Introduction to Ethical Considerations

It’s very clear to me that fraud, bribery and corruption have no place in business. From your first communication with a supplier, make sure you and your organisation are doing the right thing. This is what is known as ‘ethical procurement’.

If you are found to be breaking the law it will have a terrible impact on your company’s reputation, which can cause great harm to your business. Our reputations are so important, any damage to the trust people have in you is very hard to get back.

We all know dealing with suppliers can involve large sums of money. This can bring with it pressures , from internal and external forces, to act in ways that are unethical, such as accepting gifts or favours from your suppliers. My advice is, do not take risks like this, because people may think that you are being bribed to choose one supplier over another.

When buyers or their close family or friends have a direct financial interest in a supplier’s organisation, there is a conflict of interest. This is a serious unethical practice, so avoid it. Also, never pass confidential information about an organisation to one of its competitors. Suppliers who want your business need to share commercial information with us and we have to be fair.

I think that it makes sense for the top management in companies to write down for all employees what it considers ethical and what it considers unethical, to make it totally clear for everyone. It is also good for businesses to offer training against fraud, bribery and corruption.

There are all sorts of other things such as modern slavery and environmental damage to understand when we are talking about ethical procurement. If your company is serious about being ethical, all employees will understand and follow ethical rules.

We all have a responsibility to the wider society to practice ethical procurement, let’s remember its good for everybody and critical for your business.