Sustainable Procurement Principles

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How Capgemini will work with its suppliers

We aim to conduct our relationships with suppliers on a fair and ethical basis. For example we will:

  • accept hospitality only to the extent that it cannot be seen as an inducement – that is, something that has influenced us in making a business decision
  • maintain the highest possible standard of integrity in all business relationships, inside and outside the company
  • reject any business practice which might reasonably be deemed improper and never use our authority for personal gain
  • agree fair business terms and target timely payment

A supplier’s record, action and capability in sustainability will an integral part of our selection, tendering and contracting process. This will be objective and transparent, based on questionnaires and, in some cases, dialogues. Our regular contract reviews will incorporate performance assessment. We will take a supportive approach to delivering improvements on sustainability issues and Capgemini UK’s environmental commitments.

We encourage supplier diversity and equality – we aim to make sure we allow qualified small and minority businesses the opportunity to receive a share of our business. Our ecosystem approach with major clients aims to foster this and level barriers to entry.

Contractors and supplier staff will be expected to work to the same sustainability standards as our own employees. We will treat contractors and suppliers with the same standards for diversity and health and safety as our own employees.

If a satisfactory agreement cannot be reached in areas of high risk where Mandatory Core Principles cannot be met by a supplier in a reasonable period of time, we reserve the right with due notice not to continue business.

What we expect from our suppliers

We expect our suppliers to conduct their relationship with us and any of our clients, partners and other suppliers on a fair and ethical basis, and in compliance with the Mandatory Core Principles of sustainability. These principles apply both to the supplier’s activities and, where appropriate, to their downstream supply chain.

The Mandatory Core Principles are:

  1. Human rights. Respect for human rights in dealing with supplier stakeholders at large eg, team members, clients, suppliers, shareholders and communities. Suppliers should support the principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. They must avoid association with equipment that is used in the violation of these rights, such as instruments of torture, or the manufacture or transfer of armaments to oppressive regimes.
  2. Compliance with applicable international, national, state and local laws. We recognise that local customs, traditions and practices may differ, but expect as a minimum that suppliers comply with local, national and international laws, including (but not limited to) all environmental, health and safety and labour laws. We expect suppliers to support International Labor Organization core conventions on labour standards.
  3. Forced or compulsory labour. Our suppliers must not use forced, bonded or compulsory labour and employees must be free to leave their employment after reasonable notice. Employees must not be required to lodge deposits, money or papers with their employer.
  4. Child Labour. We refuse to accept the use of child labour in the supply chain.
    • No one should be employed who is below the legal minimum age for employment.
    • Children (below the age of 18) must not be employed for any hazardous work or work that is inconsistent with their personal development.
    • Where a child is employed, the best interests of the child shall be the primary consideration.
    • Where a child is found to be performing child labour in our supply chain we will provide assistance in some form.
  5. Equality and diversity. We refuse to accept unlawful discrimination of any kind in working relations and we expect diversity to be promoted. Suppliers should not discriminate in hiring, compensation, access to training, promotion, termination of employment or retirement based on:
    • race
    • caste
    • national origin
    • religion
    • age
    • disability
    • gender
    • marital status
    • sexual orientation
    • union membership
    • political affiliation
  6. Employee wellbeing and development. Where applicable, suppliers should give consideration to flexible working conditions to promote work/life balance, the promotion of training and personal development of team members.
  7. Disciplinary practices. Employees must be treated with respect and dignity. Physical or verbal abuse or other harassment and any threats or other forms of intimidation are prohibited.
  8. Freedom of association. As far as relevant laws allow, respect should be given for freedom of association.
  9. Health and Safety. A healthy and safe working environment must be provided for all employees, in accordance with international standards and laws. This includes making sure that adequate facilities, training and access to safety information are provided. All applicable policies, procedures and guidelines must be adhered to. Where suppliers work on Capgemini premises, or on behalf of Capgemini – for example in the use, handling, transport or disposal of hazardous materials, or the disposal of electronic equipment – they must confirm that they understand their obligations. They must also confirm that they have management processes and controls in place, and where applicable, agree to be fully responsible for any liability resulting from their actions.
  10. Confidentiality and intellectual property. We require our suppliers, contractors and their team members to maintain confidentiality with regard to all information they have access to, in accordance with applicable laws. We also expect them to protect all intellectual property belonging to Capgemini, our customers, other suppliers and individuals.
  11. Refusal of bribery and corruption in business practices.
  12. Environmental impacts. We have put processes in place to understand – and where required, measure – detrimental environmental impacts and risks. We’re working to reduce these impacts and promote environment-friendly policies. Areas covered include.
    • waste and disposal
    • improved efficiency for using finite or scarce resources (such as energy, water, raw materials)
    • protecting biodiversity,
    • climate Change – CO2, methane, other climate change gases and other relevant factors impacting climate change
    • other environmental impacts such as noise, water and ground pollution
    • management, operational and technical controls to minimise the release of harmful emissions into the environment

What Capgemini will do

To support our sustainability goals, we will also be working on initiatives to:

  • reduce our energy consumption
  • reduce travel
  • minimise packaging and returns
  • use more recycled products or products with a high recycled content
  • minimise logistics activity and wasted journeys
  • optimise our end-to-end processes We will also ensure our supplier and product selection procedures take into account whole life costs including sustainability impacts.

We expect suppliers to:

  • document and report on their sustainability performance
  • where necessary, set performance targets for themselves and their downstream supply chain and work to meet them
  • agree to identify and correct any activities of immediate concern or risk which fall below the principles set out in this document
  • work with Capgemini in the spirit of continuous improvement
  • commit to reviewing their compliance with the Capgemini sustainability requirements periodically while continuing to deliver robust goods and services. Suppliers must notify us immediately if there are any negative changes to their compliance with the requirements

We will be conducting periodic surveys, audits and reviews of our suppliers against our sustainability requirements. We will expect your company to support us in these exercises at no charge to Capgemini. We will ask you to provide us with reasonable access to all relevant information, and potentially access to your premises, so that we can assess performance. You should also make reasonable attempts to ensure sub-contractors do the same.We expect our suppliers and contractors to work with us in an open and honest way to ensure full disclosure and support for:

  • any areas of significant concern or risk regarding sustainability, any material breaches or potential for breaches
  • compliance with all national and international laws
  • commitment to make sure all relevant people are aware of these principles and appropriate training and guidelines are in place to support adherence.
  • regular review of these principles
  • dialogue with us on new approaches and techniques to reinforce our joint approach in this area

What our clients expect from us

Sustainability is increasing as a market requirement and our clients are demanding ever-higher performance. This may lead to additional sustainablility requirements for our suppliers to make sure we remain competitive and continue to meet the needs of our clients. We will expect our suppliers to help us meet these needs and to make sure we are always innovating and leading in sustainability improvement.