Amazon’s leadership in supplier diversity has positioned the corporation for success while driving inclusive economic growth. Kennedy Oates, Partnership Board Member and Vice President of Global Procurement at Amazon, shared insights and best practices at the Greater Houston Partnership’s One Houston Together Fall Chief Procurement Officers (CPO) Convening.  Oates discussed how Amazon has grown its supplier diversity efforts by ensuring the value proposition of intentional inclusion of underrepresented businesses is communicated at every level. According to Amazon’s 2023 Sustainability Report, the company’s global supplier diversity and inclusion (SDI) program is estimated to have supported over 30,000 U.S. jobs and generated approximately $2.8 billion in wages earned from Amazon's certified U.S. Tier 1 supplier diversity spend.  In 2023, Amazon was inducted into the Billion Dollar Roundtable, a non-profit organization comprised of U.S. corporations that each spend $1 billion or more annually on a Tier 1 basis with diverse suppliers. These diverse-owned businesses comprise majority owners who identify as minorities, women, veterans, disabled and LGBTQ.  Oates stated that achieving this milestone required a deliberate approach, built on a clear vision, a targeted strategy, and an empowered team dedicated to executing these goals. By embedding supplier diversity into Amazon’s core procurement practices, they’ve fostered a sustainable and inclusive growth model that supports both the company’s goals and the success of diverse suppliers. Key Takeaways from CPO Convening Supplier Diversity as a Strategic Value Proposition Oates emphasized the importance of viewing supplier diversity as more than just an initiative—highlighting the long-term value diverse suppliers bring to a company and its surrounding communities. Through its global SDI strategy, Amazon measures impact through jobs supported, wages earned and economic output generated. “Given our reach and scale, Amazon has a greater responsibility.” – Kennedy Oates, VP of Global Procurement, Amazon Vision-Driven Goals with Clear Strategies For Amazon, supplier diversity goals go beyond simple statements. Oates stressed the importance of crafting a well-defined vision, supported by actionable strategies to advance supplier diversity objectives. This approach includes setting clear, market-specific spending targets, identifying procurement categories that have greater opportunity based passed success, and building relationships with suppliers by understanding their needs and their customers’ needs. In addition, internal teams should have collaborative discussions on supplier diversity across the entire business rather than in silos.   Partnering with Companies at Every Level “Every large company was once small.” – Kennedy Oates, VP of Global Procurement, Amazon Amazon is redefining procurement by challenging the perception that only large companies can serve large corporations. Its approach embraces partnerships with businesses of all sizes, embedding supplier diversity as a core element of its supply chain. While direct spending with certified Tier 1 diverse suppliers is central to Amazon’s SDI program, the company further amplifies its impact by encouraging Tier 1 suppliers to include diverse Tier 2 businesses in their procurement processes. For example, Amazon sets specific spend targets in contracts with Tier 1 suppliers to use Disadvantaged Business Enterprises, creating a positive ripple effect that brings opportunities to underrepresented companies deeper in the supply chain. To learn more about the Partnership’s Supplier Diversity workstream, contact LaTanya Flix.

In a move to increase exposure for minority business enterprises (MBEs), the Greater Houston Partnership’s One Houston Together launched the Houston MBE Accelerator, a new 16-week pilot program designed to harness the collective purchasing power of our region’s business community to grow spending with MBEs. The accelerator has seen initial success by facilitating 32 matches for participating MBEs with seven major corporations, resulting in four contracts valued at $1.4 million and seven Request for Information (RFI) with a spend target of $4.1 million. “These are remarkable results from the pilot offering of the MBE Accelerator. The Partnership is focused on creating opportunity, both for companies and Houstonians alike. The new business relationships spurred by this initial program are a great start, and we look forward to expanding the initiative to more corporates and MBEs in the future.” -- Steve Kean, President and CEO, Greater Houston Partnership The Houston MBE Accelerator focuses on facilitating introductions to MBEs that are business-ready, have a proven track record of delivering goods and services for corporate and institutional purchasers, and are currently doing business with a Partnership member company. These three factors differentiate the program from other accelerators. Seven Partnership members participated in the program:    Baker Hughes CenterPoint Chevron Harris Health System JPMorgan Chase Oxy* Shell The following nine MBEs participated in the program:   Cole Chemical Collaborate Competitive Choice MCA Communications Prime Elevator Corp. Sterling Staffing Solutions Twice Media Productions Vecor Pipeline Integrity Vizion Crane & Industrial Support “We are pleased to partner with organizations that share our commitment and values.  The Greater Houston Partnership’s minority business accelerator program aligns with our own aspirations to increase our spend with minority-owned businesses in the greater Houston region which we believe helps us grow and prosper along with the businesses and surrounding communities.”   -- Steve Freeman, Chevron, Chief Procurement Officer The MBE selection process began with 28 MBEs representing 15 different categories and all with prior experience providing goods and services to Partnership member companies. The nine MBEs selected for the Accelerator pilot were chosen based on their product and service offerings being aligned with potential upcoming purchasing opportunities of the seven Partnership members. Determining a match between goods and services and potential spend opportunities paved the way for meaningful engagements between corporate decision makers and the nine MBEs. As of June, the program has initially resulted in new spend of $3.5 million across four contracts with the MBEs.  Outcomes from introductions made during the pilot will continue to be tracked over the next year including the in-process RFIs. The accelerator’s focused approach has allowed the participating corporations to identify potential opportunities with MBEs that likely would not have been possible without the program. “The Partnership’s minority business accelerator program has served as a catalyst in our own efforts to improve outcomes in supplier diversity. We’ve made several meaningful connections facilitated by this program.  I’m very grateful for the opportunity to participate in this groundbreaking effort.”  -- Terence Baptiste, Chevron, Supply Chain Advisor, Supplier Diversity If you are interested in learning more about the MBEs or are a Partnership member purchaser and want to participate in the next accelerator, check out our MBE directory or contact LaTanya Flix, Senior Vice President, Inclusive Leadership & Opportunity.