Global Best Practices - Sustainable Procurement

Organizations concerned about sustainability in public procurement should be concerned with three elements of the practice: economic, social, and environmental sustainability. By taking these three elements into consideration, public procurement will create an enduring approach to procuring goods and services that impact the community in a positive way. This practice describes the role of leaders in developing, implementing, and maintaining a sustainable procurement policy. It provides detailed steps for developing a sustainable procurement process and ensures engagement with suppliers in sustainable procurement. In addition, this global best practice outlines the various factors that entities must consider when they commit to sustainable procurement. This includes the need to document drivers of sustainable procurement and outlining sustainability objectives in policy, strategy, procedures, and processes. Finally, the paper discusses how to validate achievement and measure results in sustainable procurement by having a tangible method in place to measure the success of their sustainability plan and strategy.