CSR EUROPE REPORT2016

ContentsIntroduction from the Chair............................................................2

About CSR Europe..........................................................................3Vision and Mission Strategy and future outlook GovernanceMembers and global stakeholders

Sustainability in CSR Europe...........................................................7

Societal Impact..............................................................................8The European Pact for Youth Contributing to the SDGs through the Sustainable Business Exchange Supply Chain Sustainability and Business and Human Rights: Source for GoodSustainability Management and Transparency

Membership engagement and satisfaction...................................14

Financial stability.........................................................................16

Employees....................................................................................17

Environmental impact..................................................................19

Closing note................................................................................20

About the report.........................................................................21

Follow us.....................................................................................21

Audit letter

CSR EUROPE REPORT

2016

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CSR EUROPE REPORT

2016

Introduction from the chair

On the journey towards and beyond Enterprise 2020, 2016 was marked by many important milestones for the CSR Europe network. Increasingly crucial is the work done with companies and national partner organisations to support business models which fully integrate sustainability. Business as usual is not an option anymore, companies have the opportunity to contribute to solving the challenges society is facing today. It translates into an effort not only with respect to compliance, but more importantly in developing new ways of thinking and doing business which make sustainability the driver of value in the mid-and-long-term. We recognise that the UN Sustainable Development Goals provide business with a common language and framework to build collaboration and have greater joint impact. As a result enhancing collaborative action and engagement of different business divisions through CSR Europe membership is now becoming a strong focus and measure of success.

In 2016, we further strengthened our work on responsible supply chains by building on the achievements from the business and human rights programme. The European Pact for Youth has advanced through continued engagement with numerous stakeholders to stimulate the implementation of activities across Europe. Our sustainability management and transparency programmes continue to support businesses to define relevant challenges and opportunities and increase business integrity and transparency, including tax responsibility. Most importantly, CSR Europe last year launched its ambitious programme on the Sustainable Development Goals. This will become very real and visible though a large number of practical actions in 2017. All of this activity is supported by a continuous dialogue with the European Institutions to work jointly on delivering smarter policy and collaboration whilst at the same time expanding our work with global stakeholders, in particular in China and Japan.

Finally, I am pleased to introduce CSR Europe’s first ever Sustainability Report. We started the journey of reporting as part of our sustainability approach to increase internal understanding of our impact and to widen communication to our stakeholders. We are embracing reporting as a means towards better management of our organisation and to achieve and guarantee mid-and-long term value creation for our members and society at large.

Hans Daems, CSR Europe Chair of the Board

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CSR EUROPE REPORT

2016

20years of

experience

10,000companies reached

through our network

More than 150

meetings with EU institutions per

year

More than 70

member events per year

More than 100tailored services

delivered per year

About CSR Europe

Since 1996 CSR Europe has been the leading European business network for Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). Through its network of around 46 corporate members and 42 National CSR organisations (NPOs) it gathers over 10,000 companies and acts as a platform for those businesses looking to enhance sustainable growth and positively contribute to society. In its mission to bring the CSR agenda forward, CSR Europe goes beyond European borders and cooperates with CSR organisations in other regions across the world.

Vision

• Business is key in providing innovative solutions for today’s challenges

• In Europe, business is uniquely placed to help to create a world in which everyone can thrive through social, environmental and eco-nomic progress

Mission

• Increase the integration of sustainability into business models and management of companies

• Be a platform for collaboration with stakeholders and a catalyst for innovation to build a sustainable and inclusive society in Europe and beyond

• Engage with the European institutions about policy to drive the global sustainability agenda

• Be a business network which is recognised as a global leader

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CSR EUROPE REPORT

2016

CSR Europe plays a leading role in implementing an inclusive sustainable economy, bringing our network of businesses and organisations together to collaborate and develop innovative solutions to the challenges we face.

In 2015, CSR Europe launched the Enterprise 2020 manifesto. The realisation of the manifesto has seen the committed engagement of national partner organisations as co-writers and co-developers of the text setting the overall direction that businesses in Europe are embracing towards 2020. Through our Enterprise 2020 manifesto we aim to:

• Make employability and inclusion a priority across boards, management and value chains

• Stimulate companies to engage as committed partners with communities, cities and regions to develop and implement new sustainable production methods, consumption and livelihoods

• Put transparency and respect for human rights at the heart of business conduct

Since the endorsement of the document, national partner organisations are working throughout their local network to implement the manifesto.

Looking at the future

The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set a clear agenda of priorities for governments and society. As the business network for CSR, CSR Europe will work with companies towards the achievement of the goals by working together with businesses and stakeholders on responsible conduct to contribute to the 2030 agenda and to avoid negative impacts.

In order to achieve success, we recognise the challenge to enhance and increase collaboration among businesses and stakeholders in society. At the same time, it represents a unique opportunity to bring existing solutions together and enable joint action.

Strategy and future outlook

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CSR EUROPE REPORT

2016

Governance

The CSR Europe team is organised in two groups: (I) the Membership and Stakeholder Relations Team, who liaise with our corporate members and national CSR organisations; (II) the Services Team, who develop and enact our campaigns and programmes, including EU policy dialogue and development updates for members. In line with CSR Europe work, our Board of Directors, is arranged in different committees in order to focus their expertise and increase their involvement in the strategic direction of CSR Europe activities.

Etienne Davignon Minister of State

Chair of the Board Vice-Chair of the Board

Hans DaemsGroup Public Affairs Officer,

Hitachi Europe

Marina MiglioratoHead of Sustainability

Innovation and Stakeholders Engagement, Enel

Membership Committee Campaigns and Programmes Committee

EU Engagement Committee Governance and Finance

Board members and Committees

Ben DaviesPartnership Director

at Johnson & Johnson Corporate Citizenship Trust

Tomas SercovichDirector of Communication and Institutional Relations,

Foretica

Jacques SpelkensHead of CSR Benelux,

ENGIE

Mirella Panek-Owsiańska President, Responsible Business Forum Poland

Celia MooreDirector Corporate

Citizenship and Corporate Affairs, IBM EMEA

Jean BernouCEO,

McCain Foods

Bernedine BosInternational Relations and

Business Development, MVO Nederland

Filippo BettiniHead of Sustainability and

Risk Governance, Pirelli

Annemarie Muntz

Director Group Public Affairs,

Randstad

Tony GrazianoVice-President,

European Public Affairs and

Communications, Huawei

Thorsten PinkepankDirector,

Head of Corporate Sustainability

Relations, BASF

Michel BandeSenior Executive Vice

President and Corporate Sustainability Officer, Solvay

President About the board of directors

The directors are appointed for a renewable term of three years. The current board started its mandate in 2016 and will complete it by 2019. The Board of Directors determines the organisation’s strategic direction. It also appoints an Executive Director who is entrusted with the daily management of the organisation and the execution of Board decisions.

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Our network of 45 corporate members covers the globe and influences sustainability across 10 industry sectors:

• IT, Electronics and Industrials• Energy and Utilities• Food and Beverages• Telecommunication Services• Consumer Goods and Services• Professional Services• Transport and Logistics• Financials and Insurance• Pharmaceuticals• Chemicals and Materials

CSR EUROPE REPORT

2016

Members and global stakeholders

Global dialogue and collaboration beyond Europe CSR Europe is engaged with a number of stakeholders on the global framework. In addition to the long standing collaboration with WTO Tribune China, CSR Europe recently signed four Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) with other Regional Partner Organisations: Canadian Business for Social Responsibility (CBSR), Forum Empresa (Latin America), the ASEAN CSR Network and the Thaipat Institute (Thailand).

Globally, CSR Europe is committed to work together and cooperate also with the UNGC, WBCSD, ABIS, GRI and the OECD among the most relevant.

45 Corporate Members

10 Industries

41 National Partners

Organisations

32 Countries

CSR Europe national partners

CSR Europe and its national partners work together on collaborative projects under the European Pact for Youth, collaborative project on Business and Human Rights. Members of the network actively collaborate on development of CSR publications, share experience as well as inspiration during joint meetings and events.

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Sustainability in CSR Europe CSR EUROPE REPORT

2016In line with its mission, CSR Europe aims at integrating sustainability not only in the content of its programmes, but also through the management practices and day-to-day activities of the organisation. As a result, this approach will ensure value creation for our stakeholders in the short, medium and long-term.

CSR Europe’s sustainability approach is defined by five main areas which take into account the core activities as well as the way the organisation is managed.

These five areas have been defined by taking into account:

• Impact of programmes and services delivery• Feedback from key stakeholders through formal evaluations and

continuous engagement• Taking into account CSR Europe strategy and yearly direction

2016 Direction1. Deliver on the Pact for Youth 2. Grow through enhanced added

value3. Engage members on Enterprise 2020

Manifesto

2017 Direction1. Get and engage more members2. Provide added value services with

professional excellence3. Establish European leadership on the

SDGs

1. Societal impact

2. Membership engagement &

satisfaction

3. Financial stability

4. Employee engagement

5. Environmental impact

By promoting and working towards responsible and sustainable business practices, CSR Europe programmes aim for positive societal impact. Through them the organisation realises its value.

Engagement and satisfaction of members are equally a priority to guarantee the continuity of CSR Europe work towards the achievement of its mission and societal impact.

Financial stability ensures the continuity of the organisation and makes the pursue of its mission possible and efficient.

People are one of the most important success factor in any organisation and so is for CSR Europe. Investing in individual development and organisational capacity are equally important for long-term value creation.

Big change starts from small actions, and in CSR Europe we have decided to assess areas of improvement in day-to-day people management.

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Societal Impact

Based on our strategic direction, CSR Europe activities aim at creating societal impact through four main areas: 1) European Pact for Youth, 2) The UN SDGs, 3) Responsible Supply Chain and 4) Sustainability Management and Transparency. We leverage our network and programmes to achieve positive results in these areas and to ensure the practical engagement of our members.

Societal Impact in 2016

CSR EUROPE REPORT

2016

Policy dialogue and engagement with EU stakeholders Issue InsightsCombined with over 150 meetings with representatives of the EC/EP services.

Directly engaged with:• President Juncker• VP Timmermans• Commissioner Thyssen• Commissioner Bienkowska• Commissioner Jourova• Commissioner Mimica• Commissioner Navracsics• Secretary General Italianer• EESC President Georges Dassis• EPSC Head, Msr Mettler

Comprehensive policy updates on:

1. Circular Economy Package2. EC Tax transparency Package3. Country by Country Reporting to tax authorities4. Public Country-by-Country Reporting 5. EU Skills Agenda6. Falkenberg Report7. EU Global Strategy for Foreign and Security Policy8. EU External Investment Plan 9. SDGs implementation plan 10. Youth initiative

EU Webinars Consultations with members1. Circular Economy2. Non-binding guidelines for non-financial reporting 3. Country-by-Country reporting

1. Non-binding guidelines for non-financial reporting (April 2016)2. Agenda 2030 (July 2016)

Engagement45% Corporates + 22% NPOs

Activities• 2 National Workshops • 4 webinars• 3 Seminars/workshops• 5 EU Issue Insight• 1 conference

Engagement73% Corporates + 54% NPOs

Activities• 5 webinars• 1 Masterclass: Materiality• 1 Roundtable: Tax Transpar-

ency • 1 Tool assessment round • 3 EU Issue Insight

Engagement40% Corporates + 54% NPOs

Activities• 1 workshop + Webinar• 7 webinars• 2 Sherpas Meetings• 2 Leaders Meetings• 1 NPO meeting • 2 EU Issue Insight

EUTalent4 companies + 15 NPOs Activities• 2 webinars + Steering

Committee

STEM18 companies + 7 NPOs Activities2 webinars + 1 workshop + 1 Conference + 2 GA

Engagement72% Corporates + 31% NPOs

Activities• 2 National Workshop • 4 webinars• 2 Seminars + 1 conference• 1 Tool assessment round• 1 Issue Insight

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CSR EUROPE REPORT

2016

The European Pact for Youth

In Europe alone there are over 7 million young people that are not employed or in any form of education or training. At the same time, 40 % of businesses claim that they are unable to recruit people with the skills and experience that they require. It is clear that there is a gap between education providers’ priorities and businesses requirements and young people are bearing the cost of this gap.

Mission Increase business-education partnerships and create a culture of cooperation between business, education and youth.

How

1. Bring together policy makers, businesses and education providers to develop joint proposals on business-education partnerships

2. Work with member states to develop national action plans on implementing business-education partnerships

3. Engage businesses in our STEM alliance and EU talent programme

4. Increase the availability of traineeships, apprenticeships and entry-level jobs

Our Science Technology Engineering and Math (STEM) alliance launched in March 2016 aims at closing the skills gap between what is required by businesses and what young people are trained in.

Our EUTalent project launched in September 2016 connects young people and small-medium sized enterprises to better engage in apprenticeships. The project is EU funded and involves 13 NPOs across 12 countries.

EU Policy Dialogue

Achievements• Strong reference to the Pact for

Youth in the News Skills Agenda for Europe

• Build on the Pact for Youth leaders policy proposal, the European Commission will launch ErasmusPro” to support the long-term mobility of 50,000 apprenticeships per annum (= 400 million euro invested)

EU updates• EU Skills Agenda • Europe Investing in Youth • Erasmus programme

2016 Achievements 2017 GoalsBusiness-education partnerships created

15,238 10,000Traineeships, apprenticeships and entry-level jobs created

91,343 100,000Member State national action plans on business-education partnerships

1 2812 corporate members recruited to

our STEM alliance

Use our EUTalent programme to connect young people with

small-medium sized enterprises STEM Alliance

EUTalent

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The EU STEM Coalition – A coalition of national STEM platforms and strategic European partners. A national STEM platform connects business, education and governments at national level. Activities include strategic meetings to exchange good practice and support new partners to set up a national platform.

EU STEM Coalition

Contributing to the SDGs through the Sustainable Business Exchange CSR EUROPE

REPORT2016

In 2015 the United Nations launched the SDGs to end poverty, protect the planet and bring prosperity to all. Achieving the 17 goals will require companies to fundamentally rethink their business models and build innovative ways to work within organisations and with external stakeholders.

Business in fact will thrive if sustainability is fully integrated into strategy and business processes and the SDGs provide an excellent language to frame discussions on this topic. To achieve the SDGs we believe there are two essential requirements for business:

• Business transformation through the innovation of products, services and processes

• Business collaboration with other companies and stakeholders to drive sustainability solutions for impact and scale

Mission

Provide a platform where businesses can discuss challenges and opportunities, fostering collaborative action and the co-creation of new business models.

How 1. Develop a learning network where

businesses can share challenges and practices

2. Use our SDG Incubator to target specific goals and create business partnerships that address them

3. Facilitate dialogue between businesses and policy makers to develop practical and far reaching programmes

4. Be recognised as the European hub for the SDGs

EU Policy Dialogue

Achievements• CSR Europe has been at the

forefront to support the European Commission in the adoption of the Communication “Next Steps for a sustainable European Future”

• Two of the proposals submitted to the European Commission in relation to the implementation of the SDGs have been welcomed and integrated in the EC plan, namely: the establishment of a multi-stake-holder platform and the creation of a Sustainability Prize scheme.

EU updates• EU Circular economy package • EU 2030 Agenda and contribution to

the Sustainable Development Goals

1. Develop concept with leaders

2. Exploratory webinar and workshop

3. Feasibility study

4. Project design

5. Take collective action

6. Scale up and replicate

2016 Achievements 2017 GoalsLearning network

2 national workshops 60% of members engaged 4 webinars 3 seminars

SDG Incubator Designed and developed 3 projects 20 corporate members 9 NPOsDeveloped and launched the sustainable business exchange campaign in December 2016

65% members engaged in the SDG conference: The Value for Europe

250-300 participants 16 practical case studies

SDG Incubator

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Our SDG Incubator is a platform for bring ing our members together to address specific goals. Members can propose a target issue and we design a project with them to tackle it, using our member network to involve as many businesses as possible.

Supply Chain Sustainability and Business and Human Rights: Source for Good CSR EUROPE

REPORT2016

In a globalised economy where the reach of a single company can include several countries across the globe, it is extremely difficult for a business to measure and address all of its value chain impacts. Sustainability practices developed at the head-quarters level often fail to trickle down the supply chain and impact the root causes of their target issue. Where they are successful, the isolated actions of a single company might be outweighed by the collective impact of the industry as a whole.

Our mission

Bring companies together to pool their knowledge and experience and enhance their approach to value chain sustainability with a particular focus on collaboration and social impact.

How 1. Engage companies in a learning

network for updates on relevant topics and share practices of challenges and solutions

2. Deliver local training across Europe and worldwide to build capacity on business and human rights

3. Responsible Sourcing across Industries (RSaI): our cross-sector and sector initiatives which bring together the major players for collaborative action

EU Policy Dialogue

Achievements• Gathering members input to

European Commission Public consultation on the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and put forward proposals such as: a) Increase business presence at the European Development Days b) Multi-stakeholder Forum on the SDGs

• These proposals were also discussed and welcomed by DG DEVCO services and by Commissioner Mimica

EU updates• EU Global Strategy on sustainable

development

2016 Achievements 2017 GoalsBlueprint translations

2 languages: Chinese, Albanian 1+ languageResponsible sourcing across industries platform

Launched in March 2016 Define the direction and practical approach

Participants at events 150 at the European Policy Forum 30+ in webinars on Business and Human Rights

Over 150 received the blueprint including 55 companies’ practices

Deliver 2 local training events on human rights. 1 in Europe and 1

outside Europe

The blueprint breaks down the concept of embedding human rights in companies into six elements, as outlined in the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. It describes process steps, trends and outcomes for each of the six elements, and complements them with real-life examples from multinational companies. It also looks at how to integrate human rights in three specific functions: Risk, Human Resources and Procurement.

CSR Europe Blueprint for embedding human rights in key company functions

CSR Europe assessment on human rights grievance mechanism

The management of complaints assessment (MOC-A) is a tool that aims at assessing and benchmarking companies' grievance mechanism processes for complaints related to human rights violations. It analyses grievance mechanisms to identify gaps and improve effectiveness in line with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Hu-man Rights.

Responsible Sourcing across Industries (RSaI) is a platform that brings together +15 sector initiatives to leverage and share experiences across different industries and also explore collaboration for higher impact.

Responsible Sourcing across Industries Platform

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Drive Sustainability CSR EUROPE REPORT

2016

Mission

Drive Sustainability aims to enhance sustainability in automotive supply chains, based on the belief that this can be achieved by working together. Therefore, the companies engaged in Drive Sustainability, work together to improve the social, ethical and environmental performance of automotive supply chains. The mission is to ensure that people making vehicles, components, or providing services, are afforded decent working conditions and are treated with dignity and respect, while minimising the environmental impact of their industry.

How 1. Policy level: common Guiding

Principles2. Compliance level: supplier

self-assessment tool to assess the sustainability performance of automotive suppliers in areas such as social and environmental sustainability, business conduct and compliance and supplier management

3. Capacity building level: Training events in different countries worldwide to build supplier capacity

4. Supplier dialogue events for automotive companies and suppliers to jointly discuss challenges and define solutions

5. Local level: Set up local project in collaboration with local stakeholders to enforce automotive suppliers learning opportunities

6. Company process level: develop and promote a similar process to embed sustainability within the company procurement process

Drive sustainability (previously the European automotive working group on supply chain sustainability) is an initiative facilitated by CSR Europe since 2012. DRIVE Sustainability is a partnership between BMW Group, Daimler AG, Honda, Jaguar Land Rover, Opel/Vauxhall, Scania CV AB, Toyota Motor Europe, Volkswagen Group, Volvo Cars and Volvo Group to advance and promote supply chain sustainability.

2016 Achievements 2017 GoalsSupplier Dialogues

1 supply chain event in China 1 event with Tier 1 suppliers 1 logistics supplier event and suppliers associations

Supplier training 2 in Czech Republic and China 4+ in Turkey, Italy, Hungary and India

Local projects 2 launched in China and Turkey Strengthen local activities in China and Turkey

Full rebranding and transition to Drive Sustainability

Revise the common Guiding Principles

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Sustainability management and transparency CSR EUROPE

REPORT2016

Mission

Support companies to integrate sustainability into their governance and business models by working on sustainability management and reporting practices.

How 1. Assess companies on sustainability

management through our maturi-ty and integration assessment

2. Enable a platform to exchange practices and relevant learning to address material issues management, stakeholders engagement and reporting

3. Promote reporting as a means towards better sustainability management. Engage members on transparency discussion and updates on relevant trends

Businesses are responding to the challenge of sustainability more than ever before. Schemes to reduce carbon footprints, invest in local communities, reduce waste, cut energy use and much more have proliferated in recent years. Whilst this is a huge step forward, there is still need for businesses to go further, moving beyond isolated sustainable actions towards embed-ding sustainability into the very core of their business strategy by addressing material challenges and opportunities. It is now important to address how to move sustainability from a separate business component and embed it in the corporate management processes and governance systems.

2016 Achievements 2017 GoalsCompanies assessed on sustainability maturity and integration

3 7Companies taking part in workshops

15 15, with 2 different departments represented

Tax transparency programmeLaunch tax responsibility 10 companies taking newly programme developed self-assessment tool

Publish summary document on EU directive on non-financial information

transposition across Europe

EU Policy DialogueAchievements• Gathering members input to the

European Commission Public consultation on non-binding guidelines for non-financial reporting

• Joint letter to EU institutions about the need of supporting capacity building activities for companies to ensure an efficient and effective implementation of the EU Directive on non-financial reporting. This letter was co-signed by GRI, IIRC, WBCSD, Eurosif, Accountancy Europe and CDSB

EU updates• European Commission non-binding

guidelines for non-financial reporting

• EU directives on Country by Country Reporting to tax authorities and to the Public

• Regulation on conflict minerals

By assessing management processes of material issues, CSR Europe's maturity and integration assessment is designed to help you further root sustainability into your business by defining main strengths and areas of improvement.

CSR Europe Tax responsibility and transparency programme (name to be confirmed) was launched in December 2016. It aims at scaling up corporate tax transparency and establishing responsible tax behaviour within companies as one of the main pillars of (CSR). Turning businesses into truly tax responsible companies will help rebuilding trust and addressing the growing expectations from the public and from the policy makers in terms of transparency and aggressive tax planning by some companies which also creates unfair competition with other companies that are paying their fair share of taxes.

Maturity and Integration Assessment

Tax Responsibility

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CSR EUROPE REPORT

2016

Membership engagement and satisfaction

As the European business network for CSR, the engagement and satisfaction of our members are significant factors for the achievement of the organisational mission and the creation of societal value. Engagement and satisfaction are integrated and measured throughout our programmes and services (see pages 8-13). Overall, in the framework of the Enterprise 2020 direction, we aim at engaging 85 corporate members organisations by 2020 and to continue local implementation of the Enterprise 2020 manifesto through our NPOs.

How we engage

How we collect feedback

• Individual meetings with member organisations

• Annual general assembly • Feedback from events and

services delivered

• Topic specific workshops, publication, webinars and events

• Collaborate on specific intiatives with companies and organisations within the network

• Opportunities to work directly with EU policy makers and gain better understanding of the latest policy developments through clear and concise policy updates

• Get support from CSR Europe dedicated staff on different topics

• Take part in CSR Europe assessment

• Tailored services upon company request, based on individual proposal

SatisfactionStriving for the satisfaction of members, makes the engagement sustainable and meaningful in the longer-term. CSR Europe seeks to provide good quality in its activities and services to ensure they are adding value to members organisations.

EngagementThe members' engagement is a priority and a fundamental measure of success for CSR Europe. As it was highlighted in the four areas, part of our societal impact is connected to the active participation of the stakeholders in the network.

2016 Targets 2016 Achievements 2017 GoalsMember engagement

90% 93% 90%1 (60%)2

Service satisfaction 3+/4 3.8/4 3+/4

Membership retention 95% 84% 95%

Learning network, capacity building and collaboration

Shape CSR related policies at EU level

Tailored services upon company request, based on

individual proposal

Individual helpdesk services

and assessment tools

Engaging and providing added value services to our members represent both a measure of success and a demanding task to CSR Europe. For this reason it is embedded in our direction, main priorities and objectives to continuously learn and improve on value-adding engagement. In practice it means to work on addressing members’ requirements and being able to engage them through their diversity.

1 In 2016 engagement took into account all CSR Europe activities, i.e. participation in webinar, workshops, etc. 2. As compared to 2016, in 2017 we focus our targets on more active engagement: e.g. through collaborative projects, workshops, additional services, event presentation, etc.

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About the Roundtable

CSR EUROPE REPORT

2016

Bringing value and expertise to our members

Tackling the Cobalt issue with impact: a case study

Congo is the world’s largest cobalt producer, accounting for just over half of the overall output of the mineral. Artisanal and small-scale miners are responsible for the bulk of the output with an estimated 2 million people directly involved. In the future cobalt demand is expected to significantly increase, making companies increasingly dependent upon their relationship with local people in the Congo and increasingly accountable to the global community for how they manage their relationships with these people. Existing and potential challenges with respect to Cobalt sourcing are many and businesses globally are faced with them and urged to take action.

In 2016 two non-member organisations asked CSR Europe to organise a session on responsible sourcing of Cobalt. Given the nature of the resource, which is experiencing constant growth in demand and is largely produced by millions of vulnerable small-scale artisanal miners, we saw an opportunity to host a roundtable event and bring businesses together to secure a more sustainable future for their raw material supplies and also for the millions of people who produce them.

Who took part in the discussion?

Over 40 organisations, including 10 CSR Europe members, took part in the event, with representatives from:

• NGOs and international organisations

• Cobalt processors and extractors• Electronics manufacturers• Automotive producers• Telecommunications providers

How was the topic addressed?

Participants had the opportunity to:

• Receive an update on the current situation in artisanal and large scale mining in DRC based on a joined project by OECD and CCCMC

• Discuss and determine the ideal approach to tackle the issue, also in response to the on-going Amnesty International campaign

The outcomes

For businesses and Organisations

The businesses and organisations which attended the event gained a better understanding of how to address the social and environmental impacts of the extraction and processing of raw materials in their supply chains.

For CSR Europe and its network

The preparation of the roundtable allowed CSR Europe staff to further develop expertise on the topic of responsible sourcing, in order to be able to provide support and advance existing initiatives to drive due diligence and meaningful improvement of conditions in the cobalt supply chain.

ExpertiseExpertise further developed through additional tailored services:

• Impactful community investment

• Integration of CSR and sustainability in companies

• Global and local stakeholder engagement

• STEM and smart classrooms partnership

• CSR report review

• Corporate communication health and nutrition programmes for employees

• Sustainable procurement

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The organisation relies on membership subscriptions, services fees, grants from public sources, sponsorships and philanthropic source. The EU funded projects give CSR Europe to also engage national partner organisations.

On the other hand, the expenses are related to the operations of the organisation, mostly staff expenses and implementation of the activities and services.

Financial stability CSR EUROPE REPORT

2016CSR Europe financial sustainability efforts remain in harmony with stakeholders’ interests and are in line with the social objective according to the Bylaws. In order to achieve this stability, three main financial and economic areas are identified: 1) cash flow, 2) source and use of financial resources and 3) compliance.

Cash and cash equivalents allow CSR Europe to finance the operations and to pre-finance large projects in Europe and in all regions of the world. The net income, liquidity and solvency build the capacity of CSR Europe to fulfil its mission and serve its stakeholders over time. Cash flow remained positive throughout 2016.

The financial stability of the organisation has been fairly constant through the years. Though, some changes in the sources of revenues and increasing trend in the total amount are observed.

BDO audit completed our year-end audit procedures on the financial information for the year ended December 31, 2016 in accordance with the International Standards on Auditing. There are no findings or adjustments and the conclusion of the audit work is a clean and unqualified audit opinion.

Source and use of financial resources

Cash flow

Compliance

Revenue distribution evolution

Expenses 2016

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Employee engagement CSR EUROPE REPORT

2016CSR Europe sustainability and success rely on the people who are part of it and that make the accomplishment of its mission possible. Therefore, the ability to attract, motivate and retain qualified employees as well as the recognition and reward of performance while maintaining a shared sense of internal equity and fairness are important elements.

What the results say

The main objective of the survey is to determine employees’ engagement and satisfaction with respect to their work at CSR Europe. While an overall appreciation of the work values and job satisfaction came out, the results displayed some points for improvement:

Employees' engagement Survey end of 2015

Integrated improvements on compensation and benefits policy including:

• Compensation and benefits connected to performance

• Review of evaluation system for targets and competencies

• Promotion system according to performance

1.Needed improvements on compensation and

benefits approach

2.Perceived gap on

training and personal development

Actions in 2016 and 2017• In 2016 we have

reviewed job functions and categories focusing on professional development.

• In 2017 we need to continue and put more emphasis on training opportunities.

Efforts to improve our human resources management will contribute to:

• Individual and organisational capacity: increased level of expertise • Enhance membership experience• Address turnover and retain good talent

Outcomes of actions

27 employees

14nationalities

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The programme runs twice a year. It gives an opportunity to students and recent graduates to work in the different areas of the organisation and develop knowledge for their future career development.

In 2016, 35% of interns have been hired as project managers. This represents a positive trend with respect to internships transitioning into job opportunities.

The responses to the internship survey of 2016 also proved the satisfaction of interns with respect to the internship value and overall learning. All the responses highlight the internship at CSR Europe as an enriching experience towards their future professional career.

Employees CSR EUROPE REPORT

2016

Internship programme

Over the past 5 years, CSR Europe has experienced growth with respect to staff employed. In 2016 a senior manager and a director were hired.

Human Resources

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“Working at CSR Europe was a great experience, a

useful way to better understand how EU

Institutions work and to get closer to business and company needs and inner

workings”

“I appreciated the fact that I was considered as

an asset for the team with real responsibilities and

deadlines. I liked a lot my colleagues, my line

manager and CSR Europe's environment”

Former CSR Europe Interns

Waste and recycling

Environmental impact CSR EUROPE REPORT

2016Within its scope, CSR commits to recognising the impact of day-to-day activities. In practice, we aim at promoting and realising more sustainable and responsible behaviour with respect to organisational management. At the same time, we recognise that all the activities run are connected and are functional to the achievement of our mission.

Main areas of improvement

Observed in 2016

Printing is part of the daily running of activities and our general policy focuses on making it effective and efficient. Nevertheless, in 2016, we have applied a systematic monitoring of printing.

Our commitment in 2017

The main objective is to raise awareness and avoid printing when possible for internal meetings and when alternatives are available.

Observed in 2016

In 2016 we have observed that on average 160 L (+/- 6 L per employee) of non-recyclable waste is generated every day. This waste is mostly generated from the usage of the kitchen for lunch and coffee breaks and generic office waste.

Initiative in 2016 - Recycling of old laptops

The old laptops have been donated to a campaign funded by Close-the-Gap. The laptop donation will contribute towards educational, medical and social projects in developing as well as emerging countries and prevent e-waste.

Our commitment in 2017

We recognise the impact that individuals’ actions can have with respect to environmental responsibility for an organisation such as CSR Europe. As a consequence, we aim at engaging employees to reduce non-recyclable waste by 60%.

Other areas of recognised impact

Within the scope of CSR Europe activities, the teams find themselves in the organisation of different events throughout the year.

As a result it is important to monitor printed materials, waste and catering choices (e.g. since 2016 we engaged a local enterprise for catering services).

Printing

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It might be strange that only after 20 years CSR Europe publishes its first CSR Report, especially since a major part of our work has always been on the need for transparency and to see reporting as a means to an end, a target to improve business’ sustainability performance.

It must also be admitted it was dominantly the team’s drive to finally start this venture of reviewing our performance and to create the dynamic to make this report and to assure its follow up inside CSR Europe.

It was about time we did it, especially because we have been growing continuously over the past five years, therefore also increasing our impact. We now have an instrument that will help us inside CSR Europe to think about our performance in a more integrated way through the five areas of impact that were selected: societal impact, membership engagement and satisfaction, financial stability, employees engagement and environmental impact.

In the past year we have made major changes in our HR systems, with a focus to increase employee retention and engagement and to add expertise to the team. The introduction of a bi-annual employee engagement survey allowed us to focus on the key areas of compensation & benefits (and promotion opportunities) and training & education. For the first area we introduced in 2016 a system linked to performance evaluation. For training we focused strongly on on-the-job training and providing opportunities to attend workshops and conferences but we still need to provide more learning opportunities to the team, especially through more secondments in companies.

The societal impact of our work is a key element of our work and as the report shows it can be measured in different ways. For 2016 we see that especially the Pact for Youth work has had major impacts, not only by reaching its targets on business-education partnerships and the new collaborations established by member companies but all the more by the influence it had on European Commission policy makers that will create more mobility opportunities for apprenticeships. For the future we want to explore how to measure societal impact better and in a more standardised way as this will allow us to focus our work better.

On the membership engagement we provided the overall engagement and satisfaction data but our overall challenge is to become more a platform of practical change, collaboration and impact. That is why in 2017 we are investing in the roll out of the SDG incubator. The number of practical change projects and collaborations that are nurtured within the CSR Europe network might be the best indicator for our joined contribution towards the Sustainable Development Goals.

You have seen a first attempt of our report and we look forward to your feedback and suggestions for improvement.

Stefan Crets, Executive Director, CSR Europe

Closing note CSR EUROPE REPORT

2016

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About CSR Europe

CSR Europe is the leading European business network for Corporate Social Responsibility. Through its network of around 46 corporate members and 42 National CSR organisations, it gathers over 10,000 companies, and acts as a plat-form for those businesses looking to enhance sustainable growth and positively contribute to society. In its mission to bring the CSR agenda forward, CSR Europe goes beyond European borders and cooperates with CSR organisations in other regions across the world.www.csreurope.org

Facebook: www.facebook.com/CSREuropeLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/csr-europeTwitter: @CSREuropeOrg

About the report

The report was prepared by the CSR Europe team and takes into account information related to 2016. The GRI Standards have been taken into account to shape the methodology of the first CSR Europe report. The selected five areas and the topics covered in the sections have been identified as the relevant and material aspects for the organisation to take into account. Therefore, the report aims at providing an overview of CSR Europe's approach to sustainability with respect to its programmes and daily activities. The team remains at your disposal to address any questions and clarifications with respect to the content herein.

For any feedback on this report please contact: communications@csreurope.org

CSR EUROPE REPORT

2016

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National Partner Organisations

Corporate Members