What's in it for me?

Find out how a large global manufacturer acted to increase the diversity and sustainability of its suppliers within its South African operations, these actions include SABMiller:

• Identifying suppliers owned by disadvantaged groups
• Monitoring the procurement spend with these organisations
• Providing staff, training and management skills to develop key supplier organisations
• Purchasing some core suppliers to stabilise and develop the operation before re-selling the enterprise to the previous owners

Case study summary

SABMiller plc is one of the world’s largest brewers with brewing interests or distribution agreements in over 60 countries across six continents. The group’s brands include premium international beers such as Miller Genuine Draft, Peroni Nastro Azzurro and Pilsner Urquell, as well as an extensive range of market leading local brands. Outside the USA, SABMiller plc is also one of the largest bottlers of Coca-Cola products in the world.

This case study focuses on its South African Breweries (SAB) operations and describes the efforts being made to keep the organisation at the forefront of addressing socio-economic development within the previously disadvantaged (black and minority ethnic) groups in the country. The group places a lot of emphasis on supplier diversity and diversity in general with very well constructed supplier diversity policies, programmes and training initiatives. The key supplier diversity activities highlighted include:

• Identifying suppliers owned by under-represented groups and monitoring the procurement spend with each organisation
• Seconding staff from the SAB organisation to the acquired organisations
• Providing training, systems and processes to key suppliers
• Purchasing some key suppliers, for example farms growing barley, in order to stabilise and/or turn around the business