Resources Let’s talk about intentionality in Impact Sourcing
It’s a triumph how much impact sourcing is talked about today. But to ensure it makes a real difference, we must talk about intentionality.
When you’ve been around outsourcing and sustainability for as long as I have, you develop a complicated response to new buzzwords.
On the one hand, I’m thrilled by any new positive momentum towards a more sustainable future. On the other hand, I’ve seen a lot of exciting things slowly fade away. It happens.
Yet every so often, buzzwords become something much bigger than any of us.
Recently, at the IAOP’s Outsourcing World Summit in Chicago, I found myself surrounded by a room full of people passionately exploring impact sourcing as a solution for businesses.
And all I could think was, “Wow. This is really happening. The time is now.”
To me, it’s a triumph that impact sourcing is something procurement departments talk about today. And I’m particularly impressed by how mature the conversation is.
But if we want to make sure all this momentum around impact sourcing makes a real difference, I think we need to start talking about intentionality.
What’s the intention behind impact sourcing?
When it comes right down to it, the intention behind an initiative is always more important than the label you put on it. This is true if you’re changing core processes in a single business or if you’re facilitating sustainable development on a global scale.
Because you can only measure the impact of any initiative in the context of its explicit goals.
The intention is the measure.
In the case of impact sourcing, this raises some strategic questions across the ecosystem.
Is impact sourcing about numbers? Is it about pure philanthropy?
For businesses, is the intention behind impact sourcing the impact itself? Or is it about the process used – the supply chain ESG reporting and management? There are no wrong answers here. But it’s important to be clear about intentions.
For outsourcers, how do we measure impact? Is employing a call centre in Rwanda more impactful than improving the diversity in a business’ executive ranks? The choice is hardly straightforward.
For the global community, exactly how much more responsible and accountable do we want to be for the way we hire and employ people around the world?
The answers to these questions will naturally vary across the community. But in my view, these are precisely the conversations we need to be having if we want to make sure impact sourcing is more than a buzzword.
Without a clear definition of intent, anything could be touted as impact sourcing. When that happens, it invariably muddies the waters.
For instance, to some, impact sourcing might mean temporarily hiring people in a developing country. To others it might mean trying to help underemployed demographics like women with disabilities by providing them with education and job training.
And to be clear, both of these are perfectly valid. But there’s a notable difference in intent and, in my experience, that difference matters.
At ADEC Innovations, we spend a lot of time thinking about whether we’re contributing more to the world than we’re taking from it. Some of our impact sourcing initiatives therefore tend to look a little bigger than usual.
For example, we own and operate the only college in Silay in the Philippines. Why? Because our intention is to empower more young people with gainful employment through education. To us, that is what impact sourcing can be.
At the same time we also have initiatives that accomplish job creation in a far more traditional sense.
We set up our ADEC Kenya delivery centre just outside of Nairobi so we could bring employment opportunities closer to people who typically walk thirty miles a day just to get to work.
The intent is what drives these initiatives – far more than if the initiative is called one word or another. It’s what drives strategic choices like whether the impact sourcing needs to happen on or off-shore.
For instance, in Ireland, we partnered with Turas Nua in Ireland to help long-time unemployed people to build careers in the customer service industry. Even in the US, we’ve helped global businesses employ single American mothers who can only work remotely.
At the end of the day, what we want is a world where every member of the ecosystem does their part to contribute to common goals around sustainability. That everyone makes a sincere contribution they can sustainably commit to.
The intent matters because the measurability of these contributions matters immensely.
It matters to the businesses spending money on these initiatives. And it most certainly matters to the people building their lives around the success of these initiatives.
The onus is on outsourcers
In every sector, in every country, populations and businesses are facing up to a diverse range of, frankly, existential threats.
Between the impending fallout of aging populations and the millions of jobs being created and destroyed by AI, it’s clear to me that outsourcers are about to take on an even more prominent role in the global economy.
As much as that should excite me, I’m also humbled by the responsibility it entails.
My hope is that as we move forward and deal with all these challenges, we do so with a clearer, more measurable view of what businesses want, what outsourcers can do and how the product of our endeavours impact the world.
Impact sourcing could end up being some buzzword we forget about.
Or it can be a catalyst for concrete change at a global scale.
The difference will be our collective intent.
James Donovan is an entrepreneur focused on impact investing that generates measurable social and environmental benefits alongside financial returns. James has grown his businesses in the areas of sustainability, workforce solutions, healthcare, education, technology and data management, delivering innovative Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) and assurance solutions to Fortune 1000 companies.
James has been actively involved in various initiatives with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), including the sixth Global Environment Outlook (GEO-6) Report, GEO for Business and Business & Industry Major Groups. He also holds various consultative positions with other UN agencies such as UNECE, UNITAR and UNCTAD, among others.
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影响购买大宗化学品的主要因素往往是成本和即时性。因此,买家经常更换这些化学品的供应商是很常见的现象。
ZDHC对大宗化学品的定义是,具有已知化学结构和单一CAS(Chemical Abstracts Service)编号的单一物质或化合物。这些化学品通常用于制造过程中创造条件或作为辅助剂。不同厂家生产的两种大宗化学品具有相同性和互换性。它们通常不会留在最终产品上,而是在加工过程中被清洗掉了。
虽然大宗化学品包含在ZDHC MRSL(制造限制物质清单)中,但由于在ZDHC网关中参与大宗化学品行业并将这些物质纳入符合ZDHC MRSL的ZDHC网关产品数据库仍有一定挑战,所以大宗化学品被排除在Performance InCheck报告之外。
大宗化学品制造商服务于多个行业,不限于纺织、服装、皮革和鞋类,这使得在可追溯性和地图绘制方面具有挑战性。影响购买大宗化学品的主要因素往往是成本和即时性。因此,买家经常更换这些化学品的供应商是很常见的现象。
为了保证清单数据的准确性和及时性,有如下建议:
检查和更新您的化学品清单
定期检查和更新您的化学品清单,以反映任何变化或新增数据。核实所有化学品,包括大宗化学品,是否准确记录。
每月清单更新
确保化学品清单每月更新,包括期间使用的所有化学品,以确保数据的准确和即时性。
熟悉ZDHC更新指南
供应商应熟悉ZDHC大宗化学品指南ZDHC Commodity Chemical Guide。本指南概述了管理大宗化学品的最佳做法,确保它们得到负责任的评估和储存。
有关大宗化学品的更多信息,请点击这里click here
随着环境问题成为人们关注的焦点,品牌、监管机构和消费者都要求供应商提高透明度,承担更大的责任。但这对服装和纺织行业的供应商意味着什么?
数据表明:
70%的品牌更喜欢拥有透明的可持续发展数据的供应商。品牌正在优先考虑那些能够提供可验证数据的供应商。如果没有透明度,供应商就有可能把业务输给已经准备好的竞争对手。
时尚供应链占全球碳排放量的10%。服装业是造成气候变化的最大因素之一。减少碳排放不再仅仅是合规性的问题,而是关于在一个可持续性是品牌和消费者的关键决策因素的市场中保持相关性。。
纺织生产占全球工业水污染的20%。纺织制造中的化学密集型工艺造成了严重的水污染。品牌越来越多地执行更严格的环境要求,这使得供应商必须改善废水管理和化学品合规性。
CleanChain如何赋能供应商?
供应商需要合适的工具来应对这些挑战并实现可持续发展目标。CleanChain简化了环境合规和可持续发展报告,帮助供应商
✅自动化合规性追踪,并确保符合ZDHC MRSL和其他法规。
✅通过实时数据洞察和性能监控减少碳和水足迹。
✅改善化学品管理,确保更安全、更可持续的生产过程。
✅通过提供经过验证的、透明的可持续发展数据,与品牌建立信任。
可持续供应链的未来
可持续性不仅仅是满足法规要求——它还关乎提高竞争优势,加强品牌关系,以及企业的未来发展。随着对可持续发展的期望不断提高,主动适应的供应商将最有利于长期成功。
cleanchain.cn@adec-innovations.com
东丽酒伊织染 (南通) 有限公司 (公司简称 TSD), 成立于1994年, 是东丽集团 (Toray) 在中国投资规模最大的制造型公司, 是一家以化学合成纤维为主的坯布织造、功能性面料加工·染色、成衣制造销售及水处理 为核心事业的公司。公司拥有从新技术研 发、织造/染色/后整理/检测及成衣制 造的一条龙生产流程。作为东丽海外的标 杆工厂, TSD拥有一流的安全、环境和职业 卫生、能源管理体系, 践行着TSD对于社会 责任感的承诺。公司秉承“通过创造新的 价值为社会做贡献”的企业理念, 以不懈的 创新精神和科技实力为客户不断开发品质 上乘、性能卓越的面料, 谋求与每一位顾客 的共同发展。
客户面临的挑战
在采用CleanChain这款在线化学品管理系统之前, 我们在执行ZDHC的过程中, 由于化学品使用类别多且量大, 很难实现实时追踪现有化学品的MRSL合规性。同时, 针对没有合规性的化学品以及证书到期的产品, 我们需要人工核实和整理相关列表, 并一一和化学品制剂商进行沟通。整个过程需要花费大量的时间,极大地影响我们的工作效率。另外, 如何提高MRLS的整体符合性,也是我们的一大挑战。最后, 在采用系统前, 我们不明确我司客户对于我们进入CleanChain平台持何种态度及其认可程度如何。
CleanChain解决方案
我司化学品管理工作者每月在系统里按时上传化学品清单,并下载InCheck报告。为了避免用户错过上传的时间截点, CleanChain还会有自动化的邮件提醒用户及时上传化学品数据。除了定期上传化学品数据外, 我们日常工作中,也会利用系统的Dashboard来查看到期的产品以及没有合规性的产品列表。根据这份列表, 我们有针对性地和化学品供应商开展高效的沟通, 鼓励并帮助他们对未合规的产品进行检测并上传至ZDHC Gateway网关。同时, 在数据的分享上, 通过CleanChain的connect功能, 与客户取得关联, 系统可自动帮助用户将CIL数据和InCheck报告分享给我们的合作品牌。CleanChain在数据的管理上, 帮助我们节省了手动分享报告和清单的时间, 大大地提高了工作效率 。
CleanChain带给我们的价值
The implementation of the CleanChain platform has significantly reduced our exposure to chemical risk substances while greatly enhancing the efficiency of our chemical management efforts. Additionally, adopting CleanChain has strengthened customer recognition and trust, particularly among those familiar with or already utilizing the platform. Ultimately, CleanChain plays a key role in advancing our sustainability initiatives.
采用CleanChain系统,在很大程度上帮助我司规避了化学品的风险物质, 也大大提高了我司化学品管理方向的工作效率。同时, CleanChain系统的采用提升了客户对于我司的认可度及信任度, 尤其是对于了解或者已经使用CleanChain平台的客户而言。最后, CleanChain促进了我司可持续发展进程。
联系我们 cleanchain.cn@adec-innovations.com