However, Sustainability is not only about climate change; it is also about human and commercial concerns. Business Sustainability is managing strategies around financial, social and environmental regulations, hazards, and challenges; not addressing these matters could damage a company’s reputation.
Resent and escalating catastrophic events lead us to question if the actual cost of consuming is worth the outcomes. Though consumers are taking consciousness that they have to respond to Sustainability through their shopping behaviour, they are now actively choosing to shop from brands significantly compromised with the environment and social activities, encompassing better marketing, packaging and labour-hiring policies.
Obstacles to accomplishing Sustainability in the SC
· The latest fires in many regions worldwide caused the lives of thousands of workers that resulted in the signing of new legal agreements on worker safety.
· Applying plastic single-use of plastics shows the world the shocking effects of dumping tons of disposable plastic into our oceans.
· Modern slavery is providing work for children and senior citizens labour.
· Sustainability violations are commonplace around suppliers.
· Global SCs and the Logistics sector are significant contributors to greenhouse gas emissions, and society and governments demand them to make a meaningful, proactive change.
· The lack of supplier diversification is also an issue, as many companies rest solely on suppliers in specific countries or regions, such as in Latin America, the Pacific, or Asia.
· Several such countries have no obligatory or non-existent Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) policies, making it challenging for well-intentioned businesses to assess or grade partners.
· Many lower-tier suppliers also offer minor information about their internal protocols around labour conditions, carbon emissions, and other factors, making them the most vulnerable to robust, sustainable regulations.
· Many SCs do not have the mechanism to steadily balance Sustainability, service, cost, and cash, restraining their presence in wide-ranging decisions.
What can Supply Chain corporations do to collaborate?
Each supplier in the SC must request their suppliers to act accordingly to Sustainability standards, sharing accountability for coming strategies and outcomes. These suppliers are often essential from a cost-benefit perspective. According to The Economist Intelligence Unit, the price is the main obstacle, leaving out the adaptation of a Supply Chain Sustainability strategy. The inconvenience of monitoring complex supply networks comes next.
Several businesses are keen to take a significant role in reducing such impact. The Supply Chain generally goes hand in hand with efficiency improvements. There are viable solutions to reach, yet, high levels take most measures to a substantial, steady, and functional degree, not the operational ones. The challenge is overcoming these effects and working towards Sustainability optimisation throughout SCs.
Studies mentioned that almost 60% of companies declared that Sustainability is as crucial as economical operation. Nearly all businesses advocated accomplishing countless Sustainability standards. It is well-understood that there are benefits in doing so, such as the potential to further innovation and heightened brand recognition, whilst preventing elevated costs in the long run.
To make lasting, meaningful shifts toward sustainable Supply Chain Management, leaders must prioritise Sustainability in organisational agendas, management culture, cost, and service.
How to get it done
Diminishing environmental risk and impact, monitoring cost, and preserving operational quality under changing conditions have become a multi-tier undertaking. To achieve agility, flexibility and resilience, companies need to:
· Acknowledge the multi SC problems that lie beneath all technology strategies.
· Discuss the future-oriented mindset required to decide on SC solutions.
· Pointing out how businesses can solve the SC multi-problems by short-term support from upsetting events and long-term success.
· Offer a plan for agile operation and SC environmental resilience.
Final comments: making the right decisions requires understanding product flows and customers, having a big-picture of the end-to-end Supply Chain procedures and how these requirements are met.
Experts mentioned we have just 12 years to limit a climate change catastrophe. It requires a radical change in how we reimagine, live and do business. The Supply Chain will be a crucial influencer of that evolution.
Which is your next step to take around Sustainability?
Dave Food
M: +44 7775 861863
Photo by Appolinary Kalashnikova on Unsplash