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July 2024

The Ceo's Welcome


Dear All,

It’s been a busy Q2 for us all here at the GSA and we are incredibly proud of some of the significant developments we have launched of late – all of which I believe to be truly ground-breaking for our industry.

Our work for 2024 is centred on sustainable strategic sourcing – and we refer to sustainable in the broadest sense of the word. Yes, environmental sustainability is hugely important, but our work is broader than that and focuses on building operational resilience, mitigating risks and delivering value-add through robust strategic sourcing. Numerous critical components were discussed at our Festival of Sourcing In June with subjects varying from agile sourcing; supplier diversity; standardisation through to building personal resilience in life – all areas we will continue developing thought leadership and best practices for.

The industry’s clear confusion about how to respond to and report on ESG led to a few industry-first global developments:

  • In partnership with OpenDialog.AI we launched the GSA’s ESG Digital Companion – what we believe is the first conversational AI solution dedicated to the ESG space. Go to our website at gsa-uk.com and it will concisely guide you through the minefield that is ESG.
  • We have partnered with the IAOP in the United States to develop FormIGA. FormIGA marks the launch of the Industry for Good Alliance and you can expect a whole host of tools, guides and best practices for sustainable strategic sourcing across a global stage. This is MASSIVE.
  • The first off the block being the launch of FormIGA SPSI. After 2 years in development we have now fully launched our Service Provider Sustainability Index (SPSI) – a robust ESG questionnaire that has been developed by our industry for our industry, enabling both buyers and service providers to understand how well they are performing across the ESG landscape compared to their peers. And because we are a people industry there is an all important, deep-dive focus on all things Social.

…..and so much more delivered and yet to come to include: Cultural Alignment Training; an industry standard contract for outsourcing; guidelines on the ethical use of AI across an outsourced arrangement; a gender pay gap report for the industry, and global collaboration on Impact Sourcing.

Our Annual Awards programme and celebration ceremony showcased the excellent work that continues to be delivered across the industry. I send congratulations, but more so thanks to all those organisations shortlisted as they are openly showcasing their best practices across the industry on a global stage for all to learn from and be inspired by.

If you are a member, we send our heartfelt thanks for enabling us to make all of this happen. If you are not already a member, but like our work and want to be a part of our sustainable strategic sourcing journey and our global Industry for Good movement, you can join up at any time.

JOIN US

Wishing you all a safe and sunny summer.

Best
Kerry
CEO, GSA



GSA Awards: MEET THE WINNERS


The Global Sourcing Association is delighted to announce the 2024 GSA Awards winners! The winners were announced on Tuesday 11th June at the GSA Awards Ceremony at the Richmond Hill Hotel.

Global Sourcing Association CEO, Kerry Hallard said:

“This industry continues to amaze me with the innovative and highly transformative programmes undertaken by partnerships around the world. The calibre of submissions continues to improve year on year and as a result of these Awards we have a fantastic new repository of examples of best practice.”

Congratulations to all those shortlisted and the winners!

View the Winners here.

THE LAUNCH OF FORMIGA


The global technology and business services industry is taking a monumental step forward with the launch of FormIGA, a pioneering initiative that the GSA and the IAOP have partnered together on to bring to life.

FormIGA is the first and only alliance of its kind, bringing together buyers and providers of technology and business services from around the globe to focus on measuring, monitoring, and enhancing the industry's social performance.

FormIGA is committed to driving industry-wide improvement by showcasing and disseminating best practices. This collective sharing of knowledge and experience not only enhances the technology and business services sector but also sets a benchmark for other industries to follow. FormIGA establishes itself as the quality standard for sustainable sourcing and delivery within the industry.

SERvice provider sustainability index (spsi)


The GSA is delighted to have joined forces with our partners IAOP in the United States to launch FormIGA and its first offering, the Service Provider Sustainability Index (SPSI).

SPSI uses a single, comprehensive ESG questionnaire, which enables service providers – and their customers - to understand how well they are performing across the ESG agenda compared to their peers.

Developed by the industry for the industry. As a people industry there is significant emphasis on all things social within FormIGA’s SPSI

We are calling on all buyers and providers of technology and business services to demonstrate their commitment to developing and showcasing the global technology and business services industry as an industry for good, by joining in with FormIGA and participating in this new Index


THE GSA'S ESG DIGITAL COMPANION


The GSA is delighted to launch its ESG Digital Companion. Through all our work on ESG to develop the Service Provider Sustainability Index (SPSI), it is abundantly clear that ESG is a minefield for many.

We have partnered with OpenDialog to launch what we understand to be a world first conversational AI tool to guide businesses through ESG questionnaires. Our ESG Digital Companion is in beta and currently freely available for all to use. It is an essential aid for those participating in SPSI.

Try it out here.
View the Press Release here.

CATCH UP ON THE FESTIVAL OF SOURCING 2024


We were delighted to host the Festival of Sourcing featuring industry experts sharing their insights and best practices on AI, Agile Sourcing, Supplier Diversity and more through supporting the industry for good theme.

The Industry for Good theme wrapped around all the day’s content, using it to learn and share ideas, insights and innovations for our collective accountability and responsibility globally


Click here to get access to the presentations and panel discussions


EVENT CATCH UP: IMPACT SOURCING WEBINAR



If there’s one thing you should be focusing on within your ESG agenda this year, it should be impact sourcing.

 It is the outsourcing industry that has given long-term and meaningful employment to all sorts of disadvantaged communities – In fact, the outsourcing industry has now created millions of jobs around the world and is a major contributor to the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goal (UN SDG) of eradicating global poverty.

Whether you want to understand the discipline of Impact Sourcing or how to start and maintain an impact sourcing programme – we explained how in this webinar..

View the full recording here.

GUEST BLOG: A Spotlight on Sustainability in Mauritius

by EDB Mauritius


The Mauritian ICT/BPO industry remains a strong driver of growth and the sector has always shown resilience to global economic shocks. In 2023, the sector grew by 6.6% and employs approximately 33,500 people.

As a nation vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, Mauritius is acutely aware of the urgency to take collective action for a sustainable and resilient future. Among its various list of actions, Mauritius intends to develop an ESG framework so as to position the country as a sustainable international financial centre.

Many Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) and impactful investors are currently using Mauritius as a platform to set up and manage African impact funds in an efficient and cost-effective manner while benefiting from the jurisdiction’s investment friendly ecosystem and contributing to the sustainable development of both Mauritius and Africa.

The country is well committed to becoming a sustainable hub, with a focus on achieving economic growth, and Eco Vadis is one of the few outsourcing companies on the island whose activities are geared towards sustainability.  

Read EcoVadis' full blog here.



Foreign affairs receives relatively little airtime in an election campaign but the Labour manifesto says it will create a “new strategic partnership” with India and deepen cooperation in areas like security, education, technology and climate change.

It also speaks of a signing a Free Trade Agreement between the two countries. Civil servants have been negotiating the terms of the Free Trade Agreement for the past couple of years and it could offer a quick win to a government seeking to kickstart the economy after a period of moribund economic performance.

Whether that deal is a priority for the new Modi-led administration in New Delhi remains to be seen. Labour says it plans to extend cooperation with India in areas of security, education, technology, and climate change.

Read the full article here.

 

Cultural Alignment Training (CAT) Webinar
23rd July 2024
10:00-11:00 BST, Online

Intro to CAT - CAT at the Gherkin

1st August 2024

30 St Mary Axe, London EC3A 8BF

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