*NEWS*20 YRS OF SUPPLIER DIVERSITY @XEROX

[Anonymous]

20 Years of Supplier Diversity at Xerox…
The company increasingly is making diverse suppliers part of the solutions that Xerox offers to its customers too.
ROCHESTER,
NY, Dec.2005 – In 1985, Xerox Corporation had “one guy in an office”
just quietly tracking how much money the company spent with minority-,
women- and veteran-owned businesses. But today, Xerox’s supplier
diversity efforts represent a sophisticated, world-class program. A
department now manages millions in spending and works with hundreds of
suppliers. It has earned top government designations and other awards
nationwide. And it increasingly is making diverse suppliers part of the
solutions that Xerox offers to its customers too.
Aiming Higher
As
Xerox marks its 20th year of formally managing supplier diversity, the
evolution is something to be proud of, yet “we’re aiming for new levels
of success every year,” says Dan Robinson, who directs the company’s
supplier diversity strategies. “The goal today is to leverage the
sophistication of our supplier diversity program as a competitive
advantage and as a way to attract new business opportunities for Xerox.
That’s a long way from when the program began with one man – me –
charting numbers in an office.”
Through October, Xerox has spent
nearly $250 million this year alone with minority- and women-owned
business enterprises – about 10 percentage points more than planned.
This spending represents 30 percent of Xerox’s total qualified U.S.
purchases (excluding certain items such as taxes). In total, since
1985, Xerox has purchased more than $5 billion in goods and services
from minority-, women- and veteran-owned businesses in the United
States.
Xerox’s program not only reports how much it spends with
“MWBEs” but also requires Xerox suppliers and their suppliers to do so
too, ensuring a chain of business that is committed to diversity
spending.
Evolv Solutions Primary Supplier
And, that chain
continues into how Xerox offers document technology and services to its
own customers. For example, earlier this year, as a key component of a
six-year managed services agreement with Xerox, KeyCorp engaged
Kansas-based Evolv Solutions LLC – a minority-owned document management
and output solutions provider – as a primary supplier.
“Customers
who contract with Xerox have come to expect and are provided with
quality, service and competitive pricing,” Robinson says.
“Increasingly, they are asking for solutions that incorporate a
supplier diversity commitment – a commitment that Xerox has
demonstrated for more than 20 years.”
Pioneering Practices
The
roots of Xerox’s supplier program date to the late 1960s, when Joseph
Wilson, the president of Xerox, wanted to help spark positive change in
Rochester after a series of race riots. He arranged a meeting with
community activists, which generated an idea for a black-owned and
operated manufacturing company that could provide both new pride and
new jobs. To help ensure its success, Wilson ensured Xerox would be a
customer. Known today as Eltrex, the company remains a Xerox supplier
and provides mechanical parts and assemblies used in many Xerox
products.
Xerox then began to informally gather more information
about its suppliers in response to questions that came up from
customers. Soon, the questions were coming more frequently, and in 1985
the formal management program was born, positioning Xerox as a
preferred vendor with both government agencies and Fortune 500 accounts.
Today,
in addition to Robinson and the global purchasing team, Xerox has a
supplier diversity steering committee with representatives from all
major Xerox business areas. They help provide strategic direction and
support so that Xerox, as a buyer, achieves its supplier use goals and
that Xerox, as a vendor, leverages market access initiatives to help
Xerox achieve its revenue goals and meet customer requirements.
Award-Winning Efforts
Over
the years, these initiatives have led to several awards from customers,
publications and associations, including three top supplier awards from
the U.S. Small Business Administration: the Frances Perkins Vanguard
Award, recognizing use of woman-owned small businesses; the Dwight D.
Eisenhower Award for Excellence, which honors large contractors who use
small businesses and subcontractors; and the Award of Distinction,
recognizing large federal contractors that have exceptional small
business subcontracting programs. “We’re among few companies to have
received the ‘Triple Crown’ in awards presented by SBA in one calendar
year,” Robinson says.
Xerox is also an active member of many
associations, including the Upstate New York Regional Minority
Purchasing Council, which Robinson chairs; the National Minority
Supplier Development Council; and the National Association of Women
Business Owners. The company has relationships with groups such as the
Women’s Business Enterprise National Council, the U.S. Pan-Asian
American Chamber of Commerce, the American Indian Chamber of Commerce,
the African American Chamber of Commerce, and the U.S. Hispanic Chamber
of Commerce.
As a global company, Xerox’s supplier diversity
outreach also involves Brazil, Canada and the United Kingdom. For
example, in late 2004, Xerox helped launch the Canadian Aboriginal and
Minority Supplier Council, and Xerox Canada CEO Doug Lord serves as the
board chairman.
“Within the United States and abroad, operating a
strong supplier diversity program has become a business imperative,”
Robinson says. “Xerox intends to continue leading with a world-class
program that integrates supplier diversity with other business
functions, uses advanced tracking and measurement to evaluate progress,
and seeks ongoing process improvements to become even stronger.”

[Author]

December 15, 2005 at 1:23 PM