Procurement People of Tomorrow: placement pack

Wednesday (Day 3)

The Power of Procurement

Power of Procurement Challenge

Being a conscious consumer is at the heart of good procurement, whether we are buying for ourselves or sourcing goods/services for an organisation.

We each assess whether we believe an organisation shares our values and goals. Are they sustainable and ethical? Do they share accountability for our climate obligations and fair and inclusive work practices, for example, ensuring fair pay and conditions, the health and wellbeing, equality, diversity and inclusion of employees?

Procurement policies incorporate core requirements for best practice or industry standards, which would demonstrate that suppliers share and work to common goals. They enable us to identify and work with suppliers who deliver UN SDGs and Social Impact. Policies can also prohibit suppliers who do not have a good track record or operate in regions where Human Rights, Modern Slavery, Bribery & Corruption, or Injustice are known to be issues.

This challenge aims to demonstrate the core policies and practices used to ensure supplier operations and behaviours are ethical and sustainable.

Your Brief

You work for a procurement consultancy who has been engaged by a new technology start-up. Their business aims to offer affordable, sustainable, and ethical devices to consumers. They have drafted sustainability targets for their organisation and supply chain, based on the UN SDGs and Social Impact themes including:

• Achieve carbon negative and water positive by 2030
• Manufacture and refurb 100% recyclable devices
• Health and wellbeing
• Equality, Diversity & Inclusion.

You must identify and write a Recommendation Report on policies and standards which can ensure the suppliers they use, support their sustainable and ethical objectives. It is important that you demonstrate the basis for your recommendations in your report. Evidence can include extracts from case examples, industry standards e.g., Circular Economy and Zero Waste, Health & Safety, Equal Pay.

You will need to present your Recommendation Report in a 5-minute presentation to your placement host, explaining your recommendations and how you approached the challenge. Additionally, you must also submit 2 key lessons learned by completing the challenge.

Earn bonus points by providing a brief explanation of how Circular Economy and Zero Waste might be incorporated within a supply chain.

Stage 1 – Planning

Time to brainstorm!

Write down whatever comes to mind when you think of 'sustainable, ethical, health and wellbeing, equality, diversity and inclusion'.

Perhaps...

Use organic &/or recyclable materials.

Real living wage, equal pay, healthcare.

Use renewable energy & manage efficiency.

Minimise / eliminate waste.

Workforce includes people with different life experiences.

Fair working hours, without labour exploitation.

There is no single correct answer to this so capture whatever you think.

Consider what steps you would want to take, and any measures needed to resolve the issues and better manage the supplier going forward.

High Level Plan

• What potential policy areas have you identified?
• How much info will you need to gather?
• How will you decide & prioritise what you need to do?
• What gaps exist in your knowledge?
• Where can you find information & resources?
• When will you start to create your Recommendations or capture Lessons Learned?

Taking your notes, use them to sketch out a rough outline plan of activities, their likely order & possible owners. Don't forget to note any dependencies you may have on each other.

Stage 2 – Plan in Action

You're now ready to start the challenge. Use your plan to manage activities. Research the best practice policies and practices, gather information on how organisations use them within their supply chain.

Choices available?
When were they first introduced?
Where are they used?
How difficult or easy are they to introduce?
Why is it important they are used, either individually or in combination? When are they most effective?
Who has exemplified these best practices and what did it achieve?

Plan your approach for your presentation & how to use any tools you will need.

What points will you need to cover in your presentation?
Do you know how to use any software needed?
What supporting info, graphics or props might you use?

Gather & collate information on possible solutions & select your recommended choice of policies and practices.

Step 3 – Reach Your Recommendations

Review the information gathered to determine what messages and content you want to include in your Recommendations, including any graphics.

What makes them best practice?
How could the policies and practices address the challenge?
What pros and cons did you discover about them?
What conclusions did you reach about their use in organisations?
How could Circular Economy Zero Waste make a difference?
What makes your recommendations compelling?

Give evidence why they best meet the criteria & explain your key findings, including the use of Circular Economy and Zero Waste within supply chains.

Use any images or props which make your findings easier to understand.

Create your Recommendations presentation – Remember to include your approach to the challenge as well as your recommendations.

Test your presentation with an audience - Are your recommendations and Circular Economy Zero Waste insight concise and easy to understand? Was it impactful?

Stage 4

Capture 2 key learnings to share with your placement host. What went well? What would you do differently? What was the most important thing you learned?

Stage 5

Submit or present your Recommendations to your placement host making sure to include your 2 key lessons learned.