Exploring Supplier Sustainability Audit Standards: Potential for and Barriers to Standardization

Iain J Fraser,Martin Müller,Julia Schwarzkopf

doi:10.3390/su12198223

Iain J Fraser, Martin Müller + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/su12198223

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Abstract

Global focal companies are increasingly required and expected to monitor the sustainability risks and activities in their supply chains, which has resulted in increasing supplier sustainability audit activity and growth in the number of sustainability initiatives/associations. While common, shared audit standards were originally conceived to reduce audit fatigue; with overlapping and converging supply chains there could be a need for cross-recognition or standardisation of supplier audit standards. This research aims to provide empirically grounded insight into sustainability audit activity, audit processes and standards for suppliers and the extent to which they overlap. Audit standards employed by eight multi-brand, voluntary sustainability initiatives/associations, focusing on supply chain sustainability (SMETA, PSCI, ICTI, FWF, ASI, JAC, amforiBSCI and RBA) were inductively analysed. This research compares the audit processes and standards, detecting common audit categories, analysing points of overlap and difference. We find empirical evidence of significant growth in supplier sustainability audit activity. We also find overlap among the standards in terms of audit process and steps, as well as at the level of audit focus categories. Deeper analysis reveals large differences at the granular level in terms of questions asked to assess specific topics. We conclude that there is potential for standardisation and cross-recognition but that significant barriers to agreement at the level of audit questions and how topics are evaluated remain. This research provides a first empirical overview of this important tool and its application in various industries for sustainable supply chain management.

Highlights

Given that the global supply chains of multinational Focal Companies (FCs) constitute over 80% of trade worldwide [1], it is not surprising that influential FCs are increasingly held accountable for the sustainability in their supply chains [2,3,4]
Sustainability is increasingly becoming a central tenet of many discourses and global supply chains are no exception to this trend
The research contributes to literature on sustainability into supply chain management (SSCM), sustainability/ethical audits and sustainability initiatives by providing empirical evidence for an increasing amount of global audit activity and by describing how supplier audit standards are structured and differ

Summary

Introduction

Given that the global supply chains of multinational Focal Companies (FCs) constitute over 80% of trade worldwide [1], it is not surprising that influential FCs are increasingly held accountable for the (lack of) sustainability in their supply chains [2,3,4]. We further propose that numerous emerging supplier sustainability audit standards (SSAS), developed by and conducted for the FC members of voluntary sustainability initiatives and associations (SI/As), are potentially similar, both in terms of the audit process and the sustainability topics that they cover. Such audit standards could potentially be mutually recognised, not just within a SI/A but among different SI/As and various industries, and we can postulate about the potential of and limits to standardisation.

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