Believing supplier diversity spend should be an economic lifeline for state residents and customers, Charles Finneran, the Director of Supply Chain Management for DTE Energy, considers supplier development and training successes his greatest achievements. He leads 30 outreach events for diverse suppliers each year to provide direct access, mentorship, and feedback. One example is the DTE Energy Supplier Engagement Event, an in-person buyer-supplier event focused on renewable energy and distribution operations held in partnership with Pure Michigan Business Connect.
Charles champions supplier diversity in several ways. He holds each of his leaders accountable, driving accountability down to each buyer based on diverse supplier spend and hours worked directly with the community. Charles has built diverse pipelines with local universities for hiring buyers and leaders ,and champions the Corporate Services DEI Business Resource Group. He leads DTE Elevate, a diverse supplier mentorship program, tracks performance metrics weekly, and leads the Supplier Diversity Advisory Council. Charles also established a Tier 1 supplier policy requiring 20% of their spend go toward diverse businesses.