Will RichardsonHead of EcoSystems and Networks, 51toCarbonZero · Sustainability & Net-Zero Strategy Leader | Helping £100m+ Enterprises Cut Climate Risk & Operating Costs | Head of EcoSystems & Networks | Host of Sustainability Solved Podcast

Is Your Company Prepared? The New Reality of Business Procurement

19 Aug 2026 · 1 min

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In this segment, Will Richardson explains that major buyers—including large corporations, government agencies, and increasingly mid‑sized firms—are now mandating sustainability data as part of their procurement processes. Companies that cannot provide these metrics are effectively barred from bidding. He emphasizes that investors, lenders, and insurers are also incorporating climate risk into their pricing models, not out of environmental altruism but because climate risk has become a direct financial risk. The overall message is that firms must treat sustainability reporting as a core business requirement to remain competitive and financially viable.

Big buyers are asking about it. If you sell to large corporates, government contracts, or increasingly to mid-sized companies with their own reporting obligations, they now include sustainability data in their procurement process. You can't bid for the contract if you can't provide the numbers. Investors are pricing it in. Lenders are pricing it in. Insurers are pricing it in. Not because they care about polar bears, because climate risk is now financial risk.