Fulfilling your diversity spend using a veteran-owned company can be a great way to support the veteran community while also meeting your diversity spend requirements. Diversity spend is the allocation of a certain percentage of a company’s procurement budget to be spent on goods and services from diverse suppliers, such as minority-owned, women-owned, and veteran-owned businesses.
There are several steps that companies can take to fulfill their diversity spend using a veteran-owned company:
- Identify veteran-owned suppliers: Companies can start by identifying veteran-owned suppliers that can provide the goods or services they need. The National Veterans Small Business Engagement (NVSBE) website is a great resource for finding veteran-owned suppliers. Companies can also reach out to local veteran-owned businesses or organizations that support veteran-owned businesses.
- Set a goal for veteran-owned spend: Companies should set a specific goal for how much of their diversity spend they want to allocate to veteran-owned suppliers. This will help ensure that the company is making a meaningful effort to support veteran-owned businesses.
- Incorporate veteran-owned suppliers into procurement processes: Companies should make sure to include veteran-owned suppliers in their procurement processes, such as sending out RFPs and RFQs and inviting veteran-owned suppliers to bid on contracts.
- Provide support and mentorship: Companies can provide support and mentorship to veteran-owned suppliers to help them grow and succeed. This can include providing training and resources, connecting them with other suppliers, and offering advice and guidance.
- Track and report progress: Companies should track and report their progress in fulfilling their veteran-owned spend goal, and share this information with stakeholders such as employees, shareholders, and customers.
Using veteran-owned suppliers can provide a number of benefits for companies, including:
- Supporting the veteran community: By using veteran-owned suppliers, companies can support the veteran community and help veterans transition to civilian life.
- Meeting diversity spend requirements: By using veteran-owned suppliers, companies can meet their diversity spend requirements while also supporting a worthy cause.
- Improving supplier diversity: Using veteran-owned suppliers can help improve supplier diversity and bring new perspectives and ideas to the company.
- Building a positive reputation: Companies that support veteran-owned businesses can build a positive reputation and show that they are committed to doing their part to support the veteran community.
- However, it’s important to note that it is not just about fulfilling a requirement, but to truly integrate the veteran-owned companies into the supply chain, and support them for the long term. It is also important for the companies to research and vet the veteran-owned companies, to ensure that they are legitimate and can provide the goods and services required.
In conclusion, Companies can take steps such as identifying veteran-owned suppliers, setting a goal for veteran-owned spend, incorporating veteran-owned suppliers into procurement processes, providing support and mentorship, and tracking and reporting progress. By using veteran-owned suppliers, companies can not only meet their diversity spend requirements but also support a worthy cause, improve supplier diversity and build a positive reputation.
Learn more about Amerit, one of the largest Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Businesses in the U.S. on how we can help you achieve your diversity spend requirements.