Some people are born with a natural eye for business opportunity. Jonah Manning, Founding Partner of Consortium, LLP, is one of those people—he saw opportunity to capitalize on shifting global trends.
Studies show that millennials are fueled by a passion to make positive social and environmental impact. Per this Huffington post article, millennials support companies that positively contribute to society. And 70% of them are willing to pay more for a product that makes an impact on issues they care about.
As millennials begin to take on leadership roles in their organizations and take on buying decisions, we will see the much of their $2.45 trillion in spending power move to companies that support social good. As Jonah told me, “Millennials are going to buy the way that they want regardless of price. Hands down. It’s proven.”
Supply chain management and procurement have a big impact on business, more so than what many people typically think.
By choosing to purchase items from smaller companies that practice sustainable operations, larger companies will be forced to lessen their environmental footprint as well. A good example of this is Coca-Cola and its partnership with Smartwater.
At SAP Ariba Live Las Vegas, President of SAP Ariba, Alex Atzberger, explained that by connecting companies over the SAP Ariba Network, businesses can practice ethical procurement, making conscious decisions to do business with companies that support positive change in the world and are conducting business with integrity.
This is exactly the type of change that Jonah’s business is fueling.
Consortium LLP serves to connect buyers and suppliers using SAP Ariba Discovery , helping organizations save costs and increase the quality of purchased goods. Manning’s business examines its clients’ spend to then begin sourcing and buying on behalf of the organizations, using SAP Ariba Discovery as both a buying and selling platform. It’s truly partnership as a service.
“We’ll literally take the supplier list line by line, and we will recommend a change where we can reduce spend by 5-15% and increase quality by a quantifiable metric,” said Manning.
While Consortium LLP mainly focuses on industry trends like technology, artificial intelligence, and smart cities, they also have a very interesting play in line with millennial trends.
For example, today, more people are willing to purchase coffee from local roasters as opposed to a large coffee chain. Consortium LLP has connected its clients to a local coffee supplier who goes the extra step when creating its coffee. “The roast is made with such artisan grace that you can taste a difference in each cup. That type of quality is what more people are willing to buy in today’s current market,” said Manning.
Consortium LLP is also working with three African cantinas for building cafes. Consortium LLP contacted local espresso roasters and partnered with them as opposed to the large coffee retailers of the world. The level of quality that the local vendors provided was irreplaceable.
Another great example is a tea farm in India that is helping to fight sex trafficking, a large societal issue in the country. Consortium LLP is connecting businesses with this tea leaf supplier because not only do they harvest quality tea leaves, they also channel their surplus revenue to organizations that fight sex trafficking. A quality product and a dedication to making that type of positive impact on the world? It’s a no brainer.
Manning anticipates substantial growth.
By serving as a partner to businesses buying on SAP Ariba Discovery, Manning has increased Consortium LLP’s revenue from 11M USD to 50M USD. His goal is for the business to be the network within Ariba Network that represents emerging buyers and suppliers. He predicts to become a 100M USD business by 2018.
Consortium LLP is living proof of running business with integrity. The organization is showing the ethical impact that small changes can make, like buying from a sustainable supplier. With conscious effort, businesses can change their buying behaviors to support ethically run businesses, playing an active role in helping the world run better.
For more on Consortium LLP, watch this video interview with Jonah Manning.
To learn more about the businesses making procurement awesome, join us in Prague for SAP Ariba Live this June.
Follow me @CMDonato and on LinkedIn.
This story was originally posted to SAP Business Trends.
