Case study: How Gazprom Neft supports local communities through educational initiatives
Gazprom Neft is the third largest oil producer in Russia, with products exported to more than 100 countries worldwide and sold throughout Russia and abroad through an extensive network of directly-owned retail outlets. Gazprom Neft is committed to promoting and supporting the activity of local communities in tackling social and economic issues, providing tools, opportunities and benchmarks for development.
This case study is based on the 2019 Sustainable Development Report by Gazprom Neft published on the Global Reporting Initiative Sustainability Disclosure Database that can be found at this link. Through all case studies we aim to demonstrate what CSR/ ESG/ sustainability reporting done responsibly means. Essentially, it means: a) identifying a company’s most important impacts on the environment, economy and society, and b) measuring, managing and changing.
Abstract
Gazprom Neft seeks to support the development of the regions in which it operates Tweet This!, achieving its sustainable development goals. In order to support local communities through educational initiatives Gazprom Neft took action to:
- implement the Masters of Russia programme
- carry out the “Mathematical Progression” joint project
- organise the “Developing Talent” Case Tournament
- implement educational programmes with the Strelka Institute
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With this case study you will see:
- Which are the most important impacts (material issues) Gazprom Neft has identified;
- How Gazprom Neft proceeded with stakeholder engagement, and
- What actions were taken by Gazprom Neft to support local communities through educational initiatives
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What are the material issues the company has identified?
In its 2019 Sustainable Development Report Gazprom Neft identified a range of material issues, such as financial stability and operational efficiency, product safety and quality, anti-corruption, human rights. Among these, supporting local communities through educational initiatives stands out as a key material issue for Gazprom Neft.
Stakeholder engagement in accordance with the GRI Standards
The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) defines the Principle of Stakeholder Inclusiveness when identifying material issues (or a company’s most important impacts) as follows:
Stakeholders must be consulted in the process of identifying a company’s most important impacts and their reasonable expectations and interests must be taken into account. This is an important cornerstone for CSR / sustainability reporting done responsibly.
Key stakeholder groups Gazprom Neft engages with:
| Stakeholder Group | Method of engagement |
| Shareholders and investors
| · General Meeting of Shareholders · Corporate reports · Meetings, conferences and conference calls for investors · On-site meetings with investors · Investor Day attended by Gazprom Neft top managers · Analyst databook and statistics digest published by Gazprom Neft · Up-to-date information posted in the Investors section on the company website · Hotline and email |
| Employees
| · System of internal communications · Meetings between Gazprom Neft employees and management to discuss outstanding issues · Joint health committees · Meetings attended by trade union representatives · Employee engagement surveys (EES) · Forums, conferences, cultural and sporting events |
| Consumers | · Contracts · Feedback system and services · Complaint management system · System for consumers to assess Gazprom Neft · Media · External corporate communications · Gazprom Neft loyalty programmes · Business meetings, including on-site · Conferences and forums · Corporate reports |
| Government of the Russian Federation and governments of Gazprom Neft’s regions of operation | · Agreements on social and economic partnership · Joint working groups, round-table talks and meetings · Corporate reports · Participation in commissions and conferences
|
| Suppliers and partners
| · Competitive tendering procedures · Contracts and agreements · System for contractors to assess Gazprom Neft · Business meetings and forums organised by Gazprom Neft · External conferences and exhibitions · Corporate website, including the Procurement Portal section |
| Local communities in Gazprom Neft’s regions of operation
| · Social projects forming part of the ‘Home Towns’ Social Investment Programme · Projects to promote social development and support education, healthcare, culture and sports in Serbia and Iraq · Public consultations, round-table meetings and dialogues · Corporate and external media · Corporate reports |
| Industry peers in Russia and worldwide
| · Cooperation agreements · Participation in industry and cross-industry events · Membership in industry organisations’ committees · Joint projects · Corporate reports |
| Non-profit and non-governmental organisations
| · Conferences and exhibitions · Round-table meetings · Joint implementation of social projects · Corporate reports |
How stakeholder engagement was made to identify material issues
To identify and prioritise material topics Gazprom Neft surveyed both internal and external stakeholders.
What actions were taken by Gazprom Neft to support local communities through educational initiatives?
In its 2019 Sustainable Development Report Gazprom Neft reports that it took the following actions for supporting local communities through educational initiatives:
- Implementing the Masters of Russia programme
- Together with the Creative Practices Foundation, Gazprom Neft is implementing the Masters of Russia programme which aims to support young entrepreneurship. This project includes a series of studies, forums and crash courses, and is focused on the Mastera Academy online media platform. This resource gives young entrepreneurs an opportunity to share experiences, develop professional competencies, and present their products to a wide audience, free of charge. Over 20,000 users have completed online courses on the Mastera Academy platform. In the reporting year, the Makers of Siberia Photo Prize contest was held with support from the “Home Towns” Programme. The theme of the contest was “The Present” and local photographers took part in it. Members of the MoS Photo Prize jury considered over 600 applications, and selected 17 of them: ten individual photos, and seven series. The main prize was a trip to the photography festival in Arles in France. As part of the Strategic Planning Leaders Forum 2019, Masters of Russia held a plenary session entitled “Creative Entrepreneurship and the New Economy: Regions during the Industry 4.0”. In the youth section of the Forum, there was an open discussion called “The Power of the Village” that related to sustainable development and creative projects outside cities.
- Carrying out the “Mathematical Progression” joint project
- Gazprom Neft is a partner of the Chebyshev Laboratory at St Petersburg State University, headed by a Fields Medal winner, Stanislav Smirnov. The “Mathematical Progression” joint project supports talented mathematicians at every stage of their studies: high-school students receive invitations to universities; students are awarded personal scholarships; young researchers receive grants and internships in Russia and abroad; and scientific and research teams secure funding for fundamental studies. In 2019, Gazprom Neft gave individual scholarships and prizes to 73 students and four young researchers. This project has now reached international level, as the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science was established in the Chebyshev Laboratory. In addition, the “Modern Mathematics” MSc programme was launched for students from Russia, Eastern Europe and Asia, with support from Gazprom Neft.
- Organising the “Developing Talent” Case Tournament
- Every year since 2015, Gazprom Neft has held the “Developing Talent” Case Tournament for gifted school students. High-school students from the regions in which Gazprom Neft operates compete to solve business cases related to the oil and gas sector. The tournament is aimed at making specialisation in engineering more popular among schoolchildren in the regions in which Gazprom Neft operates, helping the schoolchildren to build their research skills, thus encouraging the creation of a future talent pool for the company. In 2019, the tournament was held in a new format: participants solved not only problems related to the oil and gas sector, but also digital business cases prepared by Gazprom Neft. Overall, 2,800 applications were submitted for the tournament, with 71 high-school students reaching the final. In 2019, the Sirius Educational Centre, which is the leading Russian campus for gifted children, joined in the tournament.
- Implementing educational programmes with the Strelka Institute
- Since 2015, Gazprom Neft has been working with the Strelka Institute for Media, Architecture and Design in educational programmes for representatives involved in regional development initiatives in Omsk and St Petersburg. The project aims to provide the representatives with the necessary competencies to enable them to work together to create a comfortable urban environment. In 2019, over 1,000 people attended In the City, a conference about technologies shaping the future of cities. It includes lectures and workshops by entrepreneurs, researchers, and specialists in urban studies from the USA, the Netherlands, Indonesia and Russia, and has 25,000 viewers watching online broadcasts.
Which GRI Standards and corresponding Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have been addressed?
The GRI Standard addressed in this case is: Disclosure 203-2 Significant indirect economic impacts
Disclosure 203-2 Significant indirect economic impacts corresponds to:
- Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 1: No Poverty
- Targets: 1.2, 1.4
- Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3: Good Health and Well-Being
- Targets: 3.8
- Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth
- Targets: 8.2, 8.3, 8.5
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References:
1) This case study is based on published information by Gazprom Neft, located at the link below. For the sake of readability, we did not use brackets or ellipses. However, we made sure that the extra or missing words did not change the report’s meaning. If you would like to quote these written sources from the original, please revert to the original on the Global Reporting Initiative’s Sustainability Disclosure Database at the link:
http://database.globalreporting.org/
2) https://www.globalreporting.org/standards/gri-standards-download-center/
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