Procuring from SMEs in local communities: A good practice guide for the Australian mining, oil and gas sectors

Several leading companies have now adopted policies and standards explicitly aimed at increasing local procurement. In addition, an increasing number of agreements with Indigenous groups include commitments to support the development of Indigenous-owned enterprises. While the value of supporting local business development is increasingly being acknowledged, in practice it can often be difficult to bridge the gap between the capacity of local community small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) and the often rigid contract requirements of major resource companies. This good practice guide is designed to assist companies to overcome these barriers and more effectively integrate local SMEs into corporate supply chains. The guide provides a range of tools and examples that resource companies can use to inform decisions about local supplier involvement, and implement these within the unique Australian context. As well as presenting Australian case studies and examples, it draws on procurement practices of companies in the mining, oil and gas sectors from all over the world, particularly emerging economies that demonstrate some similarities with remote Australia.