the company is actively choosing to prioritise environmentally responsible suppliers and products.”
Key pillars of sustainable supply chain management
Throughout our conversations, the experts consistently highlight a few key points that support the transition to more sustainable supply chains. Here are their top recommendations to help you get started:
- Embed sustainability in your strategy: Sustainable supply chain management isn’t a one-size-fits-all activity. It requires careful planning and consideration and a collection of small steps towards long-term goals. It’s therefore essential to embed sustainability throughout.
- Sustainable procurement: When selecting suppliers, it’s important to champion those who minimise their environmental impact and use resources efficiently, and take steps to keep waste down. Their impact becomes your impact, so choose wisely.
- Transparent communication: Having oversight of every step of the supply chain is key, which means asking the right questions and having honest conversations about everything from labour conditions and worker rights to the impact of day-to-day operations, waste and recycling activities.
- Continuous improvement: Working closely with partners and stakeholders to drive efficiencies and improvements at every stage of the supply chain will unlock opportunities to improve processes, reduce waste, and increase circularity year on year.
- Clear policies and guidelines :Everyone in your operation needs to be aligned on your goals and how they translate into action. This means having clear policies and processes in place that support the transition to a sustainable supply chain.
Use this checklist to help you define a more sustainable supply chain management strategy. Because supply chain management is essential for long-term business success and environmental stewardship. By embedding sustainability throughout procurement and supply chain operations, businesses not only reduce their impact but also build resilience, boost efficiencies, create opportunities for growth, and meet rising stakeholder expectations.