At HP, we remain committed to advancing diversity, equity and inclusion across our company and in the communities where we live, work and do business. We recognized an opportunity to double down on supplier diversity when designing the HP Racial Equality and Social Justice Task Force with our leaders and a group of diverse employees in the U.S. While HP’s Supplier Diversity Program in the U.S. already had an economic impact of approximately $1 billion in 2020, we knew we could do more. That’s why we set goals like ensuring 10 percent of HP diversity spend in the U.S. be with Black and African American suppliers, and 10 percent of HP supplier account teams be Black and Africans Americans, both by the end of 2022.
These goals are part of HP’s ambition to become the world’s most sustainable and just technology company. In essence, we believe companies should lead the way in helping solve society’s most pressing problems and answer the call of our communities.
Today, HP announces an expanded early payment program in partnership with C2FO, one of the world’s largest platforms for working capital, that will provide broad access to funding for the company’s diverse suppliers, which include women-owned, veteran-owned, small disadvantaged, minority-owned and HUBZone businesses. Studies from the Federal Reserve and others have found that diverse businesses face greater difficulty in accessing credit, creating short-term cash flow challenges. We will bridge this gap by providing inexpensive access to capital for diverse partners that have been denied equal access historically.
This program will allow accelerated payment of invoices to diverse suppliers, providing more immediate and beneficial cash flow to eligible businesses. Improved cash flow will free up resources for suppliers’ business objectives, like capital for sustained business growth. It is designed to be simple and easy to navigate – made possible by C2FO’s unified, secure platform, and therefore, will not require complex onboarding or an overload of paperwork. It’s yet another way HP is supporting diverse suppliers by offering additional tools to help them succeed, prosper and grow.
We understand this doesn’t solve all the challenges that diverse suppliers face today, and there’s a lot more work ahead to make meaningful progress with them. However, we will continue to use our platform, resources and influence as a force for good and find ways that can make a positive and sustainable impact on their businesses.