Case Study: General Motors builds supplier sustainability engagement with EcoVadis

How to Give Suppliers a Voice with a Sustainability Council

The automotive manufacturer General Motors (GM) faced the significant challenge of addressing scope 3 supply chain emissions and driving transformative sustainability action across its extensive global supplier network. To tackle this, GM partnered with the sustainability ratings provider EcoVadis, requiring its Tier 1 suppliers to obtain an EcoVadis rating to ensure a standardized measurement approach.

EcoVadis provided the platform for GM to measure and benchmark supplier performance, which supported the core of their solution: the creation of a Supplier Sustainability Council. This council, composed of key suppliers and GM employees, served as a collaborative forum for sharing best practices and co-developing initiatives. The results were significant, including the successful launch of a supplier pledge and a powerful ripple effect where numerous suppliers, such as AAM, created their own sustainability councils using GM's model. EcoVadis’s ongoing support and expert insights were instrumental in helping GM galvanize this network, leading to widespread engagement and continuous improvement throughout its value chain.

General Motors