Meet Ingrid Håvik, a Sustainable Sourcing Manager who’s reshaping how Strawberry (formerly Nordic Choice Hotels) works with suppliers to create a positive impact.
In this interview, we explore how Ingrid is pushing the boundaries of traditional procurement and putting sustainability front and center of every sourcing decision, while keeping her eye on costs too. We’ll dive into her wins, challenges, and tips — and the essential role she plays in steering the industry towards a more sustainable future.
What’s your background, and what are you doing currently at Strawberry? Before joining Strawberry, I spent 5 years at Orkla. I started off there as a Brand Manager overseeing brands like Nora and Toro. Later, I shifted my focus to our plant-based strategy, leading the introduction of Naturli to the Food Service market. My time at Orkla gave me extensive experience across the entire value chain, from conceptualization to product launch. This has been very valuable in my current role as Sustainable Sourcing Manager at Strawberry.
At Strawberry, I have the chance to address sustainability comprehensively, drawing from my food industry background and applying that knowledge to other sectors like textiles and electronics. With nearly 240 hotels across the Nordics, I make sure our procurement processes are more responsible and sustainable.
The Sustainable Sourcing Manager role is quite new. Why did Strawberry feel the need to create it? The role I’m in is completely new. Strawberry's been working with sustainability for years, but post-pandemic, we saw the need to strengthen our focus on sustainable procurement.
Purchasing is a key function for sustainable transformation, because companies spend a lot of money on goods and services. Emissions from these goods and services (Scope 3) account for 70-90% of a company's emissions and are often linked to complex, global value chains. What we choose to spend money on is a powerful tool to drive positive impact.
What are you aiming to accomplish in your role? Our ambition is to invest in a more sustainable value chain and become a leader in the industry, ultimately transforming procurement practices in the Nordics.
To achieve this, we're focusing on 3 key areas:
Identifying reliable sources of information and setting requirements based on facts. Continuously evaluating impact, reinforcing what’s working and changing what doesn't. Collaborating with our suppliers through open and transparent communication, which is essential for success. What’s your favorite part about being a Sustainable Sourcing Manager? My favorite part about being a Sustainable Sourcing Manager is collaborating with our suppliers to achieve our shared goals of improvement and gaining insight into a wide variety of sectors. Collaboration is essential for effectively addressing challenges and taking meaningful action.
How do you collaborate with suppliers to deliver meaningful impact? We must recognize that this approach is relatively new, and we need to to increase our leverage to strengthen supplier collaboration. As customers, it's crucial for us to clearly communicate our current expectations and future demands to our suppliers. The days of vaguely stating "I want to be more sustainable" are over. Now, we need concrete plans and projects that back up what we're saying.
What are some challenges you face as a Sustainable Sourcing Manager? Traceability and access to accurate information are common challenges. That’s why it’s important to rely on multiple sources of information. At Strawberry, we use risk parameters that focus on geographic, sector, and product risk, relying on civil society organizations like Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International.
It’s impossible to get a full picture of our supply chain, so we prioritize identifying “choking” points — stages in the value chain where information can be aggregated or lost. For example, we pay close attention to raw material sourcing, assembly, or component manufacturing.
Is there something you’re proud of that you’ve accomplished since joining Strawberry? A systematic and fact-based approach is essential to our work, ensuring we’re contributing in a way that respects people, communities, and the environment. Over the past year, we’ve really improved the structure on how we work, which is key to measuring and understanding whether the actions we take are actually making the impact we want to see.
On top of that, I'm proud of the level of knowledge within our procurement team and their collective commitment to driving change.
Increasing internal knowledge about sustainability is a challenging task. Can you share an example of how you’ve done it? First, we started with internal interviews to get an idea of where each team member stood in terms of their understanding of sustainability. Then, we gave everyone access to a free online OECD course to gain insights into the principles of responsible business conduct.
Next, we held a two-day strategy workshop focused entirely on sustainability. This comprehensive approach helped us align our team's commitment and ensure that every single one of us had the knowledge and tools needed to drive sustainable practices.
It sounds like you’re well-positioned to execute sustainable actions. Do you have any tips to share with companies struggling with this? If a company is just starting their sustainability journey, having one person dedicated to coordinating these efforts is crucial. Sustainability can’t just be a side project — it needs to be integrated into your existing operations for success.
Simply having a green report or a bold sustainability strategy is no longer enough. These initiatives must be supported by concrete actions, becoming part of the daily routine across your company.
Start by understanding your company’s context: what defines your core business and where do your most significant impacts lie? Once you have that down, it’s all about prioritizing.
How do you see traditional procurement changing in the future? I think procurement changed forever in 2020. COVID-19 shocked supply chains, forcing some suppliers to relocate and caused a lot of disruptions.
Additionally, the past years have shown how climate change is forcing change in procurement practices. Increasing geopolitical tensions are also stressing supply chains, making it harder to source raw materials from the countries we used to.
Being able to succeed in procurement requires a proactive approach. Predicting the future is challenging, but using scenario planning can help us understand and manage potential risks and negative impacts more effectively. This approach prepares us to adapt and respond to the evolving global landscape.
When it comes to regulations being a driving force, in Norway, you have the Transparency Act. How do you think companies have been handling this? *The Transparency Act requires that companies conduct due diligence assessments to identify and address adverse impacts on people and society.
Many companies don't fully understand the Norwegian Transparency Act. It's frustrating to hear some people call their work on it boring. This law is supposed to make real improvements in people's lives. It's not supposed to be another box to check off a compliance exercise. It requires ongoing efforts.
With over 380 contracted suppliers, more than 200,000 different products, and nearly 240 hotels, getting full control is unrealistic. But we have to start somewhere to make a meaningful impact.
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