New supplier diversity and supplier development initiatives provide fresh energy as the family-owned firm launches into its second century. - BY Debra Jenkins

Kimball Midwest has a unique perspective on the value of strong supplier relationships. The family-owned, family-operated firm traces its own roots back to trusted relationships, which have allowed the company to grow from humble beginnings to an award-winning, multi-million dollar Maintenance, Repair, and Operations (MRO) distributor. Now, as Kimball Midwest moves into its second century, the company is expanding its supplier diversity and supplier development programs to support its high standards and goals for growth.

Finding Perfection, Part by Part

Today, Kimball Midwest stocks more than 55,000 items. This expansive selection has been carefully built based on the needs of Kimball Midwest’s customers, with many parts, hardware items, and services developed to customized specifications. In addition to what the company keeps on hand, their Special Order Department can help connect customers with more than 500,000 non-cataloged and hard-to-find items.

Relationships with small and diverse suppliers play a critical role in allowing Kimball Midwest to support customers in this way. Supplier diversity as a practice is a cross-functional concern for Kimball Midwest. The Supply Chain Management group and Marketing Product and Commercialization teams focuses on finding diverse partners to supply items for the inventoried and special products lines. The Corporate Responsibility group coordinates the formal supplier diversity program across the organization for both products and services. Meanwhile, the Compliance and Strategic Sales groups monitor supplier diversity metrics to meet the needs of Kimball Midwest’s customers, knowing a successful supplier diversity program makes the company more attractive as a business partner.

The end results of these efforts show up in communities nationwide. Some 80% of Kimball Midwest’s inventory dollars are spent on products made in the USA. In addition to supporting up-and-coming US suppliers that provide demonstrably superior products with this practice, Kimball Midwest’s policy allows for complete traceability to the manufactured source and helps to eliminate the possibility of sub-standard, misrepresented, mismarked, or counterfeit products.

Accelerating Engagement and Deepening Market Share

Even with extensive success in localized sourcing, Kimball Midwest has no plans to rest on its laurels. The company is making fresh investments into its supply chain and its commitments to supplier diversity.

In April 2023, Kimball Midwest brought in Didi Anekwe as its Supplier Diversity Program Leader. Anekwe, who has previously worked in the DEI field as a consultant with Nationwide Insurance, Cardinal Health, and the State of Ohio, will help the company capitalize on its strengths as a relationship builder and develop new partnerships, accelerating community engagement levels and deepening market share. As Anekwe puts it, “Kimball Midwest’s supplier diversity program is a merit based, competitive program designed to identify certified, qualified, experienced and innovative historically excluded and under-utilized suppliers to participate in our supply chain.” Along with hiring Anekwe, the company has also reactivated their supplier diversity committee to meet quarterly, updated their supplier diversity web presence, and started embedding supplier diversity into their overall sales strategies. Throughout 2024 (and beyond), it plans to host multiple meet and greet events in its home state of Ohio and nationwide to start a qualified supplier pipeline and build bench strength.

As Jennifer Pinkstock, Director, Supply Chain Management, noted, “Building a robust supplier diversity program is critical to the future of Kimball Midwest. Not only is it the right thing to do from a corporate responsibility perspective, but it will also make us a more attractive business partner and employer. Attracting and retaining a wide variety of customers and talent will allow us to remain relevant in a rapidly evolving world.”

Ambitious Goals for the Century Ahead

Kimball Midwest wants to continue to operate at a high level and deliver superior quality products against its contract commitments. Small and diverse suppliers will play a key part in that, and the company is well prepared to invest time, talent, and treasure toward achieving its goals.

Currently, Kimball Midwest is an active member of the Ohio River Valley/Women Business Enterprises (ORV/WBE), Ohio Minority Supplier Development Council (OMSDC) and National Veteran Business Development Council (NVBDC). It has been honored with community awards from the American Red Cross, Catholic Social Services, and St. Jude’s Discover the Dream Gala, as well as named by Columbus CEO magazine as a top workplace for eleven consecutive years. It also marked its centennial year in 2023 with $1 million in community investments.

To further quantify its impact in its partner and supplier communities, Kimball Midwest has put out an RFP for supplier data enrichment and diverse and small business spend baselines. The firm hopes to see meaningful dividends on this RFP, allowing the company to conclusively demonstrate how its “Made in the US” spend focus creates a competitive advantage in diverse and small business spending, economic impact, jobs generated, tax impacts, and even GDP contributions. This should help the company continue to be a valued partner in the communities where it operates. It will also continue to brand Kimball Midwest as a preferred partner to diverse suppliers and in key contracting conversations, aiding the firm in its ambitious goals of expansion and growth.

As Meaghan McCurdy, Director of the Corporate Responsibility Department, notes, “Kimball Midwest remains committed to its purpose of empowering those we interact with to thrive. The initiatives we are developing and supporting around supplier diversity are examples of proactive steps we are taking to support our vision to double sales every five years and to execute our strategic plan.” Indeed, with its fresh focus on supplier diversity and supplier development, the company is positioning itself – and its valued partners – for a very bright future in the century ahead.