Each year the World Procurement Awards celebrate procurement excellence in 15 categories including Innovation, Transformation and Risk Mitigation. The eleventh edition, organized by Procurement Leaders™ in May this year, saw a record number of entries from 34 countries.

Following a rigorous three-step judging process, Essilor won the Corporate Social Responsibility Award in recognition of its supplier sustainability program.This award honours procurement teams that use their influence over thousands of suppliers to generate positive effects through social, ethical, environmental and community-focused initiatives.

Since 2016, Essilor’s Global Sourcing and Procurement team has set out to involve its network of suppliers in the Group’s mission and sustainability approach. In addition to driving compliance with Essilor’s Principles and Values through a Supplier Charter, the Group’s supplier sustainability program also includes a ‘positive impact’ initiative which seeks to engage suppliers in three core areas:
– Promoting Essilor’s visual health mission through actions like raising awareness and screening
– Responsible & solidarity sourcing through working with economically-vulnerable populations
– Positive environmental initiatives through sharing best practices and implementing eco-responsible approaches

Worldwide Essilor has more than 250 Global Sourcing & Procurement specialists working with 30,000+ suppliers. With 64,000 employees in 69 countries, 33 productions sites and 490 prescription labs on five continents and more than €2.3 billion in purchasing, Essilor has a global and diverse “footprint”. ​With the Group’s mission of improving lives by improving sight comes the responsibility of ensuring careful consideration to its social, societal and environmental impact.