Finance Monthly. Bus i ne s s & Economy 25 usinesses may be failing in their due diligence when it comes to compliance if Modern Slavery Reporting is solely under the banner of ‘procurement’. Multinational companies that fall within the threshold for reporting modern slavery in supply chains also fall within a much broader mesh of regulatory compliance requirements with standards in a range of areas, including Safety and Environment – which make headlines when there are failures. There are risks for officer liability including Board and Director duties and reputational harm for non-compliance. Implementing quality guidance at every stage of a corporate project lifecycle, with feedback, is essential, not simply to complete a project, but to do so without human exploitation. If human rights abuses are to be tackled in a globalised market through corporate responsibility, quality across all systems becomes a cultural issue for companies and less of a legal issue for their counsel. Quality in supply chains is valued in design, operation and production which cannot be truly achieved if there are poor employment practices. Even where the quality of the product is high, if there is exploitation in the workforce, there are risks of safety and environmental breaches. Under the auspices of quality compliance, corporate areas can be linked throughengagementwithdifferent stakeholders across jurisdictions. Understanding the culture of the organisations as well as the operations can aid investigations including the treatment of people in supply chains. The trick is to improve transparency, to identify non-conformities and rectify and for that to reflect positively on the business – hence a quality approach is more likely to be reputationally effective and legally compliant. Regulatory compliance often comes alongside accreditation, especially for those corporates that operate in a competitive and global market. In several jurisdictions, it is a pre-requisite for companies wishing to tender for work to hold current accreditation across all functions. Accreditation and procurement practices provide assurance on competence in specific functions and reduce the potential of exposure to risk but are not necessarily an overarching demonstration of the quality of the supply chain. Reputation will be fundamentally undermined if exploitation of the workforce within supply chains is not monitored with the same level of diligence as the products being produced. The critical element for business is usually that the development of a superior product and value for money to the end user is likely to increase revenue but Modern slavery compliance is more than an added ‘carrot’ to achieve customer satisfaction and enhance reputation. Ignoring the quality of the supply chain workforce by focussing on procuring quality supplies risks producing a modern slavery report on paper but raising public concern about ethical standards. Combining the reduction in rectification costs and reducing the risks of human exploitation by proactive knowledge and remediation processes, including where suspicious employment practices are identified, becomes an up-front preventative mechanism when it is approached as the overarching monitor of industry standards. If grasped properly proactive quality project delivery driven by a human rights ethos allows for rectification of both product and supply chain defects such that remediation can also be seen positively. Not only can operations be positively influenced through effective systems being in place but when it includes modern slavery reporting, quality provides the respect that a compliant business deserves. “Even where the quality of the product is high, if there is exploitation in the workforce, there are risks of safety and environmental breaches.”
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