2Sustain

Last week, IBM announced that its first-tier suppliers will now be required to establish and follow a management system designed to address their corporate and environmental responsibilities.

IBM runs one of the world’s largest and most complex supply chains, spanning some 28,000 first-tier suppliers across 90 countries, and like Walmart, Ingersoll Rand and others , the company recognizes the enormous potential of this supplier network to advance sustainability initiatives.

Specifically, IBM suppliers are now required to:

• define, deploy, and sustain a management system that addresses corporate responsibility, including supplier conduct and environmental protection,

• measure performance and establish voluntary, quantifiable environmental goals, and

• publicly disclose results associated with these voluntary environmental goals and other environmental aspects of their management systems.

“Clearly there are financial benefits for procurement organizations around the world to choose suppliers that effectively manage their corporate and environmental responsibilities. For IBM, this helps contribute to our business success and that of our suppliers.  Moreover, it’s the right thing to do,” says John Paterson, IBM Global Supply Chief Procurement Officer and Vice President.

The company says it is not looking for a “one-size-fits-all” approach, but instead expects each supplier to develop its own management system to measure sustainability performance, set goals and disclose results.

More information about IBM’s supply chain and its environmental practices is available here and here .