Opening Doors: Increasing Ethnic Minority Business Opportunities in Corporate Supply Chains

Written by Professor Monder Ram

You’re a talented entrepreneur with a unique product or service that could benefit major firms. You have the skills, the experience, and the passion to deliver quality and value. But there is one problem: you can’t get past the gatekeepers of corporate procurement.

This is the reality for many ethnic minority business (EMB) owners in the UK. Despite their potential, they face significant hurdles in accessing corporate supply chains.

As the CREME 's ‘Time to Change’ report reveals, EMBs are often excluded from tendering opportunities due to a lack of transparency, trust, and reluctance buyers to engage seriously with supplier diversity.

This is not only unfair, but also costly. By overlooking EMBs, corporate buyers miss out on new innovations, insights, and markets. They also fail to reflect the diversity of their customers and society.

We need to take action to increase opportunities for EMBs in corporate supply chains. Here are some of steps our report sets out:

• Increase transparency and accountability.?Businesses and government should be required to report on their engagement with EMBs in their supply chains. This will help to identify where there are gaps and make it easier to track progress.
• Create more opportunities for EMBs to tender.?Businesses should break down barriers to entry for EMBs, such as by simplifying tendering processes and providing training and support.
• Support EMBs to grow and develop.?Businesses should work with EMBs to help them build their skills and capacity, so that they can compete on a level playing field.
• Adopt supplier diversity policies.?Businesses should adopt supplier diversity policies that commit them to increasing their use of EMBs. These policies should be measurable and have clear targets.

Our report also found that EMBs are more likely to be awarded contracts when they can build relationships with corporate buyers. This is because relationships can help to build trust and understanding and can also help EMBs to get their foot in the door. Supplier diversity can also help businesses to improve their innovation, efficiency, and competitiveness. This is because EMBs often bring new ideas and perspectives to the table, and they can also be more agile and responsive to change.

In addition, supplier diversity can help businesses to improve their reputation and brand image. This is because it shows that businesses are committed to diversity and inclusion, which is increasingly important to consumers and investors.

The report highlights several public and private sector examples from the United States and isolated initiatives undertaken the UK. These programmes highlight the gains to be made for corporates and EMBs alike when supplier diversity is made a priority.

By taking these actions, we can break down the barriers that prevent EMBs from accessing corporate supply chains. This will benefit businesses, EMBs, and society as a whole.

Written by Professor Monder Ram

Director, Centre for Research in Ethnic Minority Entrepreneurship

Aston University