Increasing supplier diversity is a growing priority among businesses, with companies becoming more aware of the social and financial benefits that it can produce.
According to the 2019 Supplier Diversity Study from the Hackett Group, diversity supplier partnerships can lead to process improvements, as well as product innovation and cost savings. The study also polled respondents from multiple sectors including healthcare, finance, energy, IT and more, on their level of satisfaction with their diversity suppliers and found:
- 46 percent have fostered a collaborative partnership and business alliance with their diverse suppliers.
- 34 percent of diverse suppliers go above and beyond contractual requirements.
- 32 percent offer new and creative ideas to drive innovation.
- 20 percent provide access to new technology and tools.
- 20 percent provide increased exposure to new demographic segments.
According to the study, the median diversity spend as a percentage of total spend is now 11 percent. However, this varies across all organizations. In the upper quartile, diversity spend is now hovering at 16 percent.
For agents, there is a clear and present opportunity — and a responsibility — to help drive supplier diversity. From a high level, supplier diversity helps drive economic growth and competition across all communities. At the same time, it can also help a company display its commitment to supporting diverse markets.
As a Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE) and Diverse Supplier, Televergence makes it easy for companies to increase their diversity spend.. By switching to Televergence, companies can automatically increase diversity spend without having to forego any extra CAPEX. The added benefit is a cost savings opportunity!
For more information, contact Televergence.