A standard that seems to be growing in demand, certainly this year, is ISO 20400 which is a guidance document on sustainable procurement.
However, because it’s a guidance document, this means it’s not a certifiable standard…
But, it is useful if you are looking at your procurement, supply chain and how sustainable it is as ISO 20400 provides you with everything that you need to know on how to manage your supply chain sustainably!
A little background on the ISO 20400 standard…
The standard has been around for some time, but it was a British standard (BS 8903: 2010), we’ve been familiar with it for a number of years, and we’ve aligned this standard with some of our client’s environmental management systems.
Why should considering the influence of your supply chain impact on the environment be something you want to consider doing?
The ISO 20400 standard and considering the influence of your supply chain on the environment could be beneficial for your organisation, not only from an operational point of view but also in terms of having a competitive advantage.
So, let’s take a look at the ISO 20400 standard…
As we know, every single organisation on the planet has an environmental, social and economic impact regardless of the size of the organisation…
Therefore, this particular guidance document is applicable to ANY size organisation across ANY type of industry, because those impacts have an influence throughout the supply chain.
Procurement is a powerful vehicle for organisations wishing to behave in a responsible way and contribute to the sustainable development goals.
By integrating sustainability in procurement policies and practices, it helps you to be able to manage your opportunities, risks and to focus in on those sustainable, environmental, social and economic development issues. It’s a great start to considering the influence of your supply chain on the environment.
Ultimately, sustainable procurement represents a real opportunity to improve productivity, assess value and performance throughout your supply chain, enabling communication between purchase’s, suppliers and all other key stakeholders and helps to encourage innovation.
In this episode I will cover:
[05:00] The definition of procurement and sustainable procurement within this standard.
[06:16] Drivers for sustainable procurement within your organisation.
[13:20] Clauses 1,2 and 3.
[14:05] Clause 4- Understanding the fundamentals.
[14:40] Clause 5- Integration of sustainability at a strategic level
[16:06] Clause 6- Management techniques needed to successfully implement and to continually improve sustainable procurement.
[17:00] Clause 7- Considerations for the integration into existing procurement processes.
[19:08] The key principles of sustainable procurement.
We’d love to hear your views and comments about the ISO Show, here’s how:
- Share the ISO Show on Twitter or Linkedin
- Leave an honest review on iTunes or Soundcloud. Your ratings and reviews really help, and we read each one.
If you’d like to get access to further information on ISO 20400, plus many other ISO Standards, check out the isologyhub which is an online membership platform, it’s a cost efficient and time effective way to implement your ISO standards and to get access to a wealth of information and guidance. There is an eLearning course you can get access to and an ISO 20400 checklist. So, if you want to find out more head over to: www.isologyhub.com
Beyond certification, we take great pride in delivering ISO consultancy and support solutions. These solutions help our clients improve their productivity and profitability in a risk-controlled way.
We are your dedicated ISO consultants for all compliance matters from internal audits to updating Health, Safety and Environmental Legal compliance.
No matter what ISO certification you are hoping to achieve, we have a specialist ISO consultant ready to work with you and your organisation. Contact our team today to get started.
Our 7 Steps to Success
The Blackmores ISO Roadmap is a proven path to go from idea to launching your ISO Management System.
Whether you choose to work with one of our ISO Consultants, our isologists®, or work your own way through the process on our isology Hub, we’re certain you’ll achieve certification in no time!
We have a proven step by step process that our ISO Consultants implement as soon as our working relationship begins. We use our specialist skills and industry knowledge to determine what is already on track and where improvements can be made. We live and breathe ISO standards, we know the standards inside out so you don’t have to.
Our ISO Consultants can help you implement systems for any ISO Standard. See the full list for specialised standards here.
What our clients have to say
We engaged Blackmores to develop our ISO 9001, 14001, and 45001 management system from scratch. Throughout the creation and development stages of our ISO journey, Anju Punetha demonstrated remarkable patience, knowledge, and understanding as our dedicated consultant.
During our internal audit preparations, Ian Battersby’s meticulous attention to detail and thorough approach ensured we were well-prepared for our external audit, which we passed with flying colours. His guidance during the external audit was invaluable.
Based on our engagement and experience, I highly recommend the entire Blackmores team. If you’re considering pursuing ISO accreditations, Blackmores should be your first choice.
Graeme Adam
The support and advise I get from our assigned auditors is immense. Forward planning for the following year is great and they are flexible and always willing to help.
Kalil Vandi
“Blackmores have assisted us almost since the start of our adoption of the ISO 9001 quality standard. Their input has improved our processes since the start, and enabled our goal of continuous improvement to be achieved. The people are also extremely easy to get on with, and they really understand our business, giving us a great deal of confidence in their advice.”
David Gibson
“Blackmores are the perfect bridge between working on your ISO as an individual or company, to being audited each year. We find that any queries we have are covered and we feel sure that we have everything as needs be before going into an external audit.”
Mandy Welsby
“We have been extremely impressed with the service and support provided by Blackmores. There knowledge and assistance through out our ISO journey has been amazing!”
Philip Hannabuss
“Blackmores have really kept us on our toes with the broad scope and level of detail they apply to our internal audit schedule. They always stay abreast of ISO standard changes and help us to adapt our processes and documents to embrace these changes accordingly. Having Blackmores shadow our external audits provides invaluable confidence and peace of mind – would highly recommend their services!”
Phil Geens
“Our ISO 27001 certification project has gone so well, that there was no doubt in who we were going to ask to help us with our aspirations of becoming ISO 14001 certified. It’s been an absolute pleasure working with Blackmores, and we are really looking forward to working with them for the foreseeable future.”
Trusted by leading organisations across all sectors, we support companies of all sizes in any location.
Listen to our Podcast
Welcome to the ISO Show podcast, dispelling myths and sharing tips for success to improve your business with ISO Standards. Join us to hear interviews with successful business leaders as they share their ISO journey with you.
Get top tips via audio master classes “ISO Steps to Success” on the most popular ISO Standards.
