Recently, Reverend Jesse Jackson "threw down the gauntlet" to automakers at a Rainbow/PUSH Auto Summit in Detroit. He challenged them to be more inclusive in the opportunities they create for women- and minority-owned businesses.

While the automotive industry has long shown initiative in serving diverse communities which constitute a significant portion of their workforce and their evolving customer base, a new awareness about the need to win and maintain the trust and goodwill of these communities must be raised.

One way to make a clear and resonating statement of commitment is through the measurable results of diversity supply chain spending. The catch? In order to realize the full benefits of supplier diversity, you must manage, measure, and market your efforts.

Measure your data. Your diversity spending numbers can only help you if you're measuring them. And your company could be contributing more than you know to diverse communities. Consider tracking not only your diverse spending, but also the diversity spending of your vendors through second-tier tracking.

Manage your information. Know your data inside and out. Make sure your information is accurate, with certified vendors and up-to-date entries. Understand your data from a variety of viewpoints - women-owned businesses, small businesses, minority-owned businesses - so you can slice-and-dice it for presentation to a variety of key audiences.

Market the true value of supplier diversity. The business benefit of supplier diversity is not only the inherent value of using quality, up-and-coming vendors, but also in the PR value of growing these success stories and sharing them with your key audiences.

A robust supplier diversity tracking application like DivTRAK® lets you effortlessly manage your supplier diversity program, accurately measure the available information, and puts you in an ideal position to market the information quickly and impactfully. And with DivTRAK's new ROI measuring system, you can easily view the impact of your supplier diversity program and its marketing efforts.

Let's all take Reverend Jackson at face value and sincerely increase our commitment to diversity spending. It truly makes good business sense.