Information Services Group (ISG) (Nasdaq: III), a leading global technology research and advisory firm, has expanded its dedicated modern slavery advisory and risk management service to Canada, to help enterprises located in and selling to businesses and consumers in Canada comply with the new “Fighting Against Forced Labour and Child Labour in Supply Chains Act.”
The new law came into effect on January 1, 2024, requiring companies that sell, produce, distribute or import goods and are either listed on a Canadian stock exchange or have $20 million in assets, 250 employees and/or $40 million in annual revenue, to submit an annual statement by May 31, detailing efforts to ensure forced and child labor are not used in their business and supply chains, or face fines of up to $250,000.
“The Canadian government has put in place some of the strictest legislation to date to fight the scourge of forced and child labor, imposing meaningful penalties for failure to comply and personal liabilities for company directors and officers,” said Hanne McBlain, senior director, and head of ISG’s global efforts to comply with legislation and anti-slavery efforts. “Most Canadian companies and global companies that operate in or sell to Canada will need to submit an extensive questionnaire by May 31 to be in compliance.”
Supplier management that is thorough enough to ensure compliance with the legislation cannot be done without the help of automation and technology, McBlain said. All modern slavery laws, including the newest one in Canada, require businesses to detail their efforts to audit their suppliers for slavery risks and the specific policies, procedures and training they have put in place to assess the integrity of their supply chains. However, many organizations have thousands of suppliers, making manual mapping and monitoring impossible.
The ISG modern slavery offering combines advisory services with the automated capabilities of ISG GovernX®, the industry’s only governance solution that integrates contract information, strategic relationship management and real-time risk monitoring to help clients manage their supplier ecosystems.
ISG has been addressing modern slavery legislation since 2018, when it first drew legislative focus. The firm has created and implemented a global framework to ensure ISG itself is not linked to modern slavery risks and has developed an in-depth knowledge of legislation and associated requirements while working to meet obligations in Australia, France, Germany, the Netherlands, the U.K., Norway, California and Canada.
ISG advisors help clients develop a modern slavery framework, review and update policies across the enterprise, conduct training, map their entire supply chain, and add modern slavery clauses to contract templates.
The ISG GovernX platform automatically sends assessments to each supplier requiring them to provide information on their modern slavery framework, reporting, policies and training, and monitors external data feeds for all potential risks within the specific supplier ecosystem and the broader marketplace. Users can add a variety of external intelligent workflows to identify and categorize each risk, alert the appropriate functions, and trigger automated responses, including targeted risk assessments to the suppliers involved.
Additional information on ISG third-party risk management and modern slavery advisory services is available on the ISG website.
About ISG
ISG (Information Services Group) (Nasdaq: III) is a leading global technology research and advisory firm. A trusted business partner to more than 900 clients, including more than 75 of the world’s top 100 enterprises, ISG is committed to helping corporations, public sector organizations, and service and technology providers achieve operational excellence and faster growth. The firm specializes in digital transformation services, including AI and automation, cloud and data analytics; sourcing advisory; managed governance and risk services; network carrier services; strategy and operations design; change management; market intelligence and technology research and analysis. Founded in 2006, and based in Stamford, Conn., ISG employs 1,600 digital-ready professionals operating in more than 20 countries—a global team known for its innovative thinking, market influence, deep industry and technology expertise, and world-class research and analytical capabilities based on the industry’s most comprehensive marketplace data. For more information, visit www.isg-one.com.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240422818632/en/