MicroScope+ Premium Content/MicroScope

Supplier relationships with the public sector have come under increased scrutiny in recent years as strained supply chains, rising costs and stronger demands around sustainability have begun to make an impact. The public sector naturally has stricter rules of engagement with its suppliers than other industries due to the critical nature of the work it undertakes, and the pandemic has only amplified this. However, with the increasing need to tackle wider planetary challenges, such as resource preservation and climate change, the sustainable rules of engagement are creating a new supplier dynamic. Departments throughout the public sector, whether it be health, defence or education, all have key sustainability goals to hit. When businesses are supplying a service, the key question they must answer now is: how is what they are supplying going to help meet the sustainability and social goals of the sector? If they are unable to answer those questions, they will miss out on securing contracts altogether, and probably lose the ...