Like most people, I have particular areas of interest when it comes to the wide-ranging agenda that we consider under the “procurement with purpose” heading.
I started working in procurement in more innocent times, when we thought less about the recyclability of the packaging we were buying, or what was happening to people far away, at the beginning of supply chains that ended up with our delicious chocolate bars. But I’ve always been a strong believer that while there’s a time for tough, price-driven negotiations, the biggest gains we make come when we work with suppliers in a collaborative, positive manner.
Much of what is happening now, in terms of procurement with purpose success stories, builds on that principle, as buyers work with suppliers to address human rights issues, or develop more sustainable materials and approaches. I also see this movement as really important for the procurement profession. If anything can get us away from being seen as transactional processors or pure price-driven negotiators, then these agendas around the environment, modern slavery, encouraging diversity in the supply chain and so on are more likely than anything else I can think of to get us onto that Board agenda.
Personally, I’m a keen vegetable grower, I try to be organic, and we do possess no less than six water butts, two compost heaps and four compost bins in our garden and under our drainpipes! My daughter and son-in-law are masters of re-use, recycling and upcycling, even if (like many of their generation) their admirably sustainable lifestyle is somewhat offset by a fondness for long-haul travel! I have less trouble avoiding airports, although I have been a keen skier for many years.
As a gardener, walker and cyclist, the reduction since my childhood in the amount of other life we see around us deeply worries me (birds, butterflies, even insects), and I wonder whether mass species extinction driven by deforestation and other human activities might prove even more disastrous than climate change. Issues around helping people with disabilities and health conditions to live fulfilling lives (and contribute to society) are close to my heart for personal reasons too, and I served as a non- executive director of Remploy for several years.
So it is a pleasure to be working with Mark and others on this initiative. I hope to do what I can to identify, communicate and promote good practice, and spread the word with success stories and great ideas as we build the procurement with purpose community.