As a result, the area of ethical trading has focused on trading relationships as the means by which influence can be exerted by retailers and brands to improve supply chain labour standards. In this model, then, commercial practices and ethical concerns are intimately linked. The problem, needless to say, is that commercial and ethical interests are not always identical, and may be in considerable tension.

How, for example, can a purchasing manager whose principle task is to negotiate down prices with suppliers should also adopt the role of labour rights champion, proposing minimum compliance requirements which may, it is argued, increase the labour costs of the supplier whose costs are already being squeezed? Even if labour costs are not concerned, it is perhaps neither useful nor appropriate that labour standards are appended as an additional contractual obligation, without consideration for how such standards are to be achieved at the supplier workplace.

Of course, there has long been a struggle among companies to integrate labour standards concerns with an efficient supply chain management model. What has changed in recent years is that, increasingly, companies are coming to understand that purchasing practices are in fact a vital factor in the effectiveness of attempts to manage supply chain labour standards. Any company which has understood the business logic for engaging in ‘ethical trade’, and which takes this activity seriously, needs to understand and to integrate the way in which their ‘trade’ either complements or undermines their ‘ethics’.

This change in perspective reflects a broader sea-change in supply chain labour standards management. For many years this was primarily driven by a policing mentality of catching suppliers doing something wrong. The debate has now matured from a ‘catch you out’ scenario to a multi-stakeholder engagement approach. In the more evolved version of supply chain labour standards management, the supplier is recognised not just as a link in the chain, trying to hide bad practices, but as a critical stakeholder willing to evolve together with the debate.

It is well understood that, as companies have explored how to ensure more durable improvements in supply chain labour standards, it has become evident that ‘policing’ approaches, in isolation, simply do not work. What is less well understood is that a lot of common code violations – such as overtime or wages – commonly spring from two fundamental root causes. First, the lack of management capacity and management systems at supplier level; second, the variability of the manufacturing environment triggered by late, fast and significant changes from the client – in other words, purchasing practices.

Late changes in production requirements, forecasting or production allocation, without accompanying changes in delivery conditions, constitute real pressures on the supplier to ensure that delivery at same cost and quality is guaranteed. This often results in difficult situations for the suppliers where the only option, other than losing the order, is temporarily to transgress the labour conditions mentioned in the client’s code of conduct. Moreover, companies are coming to understand that other aspects of purchasing practices – the length of trading relationship, timeliness of payment and critical path management – also influence the supply chain circumstances which may either perpetuate or improve labour standards.

Dialogue between global suppliers and large companies with globalised supply chains points to the next step in this evolution: if continuous improvement in product quality, code of conduct and supply chain efficiency is to occur then the management of labour conditions and code of conduct has to be (re-)integrated within the supply chain. Only when the know-how and supply chain systems which reside at the corporate client level are transmitted down through the supply chain to local supplier level with a constant two way information flow can durable improvements in labour standards become a reality.

This sort of capacity building is beginning to take place among the more innovative brands in the apparel, footwear and toy industries. These organisations have allocated resources in order to investigate why certain labour condition violations take place at some suppliers and not at others. Starting from this basis, labour standards experts and trainers build capacity and know-how within local suppliers – both at management and worker level – with the effect of instantly decreasing ‘code violations’ in a sustained manner while at the same time improving quality and efficiency. The implementation of supply chain practices such a VMI (Vendor-Managed Inventories) from brand level to local supplier level allows for better lead time planning, less over-time, less work in progress (less tied-up capital) and generally a much more productive and happier workforce.

Of course we should not throw out a decade of learning how to monitor workplace labour conditions. But the shift from an auditing model to a more participatory approach involving local stakeholders is key to the overall management of supply chain labour standards. Only an open and engaged understanding of local working conditions, the needs and aspirations of workers and their communities, and the local manufacturing challenges can lead to dialogue on how to improve current production situations continuously and sustainably.

Are we currently going through a cultural revolution? What will happen during the Information Age? Perhaps this period of time will be know as when our economic and political system collapsed and then redeveloped for the better of people and the planet.

More importantly, how will it affect you and the fashion industry in which you work? Will we be part of the cure or the disease? Our supply chains are global and problems within them are systemic. This makes it hard for anyone to know where to begin but it isn’t a reason to do nothing and we need innovative folk like yourselves to get us out of this mess. With a bit of focus on where you can have influence, not only can you develop your supply chain to have positive impact on the world but you could be serving your bottom line too!

I’ve been a Buyer for 10 years and have worked for some of the most successful and innovative fashion retailers on the UK high street. Having spent most of my career at a large UK high street retailer, I have seen the impact of global cultural, economic and political changes on our Fashion supply chains. Its not been pretty but something exciting is happening in the undergrowth of our industry. With the development of the Internet and online media we are more connected than ever, and information spreads like wildfire. Supply chains that were once hidden are now in a spotlight and a business that is for the longhaul, which I’m sure is your plan! it is paramount that you protect this asset.

One of the most exciting elements of being a Buyer or Designer is hunting out new trends, developing beautiful products and seeing them fly off the shelves. However, during the last 5 years of my career I have uncovered a new, even more exciting aspect of my job as a Buyer. As I embarked on a labyrinth journey of understanding fashion supply chains, I travelled to all corners of the world which opened my eyes to the realisation of just how connected we truly are and the positive influence that we can all have within the fashion industry. Along the way, I’ve read Vogue with female Fairtrade cotton farmers in Cameroon, shared fashion tips with seamstresses on the coast in Ghana, discussed the merits of peace silk farms in Vietnam and witnessed empowerment of providing work for exiled Tibetans in the foothills of the Himalayas in India. I’ve even sat in the Zurich office of one of the biggest cotton Trading companies in the world, bashing out ideas of how we can increase access to more Fairtrade cotton to the Buyers on the high street in both financial terms and also availability.

Now this isn’t currently the typical role of a conventional Buyer for a high street retailer, however it will be in the future. We live in uncertain times and as stakeholders of the fashion industry, whose supply chains affect many people around the world, it is our responsibility to make sure that the business roles we play have only positive affects on the people within them and the planet. This is known as triple bottom line – PEOPLE,PLANET,PROFIT – whereby you have financial success but with minimal negative affect on the planet and maximum positive affect for the people. Understanding your supply chain and building trustworthy partners is going to be paramount to your success. We play a key role in addressing the systemic issues that we have within our industry.

This is one of the reasons that I work within the Vectra International network and why I set up ei8ht. We help innovative designers and businesses like yours to develop more sustainable supply chains, ones that they are so proud of that they choose to talk about it publicly as it adds value to their business. We foster and support you in your work by building on your core strengths. It doesn’t matter whether you are new to this area of the industry or are looking at ways to develop further, we are a group of specialists that can help you in all areas of the supply chain from sourcing fabrics, working with small co-operatives through to advice on codes of conduct and where you need to be most vigilant within your business. We will go through the main challenges you face in terms of people within your supply chains and also the planet and help you define an effective and exciting strategy to address them. We are also looking to develop exciting role models for the Industry that we can talk about within all the aspects of the work we do. We have a huge network for you to tap into all over the world and we want to see this new business model develop.

VECTRA International - CSR, ESG, EHS, sustainability, competitive advantage.