Realize the agreement

Here you get help with preparing suppliers in connection with the start of the agreement, with planning and carrying out the follow-up and with handling deviations.

Introduction

When you have completed the procurement, it is time to realize the procured agreement. Now is the time for the agreement to be implemented in the organization and monitor it.

This step includes:

Prepare suppliers

It is advisable to have a start-up meeting with suppliers after the standstill period has expired. At the start-up meeting you can:

Clarify the terms of the contract for suppliers by going through this guide.
Establish contact with the persons responsible for due diligence.
Communicate how the follow-up will be done.
Capture any questions or concerns.

Establishing contact with the persons at the supplier who are responsible for due diligence is a prerequisite for a functioning collaboration and not least for the follow-up.

Planera uppföljningen

Plan the follow-up

A follow-up is important and necessary for several reasons:

To verify that the supplier lives up to the contract terms.
To ensure that what the regions have requested is also delivered.
To prevent insincere suppliers from benefiting from not conducting due diligence.

Already during the preparation phase, you should have planned how the contract terms will be followed up, even if the details are set now when it is time to realize the agreement. Concretely, it is about deciding:

When the follow-up is to be conducted
How the follow-up is to be conducted
Who will carry out the follow-up

The purchasing categories that the regions have assessed as having particularly high risks for people and the environment are followed up in a joint process led by the Regions' National Secretariat for Sustainable Procurement. The results from the follow-ups are published on www.hållbarupphandling.se.

When you plan the follow-up of a supplier, it can be valuable to review the results of previous follow-ups. It can also save time to contact the Regions' National Secretariat to get information about which suppliers will be followed up in the coming year.

Genomföra uppföljningen

Carry out the follow-up

Suppliers are obliged to participate in the follow-up. The follow-up methods dialogue, self-assessment, supply chain transparency and audits have been specified in the contract terms. The contract terms have also take taken into account that you may want to use other methods, such as origin verification, open data or government databases.

The application of policies and processes is checked based on samples. When you choose samples, it is important to start from an analysis of which products have the largest rrisk of adverse impact on people and the environment in combination with high volume/turnover.

Excerpt from the contract terms

Supplier shall participate in and cooperate with [the contracting organisation] in the monitoring of the commitments in the Code of Conduct for Suppliers (clause 1) and the due diligence process (clause 2). Monitoring may be carried out through various methods such as dialogue, self-assessment, supply chain transparency and audits.

Hantera avvikelser

Manage deviations

Excerpt from the contract terms

Supplier shall address deviations from the commitments in the Code of Conduct for suppliers (clause 1) and the due diligence process (clause 2). Focus shall be on improvements in Supplier’s operations and in its supply chains.

When addressing deviations, it is important to focus on improvements. This is best done through collaboration with suppliers and the principle applies regardless of whether it concerns a deviation from the commitments (code of conduct) or from the due diligence process. It is also common for deviations to occur, even among suppliers who work actively with sustainability. Some deviations can be easy to fix and not all deviations are equally severe. When any deviations are detected, an action plan is always drawn up, including a timetable that describes how the supplier must correct the deviation within the specified time.

If the supplier does not comply with the approved time and action plan, the contract terms contain several sanction options. The regions also have a national "escalation staircase" (Only in Swedish)where measures are proposed to be taken if the deviations are not corrected.

When using the "escalation staircase", it is important to document each step and to ensure that each step of the ladder is followed.

Terminating a contract should be seen as a last resort after repeated attempts to correct the deviations. This also applies to severe deviations, as problems that are identified often persist and may even worsen if a contract is terminated, which is why it is also important that you exit responsibly.

For example, the Supplier Commitment on Child Labor requires the employer to develop or participate in and contribute to policies and programs that provide for the transition of all children found to be performing child labor, to enable the child to participate in and remain in quality education until he or she no longer is a child. This can take time and it is therefore important that you work long-term together with the supplier and the current sub-supplier to achieve the purpose of the commitment. Simply dismissing the child, or in your case terminating the contract with the supplier concerned, may lead to the child having to find alternative, more dangerous forms of work, for example prostitution.

Nevertheless, the contract terms provide an opportunity to terminate the contract with immediate effect if you have made it plausible that a severe deviation occurs in the supplier's operations or in the supply chains. However, this only applies on the condition that the entity causing the severe deviation does not take immediate measures to prevent and mitigate it.

Evaluate the result

Before a decision on a renewal of the agreement, or before it is terminated, you should summarize how the agreement has worked.

In which contracts has the contract term been used?
Which of these contracts have been followed up on?
How many audits have been carried out per contract/supplier?
How much did the audits cost?
In what ways have you had a positive impact on suppliers' work with due diligence and on conditions in the supply chains?

The evaluation of the previous contract period is important information in the preparatory phase for future procurement of similar goods or services.

Kommunicera resultatet

Utvärdera resultatet

Communicate the results

It is also good to communicate the work and the effort you make regarding sustainability due diligence. Communication can take place in many different ways, but the aim is to make visible how your organization contributes to improving conditions in supply chains through procurement.

Communication can, for example, focus on:

Have we reached our goals?
What goals should we have in the coming time period?
What lessons have we learned?
How have we invested in internal training and skills development?

Planera för uppföjning