The 18 finalists for the MSDUK Awards have been announced. From one of the largest consulting firms in the world to start-up entrepreneurs, the MSDUK Awards champion those businesses working hard to make supply chains both inclusive and competitive.
Some of the largest and most influential purchasing organisations in the UK, both public and private, will be recognised for their steadfast commitment to inclusive procurement and opening their supply chains. The doors they help open for small and minority-owned businesses and make a lasting impact on these growing businesses. Meanwhile, ethnic minority businesses across the UK will be recognised for innovation, growth and entrepreneurship.
Talking about being shortlisted as a finalist, Krystle Sands, Supplier Diversity Program Lead, EMEA, Meta said, “At Meta, diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) are top priorities for our business, and we take our dedication to diversity a step further. Our supplier diversity mission is to help diverse-owned companies do business with Meta, and with the people and communities that Meta connects. We work on building programs to support and expand the diversity of our suppliers and help other companies and organizations understand the impact of and grow their DEI efforts. Being selected as a finalist in the Emerging Corporate Supplier Diversity award is recognition of our team’s efforts to make an impact in the UK and around the globe.”
Talking about being shortlisted as a finalist, Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones MBE, aka The Black Farmer, said, “Young people in the UK from ethnic minorities often struggle to open the right doors. MSDUK is doing brilliant work to level the playing field in the UK and Europe and, for example, helping to guide young entrepreneurs and to understand how to work with large corporates. But also helps larger corporates develop their own diverse supply chains. This scheme is the first step in bringing much-needed change to improve diversity in supply chains.”
Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones MBE, aka The Black Farmer, overcame many obstacles to realise his dream of owning a farm at the age of 40 and now wants young people from diverse backgrounds to consider farming as a career.
Sherry Vaswani, Group Chief Executive Officer, Xalient and finalist in three categories added, “MSDUK does a first-class job in shining a light on ethnic minority-led businesses that may have something unique to offer given their diversity – innovation for example. Their work in helping open doors for young entrepreneurs and guiding them on how to succeed with large corporates is much needed and brings a whole new approach to improving the diversity in supply chains.”
Mayank Shah, Founder & CEO of Minority Supplier Development UK (MSDUK), looks back on the progression of MSDUK over the last 16 years and says,
“It’s great to see how far we have progressed and even more so to see how supplier diversity has now taken centre stage in corporate procurement strategies 2022 has seen over 100 global and British companies join MSDUK and opening up business opportunities for ethnic minority businesses. Supplier diversity programmes help address the issue of economic inequality and encourage entrepreneurship in under-represented communities.”
The winner of each award category will be announced at the prestigious MSDUK Business Awards ceremony on the second day of the MSDUK Conference, taking place in London on 8th September 2022. To buy tickets https://www.msdukconference.co.uk/
James Lloyd, Procurement Director, CBRE and finalist in the established corporate supplier diversity programme category said, “At CBRE, we build and maintain strong, diverse supplier relationships for an equitable and inclusive supply chain. These relationships are important in creating winning outcomes for our clients, employees and shareholders. Furthermore, engaging with diverse partners supports businesses in our community and strengthens our equitable and inclusive supply chain. We are very proud to be selected as a finalist in the Established Corporate Supplier Diversity category of the MSDUK Awards. It is a wonderful recognition for our team and the partners we work with up and down the supply chain to deliver these outcomes.”
Meet the finalists
You can find out more about the awards and MSDUK at https://www.msduk.org.uk/news/finalists-announced-msduk-awards-2022
Entrepreneur of the year
The Black Farmer, Wilfred Emmanuel-JonesXalient Holdings Ltd, Sherry Vaswani
ISA Support Services Ltd, Sunny ArafThe Glass Company Ltd, Sanmukh Bawa
Business Woman of the Year
Creative Nature, Julianne PonanXalient Holdings Ltd, Sherry Vaswani
Nistad Limited, Ada JabaruBrand Xposure UK Ltd T/A BX Merchandise, Sarah Sayed
High Growth Business of the Year
Xalient Holdings Ltd, Sherry VaswaniBAP Pharma Ltd, Daniel De Brett
ZR Consultants Ltd (ZRC), Zeshan Raja
Excellence in Emerging Corporate Supplier Diversity Programme
Meta Platforms (Previously known as Facebook)Unilever UK Ltd
Diageo
Excellence in Established Corporate Supplier Diversity Programme
CBREEY
AccentureCummins Ltd
MSDUK is proud to champion the best of British EMBs and work with progressive global corporations that understand the value of supply chain inclusion and diversity.
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