From pledge to action: integrating racial diversity into the supply chain

Abstract

PurposeOrganizations are increasingly making commitments and equity pledges to racially diversify their supply chain. While such commitments are commendable, historical attempts at reform have experienced limited success. This suggests that there is a need for organizations to understand the hurdles and complexity that might limit impact, and then be intentional when taking action.Design/methodology/approachIn this study, we conduct an inductive, qualitative investigation involving five organizations in Indianapolis USA. Three are corporations that had made a commitment to and are actively trying to racially diversify their supply chain. The other two are support organizations that serve as a link between suppliers and corporations.FindingsThe results identify three levels of interrelated management challenges associated with racially diversifying the supply chain at the industry, strategy, and operation levels.Originality/valueStrategies for overcoming the challenges when integrating racial diversity into the supply chain are discussed, and a set of directional questions are provided to help organizations with their quest to racially diversify their supply chains.