08/08/23, 09:15, Gartner Reprint Gartner. Licensed for Distribution Market Guide for Supplier Sustainability Applications Published 3 July 2023 - ID GO0774008 - 33 min read By Miguel Cossio, Kevin Lawrence Supplier sustainability applications help companies assess and monitor suppliers’ ESG performance to reduce risk exposure and drive improvements. CPOs should use this research to assess solution capabilities offered in the market. Overview Key Findings © Adoption of supplier sustainability applications, which enable supplier assessments on ESG topics using survey-based tools (e.g,, supplier self-assessments), is accelerating. According to the 2022 Gartner/SPP Sustainable Procurement Pulse Survey, these tools are currently used by 54% of organizations but are expected to grow to 99% by 2024. © The vendor landscape for supplier sustainability applications is extremely fragmented. Solution capabilities vary greatly and are aimed at supporting buying organizations at different maturity stages. * Vendors from adjacent markets are positioning themselves as providing supplier sustainability insights. However, they often fail to support basic capabilities natively, and sustainability is not a core part of their unique selling proposition. © Poor supplier experience, driven by survey fatigue and lack of improvement insights, can limit supplier adoption of a supplier sustainability application. Recommendations Chief procurement officers looking to advance their sustainable procurement strategy using technology: © Self-assess the need to invest in a supplier sustainability application by looking at the scope and ambition of your sustainable procurement program. In some cases, existing procurement applications will offer basic capabilities that can support your strategy in the short term. tps lw gartnercomidocireprints?id=1-2EDC7BPK&ct=2307038st~s) ‘2008/08/23, 09:15, Gartner Reprint * Create a shortlist of vendors based on the ESG issues you want to address and the application capabilities needed, such as the need to go beyond Tier 1 suppliers or collect product-level data. * Avoid looking for the perfect solution that can do it all. Companies with highly ambitious goals will require investment in multiple tools as they seek to dive deeper into specific topics. Market Definition Supplier sustainability applications help companies assess suppliers’ performance across multiple environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues. These applications collect supplier data using surveys (e.g., supplier self-assessments) and allow organizations to measure how well suppliers meet their sustainable procurement requirements. According to the 2022 Gartner/SPP Sustainable Procurement Pulse Survey, 54% of organizations currently use this type of tool for enabling their sustainability program. ' Sustainability requirements will vary across different organizations. For some, supplier requirements will focus on ensuring compliance with multiple ESG issues in accordance with local/global regulations. For others, supplier requirements might extend to issues beyond compliance, such as greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction or deforestation. Solutions in this market offer support for a broad range of ESG topics, all managed within the same platform Market Description Supplier sustainability applications are used by organizations looking to scale their sustainable procurement programs. This is a topic that has continued to grow in importance for supply chain leaders, reflected in the 2023 Gartner/SPP Sustainable Procurement Pulse Survey, where 83% of respondents said the importance of sustainable procurement has increased in the past 24 months. ? Applications in this market enable companies to assess supplier performance across multiple ESG issues within the same platform. All vendor solutions in this market possess the following core capabilities: * Data Collection: Applications in this market allow organizations to request sustainability information from any supplier in their supply base. As opposed to ESG ratings from providers that deliver a comprehensive assessment of a static, predetermined list of public organizations, supplier sustainability solutions allow companies to collect information from any type of supplier, both public and private. Data collection is performed via supplier self-assessment surveys and includes the ability for suppliers to submit supporting documentation required by the buying organization. © Data Analysis: Applications in this market enable organizations to analyze supplier data collected using different criteria to uncover areas of improvement. Visualization capabilities enable organizations to filter and analyze supplier data by spend category, geography, ESG issue and overall performance, among others. These applications also present an overall “supplier score” that companies can use to guide decision making. Vendors’ approaches to tps lw gartnercomidocireprints?id=1-2EDC7BPK&ct=2307038st~s) 220087082, 09:18 Gartner Reprint generating these supplier scores vary. Some have a predefined scoring methodology that cannot be altered, Others offer full flexibility as to how the score is composed or offer a combination of both predefined scoring and flexible methodology. + Domain Expertise: Applications in this market provide organizations with domain expertise and relevant ESG content to collect supplier information using recognized standards. Once organizations select the topics they want to address, these applications provide standard questionnaires that organizations can then send to the supply base to collect information on these topics. While not a core capability, some vendors in this market also provide materiality guidance for companies that are unsure about what issues they should focus on, which is helpful for organizations that are getting started with sustainable procurement, Vendors in this market all provide comparable functionality in core capabilities such as data collection and analysis. To set themselves apart, vendors in this market are developing a combination of differentiating capabilities to attract buying organizations with varying maturity and strategic ambitions (see Figure 1). Figure 1: Core and Differentiating Capabilities of Supplier Sustainability Applications Core and Differentiating Capabilities of Supplier Sustainability Applications Supplier Sustainability Applications & Data Collection Peertnion BE aaron caeion mae ity ao Capabilities source: Gartner Gartner Market Direction Supplier sustainability applications are relatively new. Although some vendors have had an offering for a couple of decades, the majority of applications currently in the market have been launched in recent years. According to the 2022 Sustainable Procurement Pulse Survey, tps lw gartnercomidocireprints?id=1-2EDC7BPK&ct=2307038st~s) 2008/08/23, 09:15, Gartner Reprint applications that collect supplier data using survey-based tools for ESG issues are now used by 54% of respondents, but an additional 45% of respondents plan to adopt an application by 2024, ? The global growth in sustainabilityrelated legislation is increasing interest in the market as the expectations for supply chain due diligence and transparency require the array of supplier data that these applications acquire and manage. Vendors in this market are developing a broad range of differentiating capabilities to attract organizations with varying sustainable procurement strategy ambition and maturity (see Table 1). (errr Table 1: Differentiating Capabilities Offered in the Market Peta) Data Validation Event Monitoring Multitier Data Collection Assessment Flexibility Supplier Development Data Granularity Supplier ESG Risk Screening Source: Gartner tps lw gartnercomidocireprints?id=1-2EDC7BPK&ct=2307038st~s) Validates the data provided by suppliers via desktop audits, direct validation with certification bodies or performing or-site audits Continuous screening of adverse supplier events across multiple channels such as online and printed news, social media, TV, radio, and sanction lists Ability to collect data, assess and map supplier ESG performance across multiple levels of the supply chain, beyond Tier 1 suppliers (i.e., suppliers of your suppliers) Ability to customize the set of questions being asked of the suppliers and define how an overall supplier sustainability score is calculated Provides suppliers with feedback, recommendations and online resources to help suppliers improve their overall performance and advance their capabilities Ability to collect ESG data from suppliers at the corporate, site or product level Ability to estimate suppliers’ sustainability risk profile based on a broad range of public and private data sources without requesting supplier input08/08/23, 09:15, Gartner Reprint Clear trends are emerging in this market, in terms of both functionality and content offered: © Application functionality. Product roadmaps reveal how the majority of these vendors are planning to invest in bidirectional API integration with other procurement legacy systems and develop stronger capabilities to support buyer-supplier collaboration within their platforms. Vendors are targeting automation opportunities to simplify the workflow for both buyer and seller to materialize value sooner. © Content coverage. The majority of the vendors in this market are focusing on developing advanced capabilities to support GHG Scope 3 emissions data collection and reporting (see Note 1). In addition, most vendors are developing dashboards or stand-alone assessments to help organizations specifically assess adherence to the evolving regulatory requirements like the German Supply Chain Due Diligence Act (LkSG). Market Analysis The supplier sustainability applications market consists of both point solutions and suites with complementary capabilities. Different solution modules can often be purchased separately, depending on the scope of the ESG topics covered and the flexibility needed by buying organizations. Some vendors support internal sustainability management (within the company's operations) in addition to modules that support sustainable procurement initiatives. This 2023 Market Guide (first published in 2021), outlines the latest, updated set of capabilities offered in the market and presents a list of representative vendors. No single vendor offers all capabilities available in the market. Therefore, procurement leaders must self-assess their strategic ambitions and prioritize the offerings with the capabilities that are most relevant. Nearly half of the representative vendors in the market released their current applications after 2015, focused on servicing midsize and larger organizations (greater than $500 million in revenue) with complex supply chains across multiple industries, Figure 2 provides market highlights of supplier sustainability applications based on self-reported data provided by the representative vendors in this market. Figure 2: Benchmark of Supplier Sustainability Applications Data Analysis le tps lw gartnercomidocireprints?id=1-2EDC7BPK&ct=2307038st~s) 5/2008/08/23, 09:15, Gartner Reprint Benchmark of Supplier Sustainability Applications Data Analysi Product Launch Date B Half of representative vendors launched after 2015 Average Contract Length 36 months (three years) Pricing Model The most common is enterprise license, based on program scope {issues covered or number of @ Licensing Fee Responsibility suppliers) and depth (due diligence) Peon most vendors. Some vendors also Ideal Target Customers charge suppliers a reduced fee. Companies with global, complex supply chains and greater than $500 million in revenue Industry Focus ‘Some are industry-agnostic. Top three industries served are manufacturing, Customer Base Range consumer goods, and retail. ‘Customer base ranges from 20 to 100,000+ Fes) Vendor Size Range Number of employees ranges from 21 to 695, Gartner Standard Versus Customized Assessments Vendors in this market have different philosophies when it comes to helping organizations define what supplier sustainability means, Some vendors take a prescriptive approach and have established a list of parameters they use to assess the supply base, which cannot be customized. This can be a good thing for companies that are getting started with sustainable procurement, but it can be a limiting factor for those that want to focus on or prioritize specific issues. Other vendors take a fully flexible approach, where they allow organizations to pick from a menu of potential ESG topics in order to assess their suppliers. This enables organizations to decide what and how supplier sustainability is assessed. However, it creates a challenge for companies unsure of what to focus on. It also impairs suppliers’ ability to reuse data submissions with multiple customers. As assessment customization increases, the reporting burden on the supplier grows. Representative Vendors The vendors listed in this Market Guide do not imply an exhaustive list. This section is intended to provide more understanding of the market and its offerings. tps lw gartnercomidocireprints?id=1-2EDC7BPK&ct=2307038st~s) 62008/08/23, 09:15, Gartner Reprint Vendor Selection The representative vendors included in this Market Guide (see Table 2) offer the core capabilities listed in this report natively (j.e., not through partners) and offer their supplier sustainability application as a stand-alone solution. For example, the following are not addressed in this, research: * Online survey tools, like SurveyMonkey, can enable data collection and analysis, but they depend on the end user to provide the list of questions and supporting documentation to ask of the supply base. * ESG ratings databases, like those provided by MSCI, Sustainalytics or CSRHub, provide domain expertise by presenting comprehensive information on company sustainability performance, but this applies to a predetermined list of companies and, therefore, doesn't support supplier data collection. * Vendors from adjacent markets, such as strategic sourcing suites, supply chain risk solutions and supplier collaboration tools, might be used for similar outcomes. However, they are not primarily focused on sustainability, do not offer their solution as a stand-alone module or do not offer these capabilities natively. Table 2: Representative Vendors in Supplier Sustainability Applications eetow Dera rr Launch Achilles MyAchilles Essential, MyAchilles Professional, MyAchilles 2018 Enterprise Assent ‘Assent Supply Chain Sustainability Platform, ESG Solution 2010 Avetta Avetta One 2022 Benchmark Benchmark Stewardship 2006 Gensuite EcoVadis EcoVadis Ratings 2007 tps lw gartnercomidocireprintsid=1-2EDC7BPK&ct=2307038st~s) 712008/08/23, 09:15, ImpactBuyin 9 IntegrityNex t iPoint Nac Sedex ‘SupplyShift sustainabill Transparenc y-One Worldfavor Worldly Gartner Reprint ImpactBuying Suite IntegrityNext iPoint Conflict Minerals, iPoint Supply Chain Survey SupplierAssurance Sedex sSupplyshift sustainabill Transparency-One Worldfavor Sustainable Sourcing Higg Facility Environmental Module (FEM), Higg Facility Social & Labor Module (FSLM), Factory Data solution Source: Gartner (June 2023) Vendor Profiles Achilles 2010 2017 2012 2007 2004 2015 2019 2016 2016 2019 Product Names: MyAchilles Essential, MyAchilles Professional, MyAchilles Enterprise Achilles is headquartered in Abingdon, U.K. The first production version of its supply chain management platform was released in 2018. Achilles offers three versions of its application; each offers varying degrees of assessment customization and functionality. Suppliers are assessed tps lw gartnercomidocireprints?id=1-2EDC7BPK&ct=2307038st~s)087082, 09:18 Gartner Reprint and assigned an Achilles Score that includes a combination of environmental, social, governance, health and safety, and finance factors. It also offers alternative assessments that focus exclusively on ESG issues, and buying organizations can add custom surveys to complement their supplier sustainability assessment. In addition, buying organizations can anonymously rate their satisfaction with individual suppliers across multiple areas — information that becomes available to all members of the Achilles network. Achilles has a dedicated team of more than 250 analysts and auditors in charge of supplier data validation. In addition, it can conduct on-site supplier audits to verify supplier performance at the site level. Supplier audit data and associated audit costs can be shared across multiple customers, therefore reducing the audit burden on the suppliers. The platform also works as a supplier discovery tool, where suppliers can choose to join the network, complete the standard assessment and request an on-site audit to become discoverable by potential buyers. Top three industries served are energy, construction and mining. Two subscription models are supported — fees can be paid by the buyer alone, or be paid by both buyers and suppliers. Additional products offered include Greenhouse Gas/Carbon Certifications to ISO 14064, ESG Reports, Ethical Employment & Responsible Sourcing Audit Services, Procurement Training Courses and Conflict Minerals services. Assent Product Names: Assent Supply Chain Sustainability Platform, ESG Solution Assent is headquartered in Ottawa, Canada. The first production version of its application was released in 2010. Assent offers a supply chain sustainability platform for manufacturers to manage a comprehensive range of ESG, product compliance and trade compliance topics. Specific to Assent’s ESG Solution, buyers can assess supplier risk by choosing from 12 different standard assessments on topics such as climate impact, labor rights and diversity. Suppliers can submit information once and reuse across multiple customers as part of the Assent Supplier Network. A dedicated team of supply chain experts supports supplier data validation, and a team of regulatory experts helps advise clients on program best practices, Suppliers receive feedback and support on how to improve their sustainability performance directly on the application, and buyers can assign suppliers corrective actions and track their progress. Both buyers and suppliers get access to the multilingual Assent University, which offers education, additional resources, and best practices on key sustainability topics. Assent offers ongoing supplier event monitoring using sentiment analysis of social media as well as other sources like TV, radio and U.S. sanction lists. An enhanced supplier screening using 50 risk categories can be used by buyers to assess exposure of the complete supplier base. The vendor offers continuous monitoring of regulatory changes and provides companies with insights on the impact on their supply chain derived by these changes. tps lw gartnercomidocireprints?id=1-2EDC7BPK&ct=2307038st~s) 9720210829, 09:15 Garner Reprint Top three industries served are electronics, medical devices and industrial equipment. Licensing fees are paid by the buyer. Additional products offered include Product Compliance Solution and Trade Compliance Solution Avetta Product Name: Avetta One Avetta is headquartered in Orem, Utah. The first production version of its Avetta One supply chain risk management application was released in 2022. The solution consists of a suite of modules for health and safety, workforce compliance, sustainability/ESG, diversity and financial liability. Each module can be purchased separately or combined to provide a platform solution Relevant to supplier sustainability, its Sustainability and ESG module helps organizations measure, monitor and optimize ESG performance in the supply chain. Supplier assessments are dynamically tailored based on the supplier industry, size and geolocation to ensure the right level of investigative rigor and alignment with global standards and methodologies. Suppliers receive a weighted score, allowing buyers to weigh the different elements of assessments used to create a custom supplier sustainability score that reflects their priorities. Avetta provides support and resources to suppliers, including ESG self-evaluation tools, GHG emission calculators and recommendations to improve their ESG performance. The platform offers Scope 3 emission reporting and the ability to track spend with diverse suppliers and verify diversity certificates. Organizations can use Avetta Connect, a searchable supplier discovery network, to source suppliers based on country-specific diversity classifications, ownership and diversity certificate provider. In addition, suppliers can voluntarily submit their information in the Avetta Connect network to promote their ESG scores. Avetta has a dedicated team of more than 170 analysts and auditors in charge of supplier data validation. Top three industries served are telecom, facilities management and manufacturing. Licensing fees are paid by both buyers and suppliers Benchmark Gensuite Product Name: Benchmark Stewardship Benchmark Gensuite (formerly Gensuite) is headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. The first production version of its application was released in 2006. The vendor has three product suites with multiple applications that can support internal compliance for a range of topics such as safety, environment, product stewardship and supplier risk. All applications can be purchased separately or as a unified platform Its sustainable procurement solution helps organizations assess suppliers using standardized assessments on different ESG topics, such as conflict minerals and modern slavery, and also provides the flexibility for customized assessments. The Disclosure Director solution, recently tps lw gartnercomidocireprints?id=1-2EDC7BPK&ct=2307038st~s) 10120087082, 09:18 Gartner Reprint launched in 2022, allows users to engage with cross-functional teams on different sustainability/ESG topics and acts as a central reporting and disclosure cockpit. Buying organizations can keep track of supplier corrective actions triggered by desktop or on-site audits directly on the platform. Risk screening capabilities enable buying organizations to map their supplier base (Tier 1) and use third-party data feeds to overlay external risk factors such as water-stressed regions. The vendor offers continuous monitoring of regulatory changes and provides companies with insights regarding the impact on their supply chain derived by these changes. Recent solution additions include support for Scope 3 emissions reporting via Benchmark’s Supplier Portal Top three industries served are manufacturing, consumer goods and life sciences. Licensing fees are paid by the buyer. Additional product suites offered include Benchmark EHS, Quality and Operational Risk and Benchmark Sustainability and ESG Reporting EcoVadis Product Name: EcoVadis Ratings EcoVadis is headquartered in Paris, France. The first production version of its application was released in 2007. The solution is part of a broader EcoVadis Sustainability intelligence Suite. Suppliers are evaluated using an assessment that covers 21 factors for environmental, labor, human rights, ethics and sustainable procurement areas. Assessments are automatically tailored based on the suppliers’ spend category, location and size. Regulation-specific dashboards or lenses provide buyers the ability to assess how they comply with specific regulatory requirements such as LkSG. Based on their performance, suppliers receive an EcoVadis Rating and EcoVadis Scorecard that can be shared with multiple customers. EcoVadis has a dedicated team of analysts in charge of supplier data validation and rating methodology. The EcoVadis IQ Module enables buyers to assess the risk profile of the entire supply base without the need to request supplier data. Risk profiles are based on country and industry risk indicators in addition to supplier-specific data scanned from public sources. The EcoVadis Rating and Scorecard provides suppliers with feedback on how to improve their performance score directly on the application. Both buyers and suppliers get access to the EcoVadis Academy, which offers education, additional resources and best practices on key sustainability topics. The platform's Live News feature uses an extensive range of public and private data sources to provide insight on adverse supplier events. Its Carbon Action Module enables buyers to do a spend-based hot spot analysis, assess suppliers on their carbon management capabilities and collect supplier enterprise-level emissions. It also offers suppliers a carbon calculator tool to report emissions. Top three industries served are chemicals, consumer goods and manufacturing. Licensing fees are paid by both buyers and suppliers. tps lw gartnercomidocireprints?id=1-2EDC7BPK&ct=2307038st~s) w2010823, 00:5 Garin Reprint ImpactBuying Product Name: ImpactBuying Suite ImpactBuying is headquartered in Alkmaar, the Netherlands. The first production version of its application was released in 2010. Organizations can use standard and customized assessments to check supplier and product compliance with a wide range of ESG issues as well as certifications, audits and other industry standards. The vendor provides guidance on material issues that buying organizations should prioritize based on their overall strategy and regulatory landscape. Buyers can create a fully customized supplier risk score based on the supplier ingredient, component, activity, country or other buyer-defined attributes. Data validation is performed by an in-house team of analysts, ensuring data across the platform is accurate, timely and complete. Multitier data collection enables organizations to map and assess performance of their suppliers against predefined requirements at any tier in the supply chain down to farmer level. The platform also provides traceability capabilities from a supplier/facility/product perspective at the PO or batch level using blockchain. Supplier corrective actions triggered by desktop audits can be tracked directly on the platform, and data is accessible via BI dashboards. The vendor offers training resources and best practices for both suppliers and buying organizations via the ImpactBuying Academy (separate module). For Scope 3 emissions, buyers can assess supplier maturity and collect primary emissions data in the platform. Top three industries served are fast-moving consumer goods, retail and premium-brand manufacturing, Licensing fees are paid by buyers. Suppliers do not pay to respond to customer requests, but can access premium features in the platform for a fee. Additional products offered include ImpactBuying academy and True-code.org. ImpactBuying also offers consulting engagement services and consumer involvement solutions. IntegrityNext Product Name: IntegrityNext IntegrityNext is headquartered in Munich, Germany. The first production version of its application was released in 2017. The vendor provides standard assessments for 37 different topics, ranging from ESG issues, such as environmental, human rights, labor, diversity and carbon footprint, to topics such as cybersecurity and data protection, among others. As part of the vendor's initial engagement, it provides guidance on material issues that buying organizations should prioritize based on their overall strategy and regulatory landscape. Buying organizations are able to pick and choose the topics they want to assess suppliers against and create a custom supplier sustainability score. Supplier risk screening enables buyers to assess their entire supply base using country and industry external data sources without the need to request supplier data, which can be used to identify suppliers where further due diligence is needed. Data validation is performed by an in- house team of analysts and augmented by artificial intelligence capabilities. tps lw gartnercomidocireprints?id=1-2EDC7BPK&ct=2307038st~s) 1212008/08/23, 09:15, Gartner Reprint Suppliers can reuse information previously submitted to respond to multiple customers within the network. Buying organizations can continuously monitor suppliers in between assessments using the platform's critical news monitoring analytics engine, which uses an extensive range of public data sources to provide insight on adverse supplier events. Organizations can create GRI-certified reports with the click of a button. Top three industries served are manufacturing, electronics and construction. Licensing fees are paid by the buyer. iPoint Product Names: iPoint Conflict Minerals, iPoint Supply Chain Survey iPoint is headquartered in Reutlingen, Germany. The first production version of its application was released in 2012. Its SaaS-based suite of applications — the iPoint Suite — is available in multitenant cloud deployments. All applications can be purchased separately and support the entire product life cycle, including product compliance, enterprise sustainability and sustainable procurement. The iPoint Conflict Minerals solution helps companies collect, manage, aggregate, and report conflict minerals information to meet the requirements of their customers and the regulatory authorities. Suppliers and buyers get access to video tutorials, user guides and a professional help desk to support their reporting requirements. A separate solution, iPoint Supply Chain Survey, can be used to create flexible questionnaires on a broad range of topics such as human rights, conflict minerals, modern slavery and others. Buying organizations can send out additional campaigns to suppliers to request information aside from substance or material-based regulations. iPoint offers different plans for its application. Each offers varying degrees of assessment customization, functionality, analytics and number of suppliers covered. Suppliers can reuse standard assessment responses submitted across multiple customers within the network. Top three industries served are automotive, industrial manufacturing and life sciences. Licensing fees are paid by the buyer. Additional products offered include iPoint Compliance, iPoint Product Sustainability and iPoint Approval NQCc Product Name: SupplierAssurance NQC is headquartered in Manchester, U.K. The first production version of its supply chain sustainability risk application was released in 2007. The vendor offers a common platform that consolidates data from suppliers via a suite of proprietary assessments that includes a wide range of ESG topics, including carbon footprinting, human rights/forced labor, environmental impact, ethics and corruption. Industry-specific assessments are also offered tps lw gartnercomidocireprints?id=1-2EDC7BPK&ct=2307038st~s) 13120087082, 09:18 Gartner Reprint The platform integrates third party risk data to track adverse supplier events to support effective sustainability risk management. The vendor provides guidance on material issues and suppliers that buying organizations should prioritize based on their overall strategy and regulatory landscape. Suppliers are assessed using their submitted responses, including uploading relevant evidence, and issued a rating once validated by NQC’s in-house muhtlingual compliance analyst team. Tailored corrective actions are issued to suppliers and can be tracked directly on the platform. Suppliers can submit information once and reuse it across multiple customers using the SupplierAssurance platform. Suppliers can update their submitted data at any point to demonstrate improvements, and buying organizations get alerted to the changes with full audit history. Suppliers can see how their performance compares to the industry average of other suppliers on the platform. Multitier data collection capabilities enable organizations to map and assess the performance of suppliers beyond their immediate Tier 1 group. The platform supports the requirements of global supply chain legislations offering mapping and evidence collection capabilities. A multilanguage support center is available for suppliers as they complete their assessments. The vendor offers continuous monitoring of regulatory changes and provides companies with insights on the impact on their supply chain. Top industries served are automotive, defense and government. The vendor offers flexible plans where the licensing fees are paid by either the supplier or the buying organization, or they are split between both parties. Sedex Product Name: Sedex Sedex is headquartered in London, UK. The first version of its application was released in 2004. It provides businesses with a technology platform, tools, data and professional services to assess ESG risks and practices in their supply chains. A supplier self-assessment (SAQ) is used to assess suppliers and facilities along labor standards, health and safety, business ethics, and environmental issues. Sedex’s risk assessment tool enables buyers to assess risks across their entire supply base without needing additional supplier data to identify where further due diligence is needed. Buying organizations can request an in-person or virtual SMETA (Sedex Members Ethical Trade Audit) audit to verify supplier performance at site level, conducted via an approved Affiliate Audit Company. Suppliers can share their data across multiple customers, reducing audit and administrative burdens. Multitier data collection capabilities enable supplier assessments beyond Tier 1; storing this data centrally enables driving improvement and tracking progress over time. Additional services, such as consulting, support other supply chain due diligence activities, including legislative compliance, All members can access an e-learning portal, providing tps lw gartnercomidocireprints?id=1-2EDC7BPK&ct=2307038st~s) 1412008/08/23, 09:15, Gartner Reprint resources and best practices to help them improve their performance. Top industries served are fast-moving consumer goods, retail, agriculture, apparel and manufacturing. Both buyers and suppliers pay subscription fees. SupplyShift Product Name: SupplyShift SupplyShift is headquartered in Santa Cruz, California. The first production version of its application was released in 2015. The application provides standard assessments for a wide range of ESG topics that are fully customizable. Buying organizations can use the standard assessments offered or create a fully customized assessment and set of requirements to assess suppliers at the enterprise, site or product level. Supplier ESG risk screening is available using internal and external data sources to identify suppliers where further engagement is needed, Suppliers can submit information once and reuse it across multiple customers within the network. Supplier data validation is performed in-house while follow-up and analysis support services are available through collaboration with third parties such as Anthesis. Multitier data collection capabilities enable organizations to map and assess the performance of suppliers beyond Tier 1. Suppliers receive feedback on how to improve their performance directly on the application and can see how their performance compares to other similar suppliers in the network. Supplier engagement and corrective actions triggered by desktop or on-site audits can be tracked directly on the platform, with Tier 1 or upstream suppliers discovered during mapping and assessment. Their GHG assessments help assess suppliers on their carbon management capabilities and collect carbon emissions data using the platform's carbon calculator tool. GHG or any other supplier information can be collected at the supplier level, facility level, or product level Top industries served are food and beverage, retail, technology, manufacturing, apparel and pharma/healthcare. The vendor offers multiple plans for its application. Plans have varying degrees of customization and functionality. Each plan provides various supplier tiers. Licensing fees are paid by buyers, but the vendor also offers flexible plans where suppliers can cover the licensing costs. sustainabill Product Name: sustainabill sustainabill is headquartered in Cologne, Germany. The first production version of its application was released in 2019. The application helps organizations assess suppliers using a standard maturity assessment that includes 10 ESG topics such as company governance, climate action, human rights, labor and sourcing. It also provides the flexibility to include in-depth assessments for different topics such as anti-corruption, health and safety, and biodiversity, and allows for custom buyer assessments. Buying organizations are able to pick and choose the topics they want to assess suppliers against and create a custom supplier sustainability score. Suppliers can reuse information previously submitted to respond to multiple customers within the network. Supplier corrective actions can be created and checked for implementation status directly on the tps lw gartnercomidocireprints?id=1-2EDC7BPK&ct=2307038st~s) 18720087082, 09:18 Gartner Reprint platform, Companies can create reports for due diligence and for reporting to the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI). Help desk support with global coverage and knowledge base is available to suppliers and buyers. Multitier data collection capabilities enable organizations to map and cascade requests upstream to assess performance of suppliers beyond Tier 1. The platform also provides Al-supported risk mapping against more than 15+ predetermined risk indexes to generate a supplier risk screen analysis with automated classification and weighting of results based on supplier master data Using third-party data feeds, companies can assess risks on a country level or get insights on deforestation or water stress in a particular region where suppliers are located. The supplier carbon assessment helps assess suppliers on their carbon management capabilities and collect carbon emissions data Top industries served are mechanical engineering, food and automotive. Licensing fees are paid by buyers. Transparency-One Product Name: Transparency-One Transparency-One is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts. The first production version of its application was released in 2016. Organizations can use standard and customized assessments to check supplier compliance with a wide range of regulatory and ESG issues as well as certifications, audits and other industry standards. The vendor provides buyer guidance on material ESG issues to address, based on their industry and products purchased. Buyers can target ESG requirements to suppliers based on the product, activity, country or other buyer-defined attributes. Supplier corrective actions triggered by desktop or on-site audits can be tracked directly on the platform. The platform enables supplier development by offering packaged training, or buyers can provide their own through the platform. Supplier data validation is available through collaboration with third parties such as SGS. Multitier data collection capabilities enable organizations to map and assess the performance of their suppliers against predefined requirements at any tier in the supply chain. The platform also provides traceability capabilities from a supplier/facility/product perspective at the PO or batch level. Using third-party data feeds, companies can map suppliers within their supply chain and identify risk exposure on topics like water stress, deforestation, forced labor and protected land areas. Transparency-One offers supplier engagement services for onboarding, training and data validation through a strategic partnership with SGS. Top three industries served are apparel, cosmetics and food. Licensing fees are typically split between buyers and suppliers, but the vendor also offers flexible plans. Worldfavor Product Name: Worldfavor Sustainable Sourcing tps lw gartnercomidocireprints?id=1-2EDC7BPK&ct=2307038st~s) 16720087082, 09:18 Gartner Reprint Worldfavor is headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden. The first production version of its application was released in 2016. The vendor has different solutions to support internal sustainability programs, supply chain visibility, sustainable investing and others. All applications can be purchased separately or as a unified platform. Relevant to supplier sustainability, Worldfavor offers three plans for its Sustainable Sourcing application. Each offers varying degrees of assessment customization, functionality and number of suppliers covered. Worldfavor provides buyers guidance on material ESG issues to address based on their industry and products purchased. The application provides a standard assessment — the Worldfavor Sustainability Data Framework — that covers 28 ESG topics for environmental, social, governance, regulations and initiatives. Buying organizations can add custom assessments and create a customized supplier sustainability score. Suppliers can submit information once and reuse it across multiple customers and other stakeholders within the network. Multitier data collection capabilities enable organizations to map and assess the performance of suppliers beyond Tier 1 Worldfavor's Transparency solution enables any organization to proactively share its sustainability data by creating a Transparency Profile that aligns to the vendor's standard assessment. Any organization that shares its data gets free access to support, ESG guidance and functionalities, such as C02e calculator and export of data. Top industries served are manufacturing, financial services, and food and beverage. Licensing fees are paid by the buyer and are always free for the suppliers. Worldly Product Names: Higg Facility Environmental Module (FEM), Hig Facility Social & Labor Module (FSLM) Worldly Factory Data Solution Worldly (formerly Hig) is headquartered in Kensington, California. The first production version of its application was released in 2019. The vendor offers different solutions on its platform, including The Higg Index, which includes tools for assessing sustainability performance at different levels such as facilities (suppliers), brands/retailers, material and products. All Worldly tools are available for purchase as subscriptions, or as individual modules. Worldly is the exclusive licensee of The Higg Index, a value chain measurement methodology developed by the Sustainable Apparel Coalition Relevant to supplier sustainability, its solutions provide standard supplier (facility) assessments for multiple ESG issues using the Facility Environmental Module (FEM) and the Facility Social and Labor Module (FSLM) tools. These assessments are automatically customized, depending on the supplier sector, type of facility and materials being manufactured by assessed suppliers. Worldly offers different versions of its application, each offering varying degrees of assessment, including functionality and data benchmarking. Worldly's factory data solution enables companies to collect and frequently update supplier primary data on emissions, waste and water. Supplier data validation is offered through the Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC) verification program for the tps lw gartnercomidocireprints?id=1-2EDC7BPK&ct=2307038st~s) 1772008/08/23, 09:15, Gartner Reprint FEM module. For its Factory Data solution, validation is offered through a partnership with SGS using a combination of desktop and on-site audits. Top three industries served are apparel, footwear and home goods. Licensing fees are paid by buyers and suppliers. Additional products offered include Higg Index Brand & Retail Module (BRM), Higg Index Materials Sustainability Index (MSI) and Higg Index Product Module (PM). Market Recommendations Nearly all organizations — public and private, large and small — will benefit from a supplier sustainability application. Stakeholder expectations and regulatory changes will continue to evolve and drive organizations to implement and scale their sustainable procurement initiatives. Publishing a code of conduct outlining supplier expectations is no longer enough. Organizations will have to prove the right level of due diligence is conducted to ensure supplier adherence to the code of conduct and proactively manage reputational risks. By deploying a supplier sustainability application, companies are able to scale their initiatives and impact. Chief procurement officers looking to adopt a supplier sustainability application: © Self-assess the need to invest in a supplier sustainability application by looking at the scope of your sustainable procurement program. In some cases, existing procurement applications will offer basic capabilities that can support your strategy in the short term, without the need of investing in a purpose-built supplier sustainability application * Create a shortlist of vendors based on the ESG issues you want to address and the application capabilities needed, such as the need to go beyond Tier 1 suppliers or collect product-level data. Less mature organizations should prioritize vendors that can provide materiality guidance and offer data validation capabilities. © Prioritize vendors that highlight supplier experience management as part of their value proposition. Survey fatigue and a lack of value to the supplier will affect supplier adoption of these applications. * Do not search for the perfect solution provider that can do it all. Companies with highly ambitious sustainability goals will need a combination of tools as they seek to dive deeper into specific sustainability topics such as greenhouse gas emissions and others (see Quick Answer: How Can Technology Be Used to Support a Sustainable Procurement Program?). Evidence 1 2022 Gartner/SPP Sustainable Procurement Pulse Survey: This survey was conducted to assess the current state of sustainable procurement to identify initiatives that can make a difference and drive positive impact. This survey was developed in collaboration with the Sustainable Procurement Pledge (SPP), and the raw data was collected from members of the SPP community and others that had been invited from other sources. The research was conducted tps lw gartnercomidocireprints?id=1-2EDC7BPK&ct=2307038st~s) 18120087082, 09:18 Gartner Reprint online from 14 March through 12 April 2022. In total, 90 respondents were interviewed across North America (n = 19), Europe (n = 59), Latin America (n = 2), Asia/Pacific (n = 7) and others (n = 3). Qualifying organizations reported enterprisewide annual revenue for fiscal 2021 of at least $250 million, Qualified participants were employed full-time; have personally led, co-led or played a role ina sustainable procurement initiative in the past two years; and were in manager roles or above. Disclaimer: Results of this survey do not represent global findings or the market as a whole, but reflect the sentiments of the respondents and companies surveyed. 22023 Gartner/SPP Sustainable Procurement Pulse Survey: This survey was conducted to assess the state of sustainable procurement today and identify initiatives that can make a difference and drive positive impact. The research was conducted online from 11 March through 26 May 2023. In total, 104 respondents were interviewed across North America (n = 19), Europe (n = 68), Latin America (n = 1), the Middle East and Africa (n = 1) and APAC (n = 15). Qualifying organizations reported enterprisewide annual revenue for the most recent fiscal year of at least $250 million. Qualified participants were employed full time, had personally led, co-led, or played a role in a sustainable procurement initiative in the past two years, and were in manager roles or above. Disclaimer: Results of this study do not represent global findings or the market as a whole but reflect the sentiment of the respondents and companies surveyed, Gartner and the Sustainable Procurement Pledge (SPP) may distribute this report via their controlled-access websites for sole use by their respective memberships. The report is for internal use only and may not be further distributed, Note 1: Greenhouse Gas Protocol The GHG Protocol Corporate Standard ranks a company’s GHG emissions into three different scopes: * Scope 1 (direct emissions): Emissions created from company-owned assets or controlled resources. For example, the combustion of fossil fuel to run a vehicle owned by the organization. * Scope 2 (indirect emissions): Emissions from the generation of energy that is purchased by the organization. For example, the procurement of electricity or steam to be used ina manufacturing facility. * Scope 3 (upstream and downstream emissions): Accounts for all indirect emissions (not included in Scope 2) that occur in the value chain (both upstream and downstream from the organization) Learn how Gartner canhelp you succeed 7 Perey tps lw gartnercomidocireprints?id=1-2EDC7BPK&ct=2307038st~s) 1912008/08/23, 09:15, Gartner Reprint © 2023 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Gartner is a registered trademark of Gartner, Inc. and its affiliates. This publication may not be reproduced or distributed in any form without Gartner's prior written permission. It consists of the opinions of Gartner's research organization, which should not be construed as statements of fact. While the information contained in this publication has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable, Gartner disclaims all warranties as to the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of such information. Although Gartner research may address legal and financial issues, Gartner does not provide legal or investment advice and its research should not be construed or used as such. Your access and use of this publication are governed by Gartner's Usage Policy. Gartner prides itself on its reputation for independence and objectivity. its research is produced independently by its research organization without input or influence from any third party. For further information, see "Guiding Principles on Independence and Objectivity.” Gartner research may not be used as input into or for the training or development of generative artificial intelligence, machine leaming, algorithms, software, or related technologies. Sara Cymer! (er Tanal-tg ee eae tps lw gartnercomidocireprints?id=1-2EDC7BPK&ct=2307038st~s) 20120