Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Supplier Diversity Programs

  • 09/01/13

Supplier diversity is a proactive business process that seeks to provide suppliers equal access to purchasing opportunities. It promotes supplier participation reflective of an institution’s diverse population and the diverse business community.

In 2005, Purdue University in West Lafayette, IN, took steps to enhance their supplier diversity activities. Since then Purdue has become recognized as one of the premier supplier diversity programs in higher education in the country.

The focus of the program at Purdue has been outreach (www.purdue.edu/supplierdiversity).

On a national scale, the National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC, www.nmsdc.org) works to advance business opportunities for certified Asian, Black, Hispanic and Native American business enterprises and connects them to corporate members.

The NMSDC Network includes a national office in New York and 36 regional councils across the country. There are 3,500 corporate members throughout the network, including most of America’s largest publicly owned, privately owned and foreign-owned companies, as well as universities, hospitals and other buying institutions.

NMSDC corporate members have developed eight goals that corporations implement to create a world-class minority supplier development process.

  • GOAL 1: Establish corporate policy and top corporate management support
  • GOAL 2: Develop a corporate minority supplier development plan
  • GOAL 3: Establish comprehensive internal and external communications
  • GOAL 4: Identify opportunities for minority business enterprises in strategic sourcing and supply chain management
  • GOAL 5: Establish a comprehensive minority supplier development process
  • GOAL 6: Establish tracking, report and goal-setting mechanisms
  • GOAL 7: Establish a continuous improvement plan
  • GOAL 8: Establish a second-tier program

For more information on acting on these eight goals or on supplier diversity programs and development in general, visit the National Minority Supplier Development Council online at www.nmsdc.org.

This article originally appeared in the College Planning & Management September 2013 issue of Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • University of Washington Opens New Broadcast Studio

    The University of Washington in Seattle, Wash., recently announced the opening of Sundodger Studios, a new broadcast, production, and content facility, according to a news release. The university partnered with Anthony James Partners for the design and development of the studio, which will host about 100 live broadcasts and 120 live videoboard shows per year.

  • How Proactive Maintenance Can Transform Athletic Facilities into Strategic Assets for College Sports

    College athletics is entering one of the most transformative periods in its history. With NIL reshaping financial models and competitive expectations, athletic departments across the country are being asked to do more than ever with increasingly constrained resources.

  • California Middle School Breaks Ground on Major Renovation Project

    The Hillsborough City School District (HCSD) in Hillsborough, Calif., recently began construction on new multipurpose and administration facilities for Crocker Middle School, according to a news release.

  • UNH Marks Construction Milestone on Oceanic Exploration Facility

    The University of New Hampshire in Durham, N.H., recently celebrated a major construction milestone with a beam-signing ceremony for the new Center of Excellence for Operational Ocean and Great Lakes Mapping, according to a news release. The facility’s ultimate goal is to support research, training and technical assistance in ocean mapping.