Elephant in the Boardroom: People Are Missing in Corporate Supply Chain Goals

This research paper by the World Resources Institute analyzes over 1,000 supply chain goals from nearly 700 global firms, finding a significant lack of focus on the people, workers, and small suppliers affected by corporate sustainability targets. The paper argues that most companies employ 'push' or 'pull' compliance strategies rather than partnerships, often ignoring the financial and technical constraints of smaller upstream suppliers.

• There is a significant lack of people-centered goals in corporate supply chains, with only 12 percent of large companies establishing goals focused on people. Within this small group, fewer than 3 percent of companies have goals specifically aimed at improving working conditions, and only 3 percent focus on the reskilling or upskilling of workers.
• The vast majority of corporate supply chain sustainability goals are designed as 'push' or 'pull' mechanisms to ensure supplier compliance rather than as mutual partnerships. Approximately 90 percent of these goals follow this approach, while fewer than 10 percent adopt a 'partner' approach that provides technical support and financing.
• Small and medium-sized enterprises in supply chains face disproportionate challenges in meeting sustainability goals due to unequal buyer-supplier relationships. These smaller entities often lack the internal capacity for complex environmental reporting and the financial resources to upgrade equipment, materials, or wages, especially when direct customers are unwilling to pay higher prices.
• A company's total impact on climate, nature, and people is primarily concentrated in its supply chain, with 80-90 percent of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for many companies linked to the extraction and production processes of their suppliers.

APA

World Resources Institute (n.d.). Elephant in the Boardroom: People Are Missing in Corporate Supply Chain Goals. https://www.wri.org/research/elephant-boardroom-people-are-missing-corporate-supply-chain-goals

Chicago

World Resources Institute. Elephant in the Boardroom: People Are Missing in Corporate Supply Chain Goals. n.d. https://www.wri.org/research/elephant-boardroom-people-are-missing-corporate-supply-chain-goals.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=Elephant in the Boardroom: People Are Missing in Corporate Supply Chain Goals |url=https://www.wri.org/research/elephant-boardroom-people-are-missing-corporate-supply-chain-goals |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitutendelephant, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{Elephant in the Boardroom: People Are Missing in Corporate Supply Chain Goals}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, url = {https://www.wri.org/research/elephant-boardroom-people-are-missing-corporate-supply-chain-goals}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }