The Supplier Diversity Equity and Inclusion Program (SDE&I) at Miller Electric Company was created to ensure that small, minority-owned, women-owned, veteran, and disabled veteran-owned businesses have the opportunity to be a part of our day-to-day business operations. It is our purpose and corporate commitment to help break down barriers to market access for small and diverse enterprises by collaborating, promoting, mentoring, and supporting them in their growth.
The leadership of Miller Electric actively supports our SDE&I program, which aligns with our vision and core values, specifically, Stewardship, Community, and Collaboration. We believe it is our corporate social responsibility to embrace diversity and the inclusion of all people.
Building mutually beneficial and long-lasting relationships play an important role in helping us meet our clients’ evolving needs. We seek qualified and certified suppliers that align with our core values, drive competitiveness, add value and promote innovation. It is our belief that local diverse businesses create the greatest economic impact in our communities and by promoting supplier diversity we are enabling economic development in the communities we serve.
Through a successful women-owned and minority-owned business expo this week, we brought in local and regional business owners to introduce them to our project managers. Each of our project managers has procurement authority over their own projects so beginning to build relationships with these local and regional vendors is key to the long-term success for these companies and Miller.
The SDE&I strives to provide an inclusive environment to do business with small, minority-owned, women-owned, veteran and disabled veteran-owned companies. Miller Electric is committed to increasing the utilization of historically underrepresented businesses. We plan to measure this commitment by creating internal and external deliverables to ensure program success. Miller Electric will increase the number of diverse suppliers in the following ways:
- We will solicit through all reasonable and available means the interest of all certified diverse businesses who have the capability to perform work or provide material, equipment, or other services as required by our clients
- We will identify other purchasing categories/commodity codes for opportunities for diverse suppliers of products and services, as required for internal Miller requirements (e.g., marketing, office supplies, office consumables)
- We will identify, engage and support diverse companies by continuing to participate in and support councils, trade organizations, and advocacy groups that certify these companies. The goal is to maximize the volume of products and services that Miller purchases from certified suppliers while providing our customers with the quality, service, and value they expect from Miller
- We will create and maintain supplier/vendor/subcontractor mentoring relationships to help strengthen, grow, and expand diverse companies
- We will develop, implement and post an SDE&I Plan Utilization Report to track our progress and share with our employees and our clients
We understand that as we engage with innovative, value-driven, and qualified diverse partners, we will ultimately enhance our company’s value and be better positioned to meet and exceed our clients’ needs.