Procurement can be your DEI powerhouse

A lot of organizations don't realize it, but procurement can really be a powerhouse for DEI. Most people think that what procurement provides in the diversity, equity, and inclusion space is supplier diversity and ESG reporting. But it can do much more. Procurement is in a place to drive DEI, not just across your own business, but across hundreds of businesses. Because Procurement helps to manage engagements across a company's supply base, it can help transform that base as a whole. A few concrete examples:

1. Influencing construction for LGBTQ+ inclusion.

Often, procurement is responsible for buying new construction or remodels of existing facilities. While procurement doesn't make decision decisions, it can bring in key considerations. For example, it can ask teams about gender neutral bathrooms to be more inclusive of trans and nonbinary team members, customers, and visitors.

2. Reviewing contingent worker policies to combat racial, gender, and other disparities.

Contingent labor teams tend to sit within or alongside procurement organizations, and procurement has a unique ability to influence non-employee policies, such as policies governing barriers to joining a company's contingent workforce. Many companies have policies prohibiting services from contingent workers who have criminal histories or who have been terminated for cause from past employers. I personally know a number of LGBTQ+ people who were terminated for cause from religious organizations because of who they are, and it pains me to see organizations that have unyielding policies barring them from working. Felony disenfranchizement for African Americans is 4x the rate of non-African Americans. In general, black defendants are more likely than white defendants to be convicted of a felony rather than a misdemeanor. Inflexible policies don't take any of this into account. Hardline policies tend to disadvantage the disadvantaged.

Most contingent labor organizations also have confidentiality requirements for non-employees. How broad are they? Would they scare non-employee workers from addressing or sharing experiences of racism, sexism, or other harms in your company, and protect individuals and groups who perpetrate them? In the wake of the?#MeToo?movement, women are rejecting NDAs, having recognized their often harmful role in society. And especially in the wake of social justice movements following the murder of George Floyd, black workers are being advised: "don't sign away your right to speak out." If your contingent labor organization is asking workers to do this, it may need a change.

3. Using software contracting can drive accessibility.

Procurement organizations negotiate software all the time. But how often do agreements include accessibility requirements? And for software companies who can't meet accessibility requirements, how often are they told that this needs to be part of their roadmap and is an expectation for growing partners? Procurement is in a unique position to transform, not just its own company, but entire supply chains. It can be a driver towards DEI developments across dozens (or even hundreds) of companies.

Empower your teams to do more.

And don't forget to talk to your suppliers on what they are doing to drive DEI. Ask them where they have seen gaps in your processes, policies, contracts, and other areas. The above is only a small list of opportunities for development. Much more could be done to impact every area of DEI, if your procurement team is up for the challenge.

Sourcing professionals are key here. Many want to do more than just save money. They want to better the world. Establishing creative DEI goals with your supply base can give them an assurance that they're actively doing this.

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Sources:

- https://www.sentencingproject.org/reports/report-to-the-united-nations-on-racial-disparities-in-the-u-s-criminal-justice-system/

- https://www.fastcompany.com/90529393/how-much-is-my-silence-worth-amid-a-racial-reckoning-women-are-rejecting-ndas

- https://www.aclu.org/news/womens-rights/nondisclosure-agreement-silencing-you-sharing-your-me-too

- https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/23/opinion/nda-racism-separation-agreements.html

- https://www.ojp.gov/ncjrs/virtual-library/abstracts/offender-race-and-case-outcomes-do-crime-seriousness-and-strength