Sustainable Procurement in Action
3rd August 2010
The River Rooms, Crown Palladium,
Crown Towers,
Melbourne
Sustainable Procurement is a term that is increasingly used, but is perhaps misunderstood. What do we really mean by Sustainable Procurement? The best definition I have seen is:
“…a process whereby organisations meet their needs for goods, works and utilities in a way that achieves value for money on a whole life basis in terms of generating benefits not only to the organisation, but also to society and the economy, whilst minimising damage to the environment.”
(Procuring the Future, Sustainable Procurement Task Force, 2006)
In recent times, when talking about sustainable procurement, the focus has been very much on measuring and managing CO2 emissions, with numerous programmes developed addressing these issues. Indeed, CIPSA Conferences, late last year, were planning an event on “What the CPRS means for procurement?” However, with the government deciding not to pursue it’s ETS scheme in the near term after the failure of the Copenhagen Summit, it appears that the focus has switched to a broader definition of sustainable procurement, as quoted above.
In research conducted over the past few months by CIPSA Conferences, it is clear that there is great interest in Sustainable Procurement, with procurement professionals wanting clear, practical advice on questions such:
· How do you make the business case from both a financial and socially responsible standpoint?
· Where do you start, where can you find “easy wins”?
· How do you avoid “greenwash”?
· What standards, guidelines or frameworks are available and which should we be following?
· How do you identify and manage CSR risks?
All of these questions and more will be answered at the CIPSA Conferences Special Interest Forum on Sustainable Procurement in Action.
Programme Development
CIPSA Conferences anticipate releasing the programme in the next few days. While a number of speakers have been invited, CIPSA Conferences are still open to contributions from practitioners who, through their own experiences, can add value to the programme. Please contact Nigel Wardropper, our Event Director, at nigelw@bttbonline.com if you would like to contribute.
About the CIPSA Special Interest Forums
As most procurement professionals in the region will be aware, CIPSA Conferences have been producing a highly successful series of Strategic Procurement Forums for the last five years, including the CIPSA Annual Conference, The Category Management Forum, The Public Sector Procurement Forum and various regional Strategic Procurement Forums. These conferences have largely focussed on a broad range of key issues for the profession, as identified by the CIPSA Executive and the Steering Group.
However, given the broad nature of these programmes, there has not, until now, been the opportunity to examine specific issues in any great detail. This is where the Special Interest Forums come in. By concentrating the programme on a specific issue, the Special Interest Forums will provide a depth of content previously unavailable, allowing procurement professionals to get a much more complete understanding of what are often quite complex subjects.
I trust you find the programme of interest and look forward to seeing you at a CIPSA Special Interest Forum or Strategic Procurement Forum in the near future,
Jonathan Dutton FCIPS
Managing Director
CIPS Australia and New Zealand
Managing Director
CIPS Australia and New Zealand