Supplier Diversity

Carlson works with many women- and minority-owned businesses across the country. We have been certified as a Women's Business Enterprise by the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council and National Women Business Owners Corporation since 2002.

Our supplier diversity initiative plays a critical role in helping our company and our clients achieve their diversity goals to build and develop supplier relationships. In turn, Carlson aligns itself with suppliers who philosophically embrace diversity and see it as a strategic imperative. Therefore, we are committed to ensuring that at least one diverse supplier is included in our sourcing process. We define our supplier relationships with measurements in five key areas. A Carlson supplier is expected to bring value to our organization in the areas of:

• Financial effort – continuous improvement in the total cost of ownership for goods and services procured
• Innovation – creativity to help sustain and drive our brands
• Quality assurance – programs that ensure "world-class" quality for the goods and services procured
• Service – responsiveness to Carlson needs
• Balance of trade – we value suppliers who are also customers of our brands