Vodafone to test suppliers on diversity and environment

(Sharecast News) - Vodafone said its suppliers would have to show their commitment to diversity, inclusion and the environment when tendering for new work as the telecoms company seeks to improve its social and environmental impact.
The FTSE 100 company said from October a supplier's "purpose" would account for 20% of evaluation criteria when a company applies to provide Vodafone with products or services. They will be assessed on commitment and performance on diversity and inclusion, the environment and health and safety where there is a risk.

For new tenders suppliers will have to show policies and procedures that support diversity including gender, ethnicity, LGBT, age and disability. The policies will include equal pay and female representation. Environmental requirements will include carbon and plastic reduction, product lifecycles and renewable energy.

Vodafone Chief Financial Officer Margherita Della Valle said: "We want Vodafone's supply chain partners to be aligned with and support our desire to build a resilient, sustainable and inclusive digital society. From October 2020, we are evolving our vendor assessment criteria to give significant weighting to our suppliers' commitments on diversity, inclusion and the environment.

"We will be providing practical support for our smaller suppliers, providing help and tools to ensure that vendors of all sizes have the opportunity to align with our purpose when we consider them for contracts."

Companies are under increasing pressure from investors, campaigners and governments to improve their performance on preserving the environment and treatment of employees. Scrutiny has been extended into supply chains, which often include countries with looser standards than large companies' home markets.