Economic Scorecard

One could argue that each of us has a piece of responsibility in the economic calamity that surrounds us, whether it’s walking from a mortgage, to shopping too much. And in turn, our individual actions can contribute to the turn around. The same is true of business and our employers. The question becomes what are each of us doing, in our daily job, to ensure we contribute to turning around this financial situation. Working in global logistics I have the opportunity to review many service providers, either incumbents or those in an RFP. One way I try to raise awareness on the contribution to the economy is by adding a section in my RFPs that scores - ‘candidate supports American economy’. It doesn’t have a huge value in a candidate scorecard, but it’s there. Generally we look for actively choosing to employ and retain talent (ie, a US-based IT department gets full score), to actively managing from the US, to taking actions to improve beyond staff reductions, etc. This scoring allows for discussion among my staff and my management about how the economy relates to us, our jobs, our vendors, and our perceived contributions. And, the scorecard affords the opportunity to discuss it with the vendor, and their management. We want to support companies that support the US and ensure our dollars stay here.

By Anonymous