The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) today announced that sportlifestyle company PUMA has become the first member of its Global Action Network for Transparency in the Supply Chain ("The Network").
The central purpose of The Network is for large companies to provide support to their small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) suppliers in measuring and reporting on their economic, environmental and social performance – known as sustainability reporting.

Through Puma’s membership of the Network, its suppliers will benefit from capacity building through GRI certified training to prepare a GRI sustainability report. PUMA has nominated five suppliers to receive training on the transparent measurement and reporting on their sustainability performance using the GRI G3 Guidelines – the world’s most widely-used framework for sustainability reporting.

Gregory Elders, SME and Supply Chain Program Manager at GRI said: "We are delighted that PUMA has become the first member of The Network and has taken this bold step in embedding the practice of sustainability reporting within companies in its supply chain. The process of sustainability reporting is an essential step for companies – large and small – to take ownership of their economic, environmental and social performance. Since small and medium-sized enterprises – often within the supply chain of larger firms – provide the majority of employment globally it is crucial that they measure and manage their sustainability impacts."

“We are pleased that GRI provides another opportunity for PUMA to increase capacity building in our global supply chain through its Global Action Network,” said Reiner Hengstmann, Global Head Environmental and Social Affairs at PUMA. “Through our participation in a previous GRI sustainability reporting project, we enhanced the understanding of and commitment to sustainability at PUMA suppliers in South Africa significantly with one supplier even winning an award for their first sustainability report.”
GRI has a strong track record in working with both multinational enterprises and smaller firms in driving the sustainability agenda forward through transparent public reporting.

The Global Action Network for Transparency in the Supply Chain is based upon the success of a recent project in which GRI partnered with the German Development Agency (GTZ) and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). The project brought four multinational companies – including Puma – together with twelve of their suppliers across five countries to teach the suppliers to understand, monitor and report on their sustainability impacts.

“We are pleased to welcome PUMA back to build upon the success of the previous project,” added Elders.