Structuring of the procurement process

Since 2018, a host of actions have been implemented in order to develop the procurement function at Genève Aéroport, such as the creation of an internal platform gathering all pro-curement information (including, in particular, that of a legal and environmental nature), as well as comprehensive documentation on supplier compliance. This information is intended to offer guidance for employees wishing to make purchases, in addition to informing them of the guidelines to follow before contracting with a supplier. As regards suppliers, they can access the requirements and all the documents requested via a dedicated section on the airport website.

Enhanced monitoring of calls for tenders

A new tendering process was established in 2019. All tenders are centralised within Genève Aéroport’s procurement function, which can implement a strict and effective system for the monitoring and control of all tenders, particularly in terms of checking for conflicts of interest as well as monitoring the compliance of both suppliers and their potential subcontractors with employment law. Two new staff joined Genève Aéroport’s procurement team at the end of 2018, bringing the number of employees in this function to six.

An assessment board was set up to support the parties involved. It validates tenders at three key points in the procurement process, i.e.:

•    the definition of need

•    the finalisation of the tender documents, before publication

•    the award decision

Prevention of conflicts of interest

Along with the introduction of a new tendering process, Genève Aéroport has strengthened the legal directives on public procurement and updated the directive on the prevention and management of conflicts of interest. The development of a plan of action led to the creation of a secure whistleblowing IT platform in 2019, operational since the beginning of 2020. Its objective: to provide an additional tool, allowing for the reporting of suspicions of fraud or inappro-priate behaviour, whilst ensuring confidentiality to whistle-blowers.

Moreover, Genève Aéroport has strengthened its procurement process training, in particular with the inclusion of modules related to negotiation and the prevention and management of conflicts of interest. Twenty-five employees were trained before the end of 2019, whilst a hundred more will be trained in the next two years on more advanced and new concepts, such as signing power rules. This training takes place in collaboration with the University of Geneva. The strengthening of these measures was implemented, in particular, following the discovery in 2019 of non-compliance in terms of conflicts of interest management. These behaviours have resulted in sanctions, including the dismissal of members of staff who committed serious misconduct.  

Implementation of a Responsible Procurement Charter

In 2019, Genève Aéroport formalised its commitments and expectations towards its business partners in the area of responsible procurement in a Charter. This document demonstrates Genève Aéroport’s commitment to integrating the sustainable development principles into all of its activities, and to promoting them in its relationships with its business partners.

The Charter requires, on the part of all trading partners, the exercise of heightened vigilance within their business and in all the third parties that they rely on for the fulfilment of their share of contracts, in particular those based outside Europe, in order to ensure compliance with the applicable minimum social and environmental standards. Through these means, Genève Aéroport wishes to avoid being complicit in breaches of human rights, of fundamental International Labour Office(ILO) conventions or environmental law, by dealing exclusively with responsible trading partners.

This charter is now an integral part of Genève Aéroport's general terms and conditions and administrative conditions for tenders and all business partners must respect it. An exchange with potentially risky suppliers will be set up as of 2020, in order to verify compliance with the requirements of the charter and to decide, where necessary, on corrective action. This exchange will also provide the opportunity to raise awareness, among business leaders at Genève Aéroport, of the principles of sustainable development, whilst strengthening ties, trust and mutual knowledge with our business partners, with the ultimate goal of working together better.

In addition to this charter, depending on the specific nature of the tenders, Genève Aéroport reserves the right to include specific sustainability criteria in the form of technical requirements, suitability criteria and evaluation criteria. Therefore, business partners meeting sustainability best practices have the opportunity to show their strengths, whilst searching for partners with the most advantageous offer in economic terms.