Three Ways Retailers Can Help Suppliers Tackle Sustainability

THREE WAYS RETAILERS CAN HELP
SUPPLIERS TACKLE SUSTAINABILITY

SSC Blog

Three Ways Retailers Can Help
Suppliers Tackle Sustainability

Jennifer Woofter recently wrote an
article Seven Sustainability Trends to
Watch in 2012, where she opined that
retailers (not government, consumers, or
even “business in general”) are the driving
force behind sustainability this year.
So we were pleased to read the recently-
released Retail Industry Leaders
Association (RILA) 2012 Retail
Sustainability Report. Based on interviews
with representatives from 20 different
retail companies and 30 corporate
sustainability reports from that sector, the
report is an intriguing snapshot of the
current priorities, challenges, and
opportunities the retail sector faces.
www.sustainabilityconsulting.com
Copyright © 2012, Strategic Sustainability Consulting. All rights reserved.

Three Ways Retailers Can Help
Suppliers Tackle Sustainability

You can download the entire
report for free from the RILA
website, and we promise that it is
chock full of goodies to keep you
thinking for a long while. But
before you do that, we wanted to
expound on one prediction that
the report makes about the
growth of sustainability within the
industry over the next 5-10 years:


RILA Prediction: The Drive to Manage
Supply Chain Impacts Will Transform
Retailer-Supplier Relationships

At Strategic Sustainability Consulting,
we generally work with the suppliers,
rather than the retailers. And we can
say without a doubt that suppliers are
paying attention to sustainability. They
are hearing from virtually every retailer
that they sell to, often multiple times
per month. They are scrambling to
gather data, establish goals, and meet
new (and sometimes conflicting)
requirements.


RILA Prediction: The Drive to Manage
Supply Chain Impacts Will Transform
Retailer-Supplier Relationships

So, yes. We agree with the Retail
Industry Leaders Association (RILA)
recent prediction that sustainability
will transform the retailer-supplier
relationship. But it remains to be seen
whether that change is positive or
negative for the parties involved. To
increase the odds of everyone walking
away happier and more sustainable,
we offer these three suggestions for
retailers. Accept these challenges, and
your suppliers will not only thank you
— they’ll help you achieve your own
sustainability goals:


1. Coordinate Your Supplier
Questionnaire With Other Retailers In
Your Sector

 If there is one thing that is driving
your suppliers universally crazy,
it’s the fact that each retailer has
created its own sustainability
questionnaire for suppliers. It is
ridiculous that our clients are
receiving upwards of a dozen
different supplier sustainability
questionnaires that they feel
obliged to respond to.
 Each retailer has its own set of
questions, its own interface for
submitting answers to those
questions, and its own It’s maddening. And a waste of time and resources. Rather
methodology for ranking and than make your supplier devote the equivalent of two full-
time employees to answering surveys, why not coordinate
assigning value to those answers. with your peers and lessen the burden on everyone?


2. Be Clear About What’s Coming
Next

 We all know that sustainability is a moving target. What you ask suppliers to do
today is not necessarily what you will expect from them tomorrow. We get it. And
we’re happy that you’re taking incremental steps. But for heaven’s sake, give us a
heads up about the direction you’re charting.
 It takes time to get the proper systems in place, and your suppliers would
appreciate a little notice. So if you are planning to stay focused on corporate-level
greenhouse gas reporting, then tell us so. If you anticipate leaning more towards
product-level greenhouse gas accounting, then that’s an important piece of
information to share.

Remember, suppliers want to make you happy. Tell us what you want (and expect to want in the future) so
that we can get busy making plans to meet those expectations.


3. Answer Your Email

 When you set up a supplier
sustainability program, there
are going to be questions. In
fact, there are probably going
to be a lot of questions. And
you need to devote the internal
resources to answering those
questions when they come up.
 So please think through how
you are going to communicate
with suppliers struggling to
respond to your sustainability
demands.



 Compile a Frequently Asked
Questions (FAQ) web page. Record
a webinar that can be played on-
demand later. Offer a demo of the
questionnaire interface — how to
log in, how to save your answers,
the timeline for evaluation, and
exactly how you will be using the
data provided. Provide an email
contact form. And then answer
messages when they arrive in your
inbox.

Seriously. Answer your emails.



 Yes, it can be overwhelming. Yes, there are probably some stupid questions
in the mix. (If you continue to get the same stupid questions, then maybe
you should create a FAQ to deal with it before it ends up in your inbox!)
 But when you tell suppliers to do something and then ignore their request
for support, you are essentially asking them to guess what will satisfy you.
And guessing isn’t going to make anyone happy. So just answer the emails,
okay? (Whoever is on the receiving end of the Walmart packaging scorecard,
I’m looking directly at you…)


Read this blog and more by visiting the SSC website
today:
Strategic Sustainability Consulting Blog

What are your thoughts? Join the
conversation on twitter @jenniferwoofter!

Three Ways Retailers Can Help Suppliers Tackle Sustainability

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Three Ways Retailers Can Help Suppliers Tackle Sustainability