The excellence of the supply chain represents an essential prerequisite for achieving the growth envisaged by the Industrial Plan. This must be able not only to ensure adequate operational performance, but also to address the complexity of new market challenges, which require financial soundness, expertise, and speed of adaptation. 

Leonardo assesses and classifies its suppliers through a structured process based on the following criteria: turnover; supply risk (difficulty in securing an alternative supplier); financial health and dependence on Leonardo; technical and management capabilities; sustainability; and performance (quality and punctuality of deliveries).

In 2025, among the 11,000 suppliers who received orders from Leonardo, 760 Tier-1 suppliers were classified as strategic/critical (i.e., those with high turnover and high supply risk) (which together represent 66% of the value ordered); in addition, 41 non-Tier-1 suppliers who, despite not having a direct relationship with the company, have a relevant role within the supply chain.

Risk mitigation actions are defined for strategic/critical suppliers and high-risk ESG suppliers (subject to country, industry, and commodity-specific risk screening).

To prevent risks relating to the protection of human rights and the health and safety of workers in the supply chain, Leonardo has introduced specific actions across the various stages of the process: from the application to become a supplier to pre-qualification and qualification for inclusion in the register, through to verification audits and supplier development plans. 

In 2025, Leonardo conducted supplier investigations based on ethical and anti-corruption considerations, leading to specific actions. In particular, 51 pre-qualifications were revoked at the renewal stage, and 129 pre-qualifications were denied to new suppliers.

All stages of the selection process and the supplier relationship are managed through the Procurement Web Portal, which ensures transparency and traceability of information.

Promoting a voluntary ESG standard for the A&D supply chain

Starting from 2023, Leonardo has progressively replaced its proprietary ESG assessment model, LEADS, with the EcoVadis rating, adopted as the benchmark for evaluating the sustainability of the Aerospace, Defence and Security (AD&S) supply chain, within the framework of the industry initiative promoted by the International Aerospace Environmental Group (IAEG).

During 2025, the participation of Leonardo’s suppliers in the EcoVadis platform increased significantly, involving more than 900 companies. This further strengthened the assessment process, enabling continuous monitoring of suppliers’ sustainability performance. In cases of negative ratings, the approach allowed for the timely identification of critical areas and the activation of corrective actions and improvement plans.

In the United Kingdom, Leonardo is also actively involved in the JOSCAR (Joint Supply Chain Accreditation Register) industry initiative for shared supplier qualification. JOSCAR has integrated the ESG perspective into its accreditation process, further contributing to the advancement of sustainability within the UK A&D sector.

The adoption of a common ESG framework at industry level strengthens business resilience and enables more efficient engagement across the supply chain, reducing both resource requirements and costs for customers and suppliers. It also simplifies communication channels and provides a single access point for Aerospace & Defence suppliers already operating in the market, as well as for new entrants.

By the end of 2025, 13 global leaders in the A&D sector had joined the IAEG–EcoVadis industry initiative, collecting over 7,350 supplier scorecards.