Industry-led group comes together to help companies access more diverse suppliers and meet social responsibility goals
WASHINGTON, D.C. (Feb 14, 2023) – Nareit, as part of an industry-wide group of seven real estate trade associations, is announcing the first industry-led consortium to increase supplier diversity in the real estate industry. The Commercial Real Estate Diverse Supplier (CREDS) Consortium aims to help companies in the real estate industry further diversify their supply chains and help advance social responsibility goals through a two-year pilot program with SupplierGATEWAY. Another objective of the pilot program is to collect industry-wide data that benchmarks current and future trends in minority- and women-owned business enterprise (MWBE) procurements in the commercial real estate industry’s supply chain.
The CREDS Consortium comprises CREW Network, ICSC, Mortgage Bankers Association, NAIOP, Nareit, the National Multifamily Housing Council, and The Real Estate Roundtable.
“Increasing the use of diverse service providers is an industry-wide priority that requires an industry-wide approach, which is why we are proud to be a founding member of the CREDS Consortium,” said Nareit President and CEO Steven A. Wechsler. “The CREDS-SupplierGATEWAY partnership will enable Nareit’s members to leverage existing software and tools to more quickly increase diversity and inclusivity in their respective supply chains.”
SupplierGATEWAY is a leading supplier management software platform that automates and simplifies supplier and vendor management. The company’s products include supplier sourcing, registration, risk management, compliance, and management—and provide support for corporate responsibility, diversity, and inclusion goals.
Members of the CREDS associations can subscribe—at a discounted price—to SupplierGATEWAY's software platform to search for, connect with, and hire MWBE suppliers. As part of their subscription, CREDS’ association members can also access the vendor management software and a comprehensive database of MWBE suppliers through the Consortium’s portal page, hosted by SupplierGATEWAY. In addition, hiring companies can post their purchase orders and other contracting opportunities through the CREDS portal.
“Our partnership with the CREDS Consortium is an important component of our mission to generate meaningful economic impact at scale for our customers,” said SupplierGATEWAY Founder and CEO Ade Solaru. “Each member of the CREDS associations can now create meaningful social impact at the local level without sacrificing efficiency, cost, or risk.”
To learn more about the CREDS Consortium-SupplierGATEWAY initiative, listen to Nareit Senior Vice President of Social Responsibility and Global Initiatives Ayris Scales on a recent episode of the REIT Report podcast.
What Other CREDS Consortium Partners Are Saying
Wendy Mann, CEO, CREW Network
“As a global organization focused on accelerating success for all women in commercial real estate, CREW Network supports this partnership and initiative as an important business strategy to elevate ESG and DEI and create a more equitable industry for all. Women- and minority-owned businesses are a driving force behind economic growth and bringing this diverse talent to the industry is a business imperative. Companies that increase their diverse spend also see an increase in innovation and market share. It’s a win-win.”
Tom McGee, President and CEO, ICSC
“ICSC is committed to advancing diversity, equity and inclusion in the Marketplaces Industry and giving our members ways to identify and source MWBEs is one way we can do this. The CREDS Consortium helps meet the growing demand for diversity in service providers and offers our members direct access to the tools and resources they need to support their own DEI goals. We are proud to be a founding member of the Consortium and look forward to working closely with the partner organizations to further this important initiative.”
Bob Broeksmit, CMB, President and CEO, Mortgage Bankers Association
“The Commercial Real Estate Diverse Supplier Consortium is a great resource for expanding DEI and ESG opportunities in the real estate finance industry. Our members will benefit from the consortium’s work to identify minority- and women-owned suppliers that provide essential products and services. MBA and its members are dedicated to supporting and promoting supplier diversity.”
Marc Selvitelli, CAE, NAIOP, the Commercial Real Estate Development Association
“NAIOP is proud to be a founding member of this important initiative. By working together, we believe this powerful alliance of real estate associations can propel our member companies’ success in achieving their important ESG goals. Facilitating access to a minority- and women-owned supplier database is an important first step in creating future opportunities between diverse vendors and developers and owners of commercial real estate.”
Sharon Wilson Géno, President-Elect, National Multifamily Housing Council
“NMHC knows that connecting buyers with sellers, and measuring the productive outcomes of those connections, are essential to creating a more robust commercial real estate market that benefits multifamily firms and MBWE suppliers of services that power the industry. Working together as an alliance, the Commercial Real Estate Diverse Supplier (CREDS) Consortium can amplify our efforts to strengthen industry access for diverse suppliers and support the ESG and DEI goals of our members. This two-year pilot illustrates NMHC’s longstanding commitment to DEI as a business imperative that drives innovation and success by highlighting best practices, providing resources and leveraging strategic alliances.”
Jeffrey DeBoer, President and CEO, The Real Estate Roundtable
“We’ve heard from our members a desire to further diversify their supply chains and help meet organizational ESG goals. However, much of this process is opaque with no clear place to start or method to measure impact. The CREDS Consortium, and the tools offered through this initiative, will be a tremendous step forward for supplier diversity in the commercial real estate industry, and The Roundtable is proud to have taken a leading role in its creation.”