FAQ
What is the Hospitality Sustainable Purchasing Consortium?
A group of leaders in the hotel industry representing brands, owners, suppliers, architecture and design firms, purchasing companies, logistics firms, the USGBC and sustainability experts working collaboratively to green the supply chain for hotels.
Why was the Consortium created?
To provide an industry-wide purchasing performance measurement solution so that hotels are built, furnished and operated in ways that benefit guest health, comfort and well being, and enhance the environmental and social impacts of the industry.
What is the goal of the Consortium?
To create an industry solution that supports product selection based on quality, design, value, service, AND sustainability.
How does the Consortium do this?
Under the guidance of MindClick, the Consortium has helped develop an industry wide purchasing scorecard (HSP Index) that measures and reports on the sustainability performance of suppliers. The HSP Index provides a repository of supplier performance, in the areas of Corporate Social Responsibility, Environmental Operations and Product Sustainability for use by the industry to help build, operate, furnish and supply hotels that are Better for the Guest, the Community and the Planet™.
How does the HSP Index work?
Suppliers complete web-based questionnaires covering the categories of Corporate Social Responsibility, Environmental Operations and Product Sustainability. Upon completion, they receive performance ratings in each of the categories individually and in aggregate, along with detailed explanation of the reasons for the scores received.
Subscribers to the HSP Index obtain access to a comprehensive web-based reporting system of the sustainability of suppliers and their products.
What product categories are included?
The HSP Index is open to all product categories. Those represented to date include artwork, bedding, carpet, casegoods, drapery, fabrics, faucets, lighting, light bulbs, mattresses, and seating.
What does this mean for vendors?
Vendors have the opportunity to participate in the Consortium in two ways. They can join the Consortium and have a voice and vote in shaping HSPI by helping to evaluate and modify the questionnaires and rating criteria and/or they can complete the pilot HSPI and obtain a performance assessment to get a head start on understanding the key performance criteria that will be integrated into future purchasing efforts.
How is the HSP Index used?
Suppliers are using the information to:
- align sustainability efforts with customer needs and expectations to maximize return on investment
- measure and improve performance against leading global and industry standards, and competitors
- streamline efforts and reduce costs of responding to sustainability reporting requests
- obtain 3rd party validation for CSR, Environmental Operations and Product Sustainability at a fraction of the cost of certifications and eco-labels
- increase marketing visibility with purchasing stakeholders
Brands, designers, purchasing firms, and owners are using the information to:
- obtain a simple, cost-effective solution to the industry’s need for supplier sustainability information
- translate sustainability “jargon” into actionable information accessible by all through the HSP Index 5-point rating system
- gain easy access to data repository and product/company evaluation tools through an online system
- provide assurance against greenwashing through the use of an independent, audited evaluation
- reward cost-neutral solutions to reduce the environmental footprint of hotels without compromising the guest experience
- translate the supplier sustainability performance results into consumer facing stories explaining how rooms are furnished in ways that positively impact guest health and well-being and connect to their social values
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