Our three-step supply chain plan to achieving ESG targets

ESG goals are not just ‘business targets’ but a duty to society.

We recognise the supply chain is pivotal to achieving these ambitions as it often represents a significant portion of an organisation’s environmental footprint. By developing strong partnerships with the supply chain, we can offer our clients full transparency in the delivery of key services to their portfolios, leveraging regional and local suppliers to provide a best in class, sustainably-minded service.

At Colliers we have clear ESG targets including our commitment to achieve net zero emissions by 2030, driven by our colleagues, investors and occupiers which enable us to best achieve the goals and vision of our clients. 

Building on the sustainable procurement framework that Colliers has continually been developing since 2016, we are now looking to make a step change in increasing transparency by implementing a future-proof approach to our supply chain. Our Property Management team has set out a three-step plan to continue to drive and improve on our ESG record by substantially increasing the reporting and measurement standards expected of our supply chain.  

The three-step plan:

1. Last year, we introduced our new standard agreement with specific duties for the supplier to align with our ESG policies together with those of our clients and to report on several key metrics.
   
   
2. This year we have introduced specific ESG Service Level Agreements (SLAs) which will be included in all new agreements moving forward. These include social value, environmental sustainability measures and carbon footprint assessment to support indirect emissions reporting, together with service-specific targets.
   
   
3. Ongoing tenders will include ESG alignment, together with customer experience and data / technology capabilities as key selection criteria. This will help us futureproof our clients’ investments by meeting their and their occupiers’ requirements for sustainable services, with increased data transparency. 

At Colliers, we are working to ensure we partner with like-minded, innovative suppliers to drive the sustainability of the buildings we manage and actively support local communities. We have already begun communicating with the existing supply chain regarding our plans to make ESG values inherent in all future activities and are implementing the roll-out of our new standard agreement across the supply base. This, together with the use of targeted ESG selection criteria, ongoing supplier management activities, and the introduction of SLAs specifically measuring and reporting adherence and improvements in sustainability and social value will drive a step change in the services we provide. 

We’ve already been successful in our new approach for our waste services in Scotland testing both incumbent and new suppliers’ capabilities and approach. Selection criteria included questions on the delivery model, reporting capabilities, and ESG alignment. Taking all elements of the responses, pricing, and external market research into consideration we have selected a service partner which is fully aligned with our goals at a better price point, achieving genuine, sustainable value for all of our Scottish clients and their occupiers. This includes the introduction of enhanced reporting, on-vehicle weighing of containers for accuracy, and proactive management of waste streams. These are combined with social value and carbon footprint reporting from the supplier to support indirect emission analysis. 

This initiative, combined with our enhanced customer experience approach and industry-leading Technology Framework, is at the heart of our service to clients, ensuring that we don’t only provide a tailored approach to property management, but one that is also flexible and futureproof. 

View our Sustainability services