Supply chain transparency is becoming essential as global sustainability regulations continue to evolve. Businesses are expected to show how they manage resources, reduce waste, and work with ethical suppliers. Many organisations recognise the need to improve, but the challenge is knowing where to start, especially when supply chains are complex and data is scattered across multiple systems.
Sustainability efforts become much easier when supported by automation. With better visibility, cleaner data, and consistent workflows, organisations can understand what happens across their supply chain rather than relying on assumptions. Below are four practical ways to improve sustainability while strengthening supply chain transparency, with each supported by the right digital tools.
How To Improve Sustainability While Strengthening Supply Chain Transparency
1. Reduce Inventory and Waste Through Better Visibility
Supply chain transparency helps businesses track inventory levels accurately, so overproduction and excess stock become less common. Waste reduction is one of the quickest ways to improve sustainability because it cuts both material use and overall emissions.
Automation plays a key role here. When organisations automate purchase orders, invoice matching, and demand related workflows, they gain real time insight into what is ordered, received, and consumed. Predictive tools can also highlight which materials are at risk of expiration or slow movement.
How B2BE supports this:
B2BE’s automated document workflows help reduce manual errors, improve inventory accuracy, and ensure all order and delivery data is accessible in one place. This creates the transparency needed to eliminate avoidable waste.
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2. Choose Ethical and Responsible Suppliers
Selecting ethical suppliers is central to sustainability, but it becomes difficult without consistent data on supplier performance, certifications, delivery reliability, and compliance status. Supply chain transparency allows organisations to verify whether suppliers meet environmental standards and labour requirements.
Automation simplifies this process. Digital supplier management and automated document exchange help businesses track certification renewals, audit readiness, and policy compliance. It also enables clearer visibility into supplier related risks so organisations can act before issues escalate.
How B2BE supports this:
With B2BE’s supplier visibility en document management tools, businesses can centralise supplier documents, track updates automatically, and ensure procurement decisions are driven by accurate, up to date information.
3. Reduce Fuel Consumption Through Smarter Workflows
Reducing fuel use contributes directly to sustainability goals. While some fuel saving strategies focus on transport efficiency, administrative inefficiencies also create unnecessary fuel emissions such as duplicated deliveries, incorrect orders, or shipment delays caused by missing paperwork.
Automation improves these gaps. When orders, invoices, and delivery notes flow through automated processes, errors decrease dramatically. This reduces re shipments, last minute freight changes, and wasted trips. Better forecasting also helps optimise delivery routes and volumes.
How B2BE supports this:
B2BE’s automated O2C en P2P workflows reduce the chances of mismatched orders or missing documents, enabling smoother logistics, fewer unnecessary transport movements and improved supply chain transparency.
4. Use a Circular Supply Chain Approach
A circular supply chain focuses on reuse, recycling, and resource optimisation. To achieve this, organisations must understand product lifecycles, return flows, and material recovery rates. Supply chain transparency makes this possible because it reveals where materials go, how they are used, and when they return.
Automation strengthens circular processes by tracking items throughout their lifecycle — whether it’s reusable packaging, service parts, or returned goods. With accurate data, businesses can plan repairs, refurbishments, and recycling with confidence.
How B2BE supports this:
B2BE’s workflow automation ensures every document from returns to credit notes is captured digitally, providing the traceability needed to operate a truly circular system.
Driving Sustainable Supply Chains Forward
Supply chain transparency is no longer optional. It is becoming a core requirement for organisations adapting to global sustainability regulations. Reducing waste, choosing ethical suppliers, lowering fuel use, and adopting circular models all depend on accurate data and consistent oversight.
Automation is the foundation that enables these improvements. By using B2BE’s digital solutions ranging from workflow automation to visibility tools businesses gain the transparency they need to build a more sustainable, responsible, and future ready supply chain. Contact us to find out more about our solutions.