Responsible Supply Chain Stewardship and Leadership: Navigating a Dynamic Era

Date: Monday, October 27th, 2025
Time: 8:30am EST

As trade policy evolves and global regulatory momentum ebbs and flows, multinational companies are navigating a new era of material risk—one where sustainability, sourcing, and strategy must be fully aligned. From tariffs and nearshoring to climate commitments and labor standards, today’s operating environment demands sharper prioritization, smarter investment, and greater cross-functional coordination across the value chain. 

Responsible sourcing is no longer a discretionary effort; it is a core business discipline, essential to resilience, risk management, and long-term value creation. In a climate of constrained budgets and mounting stakeholder scrutiny, leadership teams must weigh the business case for sustainability with unprecedented rigor—determining which programs, partnerships, and practices deliver measurable impact. At the same time, suppliers are taking on greater ownership and responsibility, requiring new forms of support, capacity building, and shared accountability.

The 2025 LRQA Leadership Series, hosted at the New York Stock Exchange and sponsored by Target and the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA), is a call for courage and clarity. The one-day event will bring together corporate executives, trade experts, and industry innovators to explore the realities of sourcing and compliance in today’s turbulent environment. Through data-driven trend briefings, executive panels, interactive group planning exercises, and focused discussions on decarbonization, supplier ownership, and digital due diligence, attendees will gain actionable insight into how leading companies are adapting with purpose—and shaping the future of responsible global business.

Agenda (Sneak Peek!  Full agenda forthcoming...)

• Top Trends in Responsible Sourcing
  LRQA’s CEO Ian Spaulding and leadership share 2025 insights on sourcing, human rights, and ESG risk.
• Ethical U.S. Production: A Public-Private Dialogue
  U.S. Department of Labor joins LRQA to launch a best practice framework addressing domestic labor risk, E-Verify, and forced labor prevention.
• The Trump Trade Agenda & Global Sourcing Realignment
  Data-driven analysis of tariffs, nearshoring, regulatory risk, and shifting investor expectations from leading companies and LRQA.
• Networking Lunch + NYSE Floor Tours
• Interactive Breakout: Business Case for Responsible Sourcing Investment
  Scenario-based group exercise simulating how C-suites make sustainability decisions under budget and compliance pressure.
• Supplier Monitoring & Due Diligence Innovations
  From AI to grievance systems—new tools and practices shaping modern supply chain oversight.
• Decarbonization in a Changing Trade Environment
  How companies are advancing climate goals amid shifting U.S. and EU policy expectations.
• Supplier Capacity Building & Remediation Strategies
  Case studies from leading companies on scalable supplier upskilling and impact-driven remediation.