BMW Group Archives - SustainCase - Sustainability Magazine Insights on how you can protect the environment, maintain and increase the value of your company, through a structured CSR/Sustainability process with the use of the GRI Standards. Learn how Today's Best-Run Companies are achieving Economic, Social, and Environmental Success - and How You Can Too... Thu, 23 Feb 2023 09:43:57 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.0.2 Case study: How the BMW Group trains employees, fostering their talents https://sustaincase.com/case-study-how-the-bmw-group-trains-employees-fostering-their-talents/ Mon, 16 Sep 2019 12:06:55 +0000 https://ccprowebs.com/new-sustaincase.com/?p=9953 Currently active in more than 150 countries, employing almost 130,000 people, the BMW Group actively promotes long-term employee development by seeking out the right employees, making the most of their individual talents and developing their potential, thereby laying the groundwork for future success. This case study is based on the 2017 Sustainable Value Report by the BMW Group 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 […]

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]]> Currently active in more than 150 countries, employing almost 130,000 people, the BMW Group actively promotes long-term employee development by seeking out the right employees, making the most of their individual talents and developing their potential, thereby laying the groundwork for future success.

This case study is based on the 2017 Sustainable Value Report by the BMW Group 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

In today’s dynamic and fast-changing working world, life-long learning is increasingly gaining in importance. Accordingly, the BMW Group invests, on an ongoing basis, in training its employees and developing their talents  Tweet This!, making sure employees have the skills needed to keep pace with future challenges. In order to train employees, fostering their talents, the BMW Group took action to:

  • build digital skills
  • develop leadership skills

What are the material issues the company has identified?

In its 2017 Sustainable Value Report the BMW Group identified a range of material issues, such as fuel efficiency and CO2 emissions of vehicles, prevention of corruption and anti-competitive behaviour, occupational health and safety, environmental and social standards in the supply chain / sustainable sourcing, human rights. Among these, training employees, fostering their talents, stands out as a key material issue for the BMW Group.

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:

“The reporting organization shall identify its stakeholders, and explain how it has responded to their reasonable expectations and interests.”

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 the BMW Group engages with:  

Stakeholder Group                Method of engagement
Capital market

 

 ·      Dialogue, conferences and technology workshops with investors and analysts on the strategic topics of electromobility and autonomous driving
Suppliers ·      Dialogue in the context of industry initiatives

·      Joint events

·      Training courses

·      Presentations

·      Supplier risk assessments

·      Learning from Suppliers forum
Networks and associations

 

 ·      Participation of Board members, technical experts or subject specialists in a number of initiatives, forums and events

·      Memberships of initiatives
Policymakers

 

 ·      Workshops on key topics

·      Regular “Green Tables” with German parliamentarians
Research

 

 ·      Round tables

·      Visits from universities

·      Lectures

·      Discussions

·      BMW Group Dialogue with students
Media ·      Dialogue within the context of press trips

·      Press releases

·      Informational events on new products

·      Test drives

·      Trade fairs
Business partners ·      Dialogue with sales organisations and the association of German BMW dealerships

·      Business conferences

·      Dialogue via the central coordinating units of importers
Local stakeholders ·      One-on-one dialogue

·      Plant visits

·      Neighbourhood dialogue

·      Press events
Civil society and NGOs ·      Face-to-face meetings/dialogue

·      Responding to enquiries
Employees ·      Dialogue with employees and managers

·      Employee survey

·      Idea management

·      Internal media
Customers ·      Customer survey

·      Social media

·      Trade fairs

·      Media

How stakeholder engagement was made to identify material issues

To identify and prioritise material topics the BMW Group carried out telephone interviews with 13 representative stakeholders. Customers, suppliers, investors, authorities, NGOs and scientists were among the stakeholders interviewed.

What actions were taken by the BMW Group to train employees, fostering their talents?

In its 2017 Sustainable Value Report the BMW Group reports that it took the following actions for training employees, fostering their talents:

  • Building digital skills
  • The BMW Group is developing new, digitally networked automobiles that will soon be able to drive completely autonomously. These changes will inevitably affect the way its employees work and the skills they must master. This is why the BMW Group tries to equip existing employees with the expertise they need to keep up with future developments, and to recruit new “digital talents”. The BMW Group already takes into account these new challenges, in its vocational training. For example, BMWAG launched a training programme for IT specialists in 2018 and various training courses that combined information technology with other relevant fields. New skills were already incorporated into existing vocational training programmes in 2017, to equip trainees for the future. At its production sites in China, the USA, South Africa and the UK as well as in Brazil, Thailand and Mexico, the BMW Group continues to rely on the dual system of vocational education and training for young people. In China and Mexico, the BMW Group added the occupation of automotive mechatronics technician to the training portfolio, and increased the number of trainees in the UK and Mexico.
  • Developing leadership skills
  • Through its Group-wide “Corporate Leadership Programme” the BMW Group provides managers with a wide range of advanced training opportunities. The further development of leadership skills is geared toward transforming the enterprise in accordance with the corporate Strategy NUMBER ONE > NEXT. The BMW Group aims to develop executives who display personal initiative, while also working well with others to successfully lead teams and build networks. They can, then, act as role models and drivers for the company’s digital and cultural transformation. In 2017, these efforts focused on the initiative “Next Experience”: between January and April 2017, almost 13,000 executives took part in a one-day event involving four workshops and an introduction to the new corporate Strategy NUMBER ONE > NEXT. To foster international young talent, the BMW Group also developed the “Global Leader Development Programme”. The programme includes various practical phases in Germany and abroad, targeted training measures and diverse networking and exchange opportunities. Special emphasis is placed on developing intercultural competence.

Which GRI Standards and corresponding Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have been addressed?

The GRI Standards addressed in this case are:

1) Disclosure 404-1 Average hours of training per year per employee

2) Disclosure 404-2 Programs for upgrading employee skills and transition assistance programs

 

Disclosure 404-1 Average hours of training per year per employee corresponds to:

Disclosure 404-2 Programs for upgrading employee skills and transition assistance programs corresponds to:

  • Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 8: Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all
  • Business theme: Employee training and education

 

78% of the world’s 250 largest companies report in accordance with the GRI Standards

SustainCase was primarily created to demonstrate, through case studies, the importance of dealing with a company’s most important impacts in a structured way, with use of the GRI Standards. To show how today’s best-run companies are achieving economic, social and environmental success – and how you can too.

Research by well-recognised institutions is clearly proving that responsible companies can look to the future with optimism.

7 GRI sustainability disclosures get you started

Any size business can start taking sustainability action

GRI, ISEP, CPD Certified Sustainability courses (2-5 days): Live Online or Classroom  (venue: London School of Economics)

  • Exclusive FBRH template to begin reporting from day one
  • Identify your most important impacts on the Environment, Economy and People
  • Formulate in group exercises your plan for action. Begin taking solid, focused, all-round sustainability action ASAP. 
  • Benchmarking methodology to set you on a path of continuous improvement

See upcoming training dates.

 

References:

1) This case study is based on published information by the BMW Group, 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/

Note to the BMW Group: With each case study we send out an email requesting a comment on this case study. If you have not received such an email please contact us.

The post Case study: How the BMW Group trains employees, fostering their talents appeared first on SustainCase - Sustainability Magazine.

]]> Case study: How the BMW Group promotes work-life balance among employees https://sustaincase.com/case-study-how-the-bmw-group-promotes-work-life-balance-among-employees/ Tue, 04 Jun 2019 16:09:32 +0000 https://ccprowebs.com/new-sustaincase.com/?p=9665 As a company that is currently active in over 150 countries with almost 130,000 employees, the BMW Group understands that the working hours that function best for employees vary depending on what phase of life they are in, their individual life plans and their work situation, and seeks, accordingly, to offer employees the best possible work-life balance. This case study is based on the 2017 Sustainable Value Report by the BMW Group 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 […]

The post Case study: How the BMW Group promotes work-life balance among employees appeared first on SustainCase - Sustainability Magazine.

]]> As a company that is currently active in over 150 countries with almost 130,000 employees, the BMW Group understands that the working hours that function best for employees vary depending on what phase of life they are in, their individual life plans and their work situation, and seeks, accordingly, to offer employees the best possible work-life balance.

This case study is based on the 2017 Sustainable Value Report by the BMW Group 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

Encouraging work-life balance, the BMW Group offers its employees a wide range of flexible modules  Tweet This!, so they can tailor their working hours and locations to their personal needs. In order to promote work-life balance among employees the BMW Group took action to:

  • offer flexible working hours
  • enable mobile working
  • support employees through family services

What are the material issues the company has identified?

In its 2017 Sustainable Value Report the BMW Group identified a range of material issues, such as fuel efficiency and CO2 emissions of vehicles, product safety, environmental and social standards in the supply chain / sustainable sourcing, occupational health and safety, pollutant emissions of vehicles. Among these, promoting work-life balance among employees stands out as a key material issue for the BMW Group.

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:

“The reporting organization shall identify its stakeholders, and explain how it has responded to their reasonable expectations and interests.”

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 the BMW Group engages with:  

Stakeholder Group                Method of engagement
Capital market

 

 ·      Dialogue, conferences and technology workshops with investors and analysts on the strategic topics of electromobility and autonomous driving
Suppliers ·      Dialogue in the context of industry initiatives

·      Joint events

·      Training courses

·      Presentations

·      Supplier risk assessments

·      Learning from Suppliers forum
Networks and associations

 

 ·      Participation of Board members, technical experts or subject specialists in a number of initiatives, forums and events

·      Memberships of initiatives
Policymakers

 

 ·      Workshops on key topics

·      Regular “Green Tables” with German parliamentarians
Research

 

 ·      Round tables

·      Visits from universities

·      Lectures

·      Discussions

·      BMW Group Dialogue with students
Media ·      Dialogue within the context of press trips

·      Press releases

·      Informational events on new products

·      Test drives

·      Trade fairs
Business partners ·      Dialogue with sales organisations and the association of German BMW dealerships

·      Business conferences

·      Dialogue via the central coordinating units of importers
Local stakeholders ·      One-on-one dialogue

·      Plant visits

·      Neighbourhood dialogue

·      Press events
Civil society and NGOs ·      Face-to-face meetings/dialogue

·      Responding to enquiries
Employees ·      Dialogue with employees and managers

·      Employee survey

·      Idea management

·      Internal media
Customers ·      Customer survey

·      Social media

·      Trade fairs

·      Media

How stakeholder engagement was made to identify material issues

To identify and prioritise material topics the BMW Group conducted telephone interviews with 13 representative stakeholders, who included customers, suppliers, investors, authorities, NGOs and scientists from different regions of the world.

What actions were taken by the BMW Group to promote work-life balance among employees?

In its 2017 Sustainable Value Report the BMW Group reports that it took the following actions for promoting work-life balance among employees:

  • Offering flexible working hours
  • Through the concept of the working time account, BMW Group employees can exert some influence over their working hours. Office employees can take advantage of flexitime, for example, or production staff can trade shifts or reduce their hours to gain some free days. In addition to statutory working time arrangements in some countries, such as part-time work or parental or caregiver leave, the BMW Group also offers employees options such as sabbaticals or the “Vollzeit Select” (Full-time Select) scheme, to provide further attractive ways for employees to individually plan working hours. Sabbaticals can be arranged by employees worldwide, and the BMW Group’s “Vollzeit Select” working time tool allows employees in Germany and Austria to take 20 additional days of leave each year with corresponding adjustments to their salaries, without any complicated red tape. Demand for these options continued to increase in 2017, showing that the offer of flexible working time arrangements met a real need.
  • Enabling mobile working
  • In 2017, more than 31,700 BMW Group employees, or approximately 63% of those working outside the direct production areas, chose to work at least one partial and/or full day on a mobile basis. This represents a renewed increase, compared to 2016. By organising their working hours more flexibly, employees can, for example, better integrate childcare or caring for dependents into their everyday work routine. Outside of agreed working hours, employees have the right to switch off and be unavailable. Mobile working at the BMW Group, signifies a culture of trust, and relies on constructive dialogue.
  • Supporting employees through family services
  • The BMW Group has, for years, been offering its employees family support services. In Germany, for example, experts from the family support service help employees organise childcare and care for dependents as well as arrange household services. In 2017, the BMW Group responded to 830 employee requests of this nature, 160 of them dealing with the issue of care. Additionally, the BMW Group has set up childcare services at many of its German locations and, with the support of parents’ initiatives, was able to accommodate, in 2017, more than 460 children aged zero to six years.

Which GRI Standards and corresponding Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have been addressed?

The GRI Standard addressed in this case is: Disclosure 401-3 Parental leave

Disclosure 401-3 Parental leave corresponds to:

 

78% of the world’s 250 largest companies report in accordance with the GRI Standards

SustainCase was primarily created to demonstrate, through case studies, the importance of dealing with a company’s most important impacts in a structured way, with use of the GRI Standards. To show how today’s best-run companies are achieving economic, social and environmental success – and how you can too.

Research by well-recognised institutions is clearly proving that responsible companies can look to the future with optimism.

7 GRI sustainability disclosures get you started

Any size business can start taking sustainability action

GRI, ISEP, CPD Certified Sustainability courses (2-5 days): Live Online or Classroom  (venue: London School of Economics)

  • Exclusive FBRH template to begin reporting from day one
  • Identify your most important impacts on the Environment, Economy and People
  • Formulate in group exercises your plan for action. Begin taking solid, focused, all-round sustainability action ASAP. 
  • Benchmarking methodology to set you on a path of continuous improvement

See upcoming training dates.

 

References:

1) This case study is based on published information by the BMW Group, 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/

Note to the BMW Group: With each case study we send out an email requesting a comment on this case study. If you have not received such an email please contact us.

The post Case study: How the BMW Group promotes work-life balance among employees appeared first on SustainCase - Sustainability Magazine.

]]> Case study: How the BMW Group optimises energy efficiency https://sustaincase.com/case-study-how-the-bmw-group-optimises-energy-efficiency/ Fri, 14 Dec 2018 06:25:02 +0000 https://ccprowebs.com/new-sustaincase.com/?p=8387 Trying to become the most successful and sustainable premium provider of individual mobility globally, the BMW Group integrates sustainability along its entire value chain and into all basic processes, seeking to create added value for the company, the environment and society, not least by improving resource efficiency – including energy. This case study is based on the 2017 Sustainable Value Report by the BMW Group 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) […]

The post Case study: How the BMW Group optimises energy efficiency appeared first on SustainCase - Sustainability Magazine.

]]>

Trying to become the most successful and sustainable premium provider of individual mobility globally, the BMW Group integrates sustainability along its entire value chain and into all basic processes, seeking to create added value for the company, the environment and society, not least by improving resource efficiency – including energy.

This case study is based on the 2017 Sustainable Value Report by the BMW Group 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

Layout 1

Abstract

The BMW Group continuously works to conserve resources and reduce energy consumption  Tweet This!, by optimising processes and investing in more efficient technologies. In order to optimise energy efficiency the BMW Group took action to:

  • increase electricity generation from combined heat and power systems
  • replace lights by LEDs at production plants
  • improve processes to reduce energy consumption at plants
  • launch a digitalisation project for energy consumption and production data

What are the material issues the company has identified?

In its 2017 Sustainable Value Report the BMW Group identified a range of material issues, such as fuel efficiency and CO2 emissions of vehicles, environmental and social standards in the supply chain / sustainable sourcing, occupational health and safety, pollutant emissions of vehicles, connected and autonomous driving. Among these, optimising energy efficiency stands out as a key material issue for the BMW Group.

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:

“The reporting organization shall identify its stakeholders, and explain how it has responded to their reasonable expectations and interests.”

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 the BMW Group engages with:  

Stakeholder Group                Method of engagement
Capital market

 

 ·      Dialogue

·      Conferences and technology workshops with investors and analysts on the strategic topics of electromobility and autonomous driving
Suppliers ·      Dialogue in the context of industry initiatives

·      Joint events

·      Training courses

·      Presentations

·      Supplier risk assessments

·      Learning from Suppliers forum
Networks and associations

 

 ·      Participation of Board members, technical experts or subject specialists in a number of initiatives, forums and events

·      Memberships of initiatives
Policymakers

 

 ·      Workshops on key topics

·      Regular “Green Tables” with German parliamentarians
Research

 

 ·      Round tables

·      Visits from universities

·      Lectures

·      Discussions

·      BMW Group Dialogue with students
Media ·      Dialogue within the context of press trips

·      Press releases

·      Informational events on new products

·      Test drives

·      Trade fairs
Business partners ·      Dialogue with sales organisations and the association of
 German BMW dealerships·      Business conferences·      Dialogue via the central coordinating units of importers
Local stakeholders ·      One-on-one dialogue

·      Plant visits

·      Neighbourhood dialogue

·      Press events
Civil society and NGOs ·      Face-to-face meetings/dialogue

·      Responding to enquiries
Employees ·      Dialogue with employees and managers

·      Employee survey

·      Idea management

·      Internal media
Customers ·      Customer survey

·      Social media

·      Trade fairs

·      Media

How stakeholder engagement was made to identify material issues

To identify and prioritise material topics the BMW Group carried out telephone interviews with 13 representative stakeholders who included customers, suppliers, investors, authorities, NGOs and scientists from different regions of the world.

What actions were taken by the BMW Group to optimise energy efficiency?

In its 2017 Sustainable Value Report the BMW Group reports that it took the following actions for optimising energy efficiency:

  • Increasing electricity generation from combined heat and power systems
  • In 2017, the BMW Group increased electricity generation from combined heat and power systems by approximately 9 per cent, to 361,000 MWh. The company installed a new machine at its plant in Oxford/UK, and is preparing for the continued development of combined heat and power by carrying out preliminary work on the heating grids at the Munich/DE plant.
  • Replacing lights by LEDs at production plants
  • In 2017, the BMW Group almost completed the process of replacing lights by LEDs at its production plants. As a result of this shift, the company saved more than 67,700 MWh in energy and avoided CO2 emissions of approximately 28,000 tonnes.
  • Improving processes to reduce energy consumption at plants
  • By developing pig preheating at its plant in Landshut/DE, the BMW Group managed to reduce energy consumption in the light alloy smelter by a significant amount. In preheating chambers that use exhaust gas heat from other processes, aluminium ingots are now heated to a temperature of 400°C, before they are melted in smelters. As a result of the reduced melting time, the BMW Group saves more than 11,000 MWh of energy every year and significantly reduces CO2 emissions from the melting process, achieving annual cost savings of approximately € 350,000.
  • Launching a digitalisation project for energy consumption and production data
  • In 2017, the BMW Group launched a digitalisation project in the area of energy consumption and production data. By analysing power consumption figures of complex manufacturing structures and the facility management system, the company is able to determine optimal operating conditions. On the basis of this information, the BMW Group constantly optimises processes and increases energy efficiency, through innovative approaches.

Which GRI Standards and corresponding Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have been addressed?

The GRI Standards addressed in this case are:

1) Disclosure 302-3 Energy intensity

2) Disclosure 302-4 Reduction of energy consumption

 

Disclosure 302-3 Energy intensity corresponds to:

Disclosure 302-4 Reduction of energy consumption corresponds to:

 

78% of the world’s 250 largest companies report in accordance with the GRI Standards

SustainCase was primarily created to demonstrate, through case studies, the importance of dealing with a company’s most important impacts in a structured way, with use of the GRI Standards. To show how today’s best-run companies are achieving economic, social and environmental success – and how you can too.

Research by well-recognised institutions is clearly proving that responsible companies can look to the future with optimism.

7 GRI sustainability disclosures get you started

Any size business can start taking sustainability action

GRI, ISEP, CPD Certified Sustainability courses (2-5 days): Live Online or Classroom  (venue: London School of Economics)

  • Exclusive FBRH template to begin reporting from day one
  • Identify your most important impacts on the Environment, Economy and People
  • Formulate in group exercises your plan for action. Begin taking solid, focused, all-round sustainability action ASAP. 
  • Benchmarking methodology to set you on a path of continuous improvement

See upcoming training dates.

 

References:

1) This case study is based on published information by the BMW Group, 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/

Note to the BMW Group: With each case study we send out an email requesting a comment on this case study. If you have not received such an email please contact us.

The post Case study: How the BMW Group optimises energy efficiency appeared first on SustainCase - Sustainability Magazine.

]]> Case study: How the BMW Group promotes occupational health and safety https://sustaincase.com/case-study-how-the-bmw-group-ensures-occupational-health-and-safety/ Mon, 14 May 2018 10:11:31 +0000 https://ccprowebs.com/new-sustaincase.com/?p=6686 The BMW Group strives to become the most successful and sustainable premium provider of individual mobility around the globe, integrating sustainability across the company’s value chain and operations. Accordingly, safeguarding the health and safety of its approximately 125,000 employees, is a top priority. This case study is based on the 2016 Sustainable Value Report by the BMW Group 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/ sustainability reporting done responsibly means. Essentially, it means: a) identifying a company’s most important impacts on the environment, […]

The post Case study: How the BMW Group promotes occupational health and safety appeared first on SustainCase - Sustainability Magazine.

]]>

The BMW Group strives to become the most successful and sustainable premium provider of individual mobility around the globe, integrating sustainability across the company’s value chain and operations. Accordingly, safeguarding the health and safety of its approximately 125,000 employees, is a top priority.

This case study is based on the 2016 Sustainable Value Report by the BMW Group 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/ 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

Layout 1

Abstract

Active in more than 150 countries, the BMW Group strives to protect the health and safety of its employees through a holistic approach  Tweet This! that encompasses a range of programmes, initiatives and activities. In order to promote occupational health and safety the BMW Group took action to:

  • protect employees’ health through the BMW Group Health Initiative
  • promote the long-term health of employees through the Health Management 2020 programme
  • implement health and safety management systems

What are the material issues the company has identified?

In its 2016 Sustainable Value Report the BMW Group identified a range of material issues, such as fuel efficiency and CO2 emissions of vehicles, environmental and social standards in the supply chain / sustainable sourcing, product safety, human rights, prevention of corruption. Among these, promoting occupational health and safety stands out as a key material issue for the BMW Group.

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:

“The organization should identify its stakeholders, and explain how it has responded to their reasonable expectations.”

Stakeholders must be consulted in the process s 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 the BMW Group engages with:   

Stakeholder Group                Method of engagement
Capital market

 

 ·         E-mobility continues to require the support of policymakers, but new business models can also promote market acceptance
Suppliers ·         Dialogue in industry initiatives

·         Joint events

·         Training courses

·         Lectures

·         Supplier Risk Assessment

·         Learning from Suppliers forum
Networks and associations

 

 ·         Participation of Board members and technical experts in a number of initiatives, forums and events

·         Membership of initiatives
Policymakers

 

 ·         Workshops on key topics

·         Regular “Green Tables” with parliamentarians in Germany
Research

 

 ·         Round tables

·         Visits from universities

·         Lectures

·         Discussions

·         “BMW Group Dialogue” with students
Media ·         Dialogue in the form of public relations trips and press releases, informational events on new products, test drives, trade fairs
Business partners ·         Dialogue with sales organisations and the association of German BMW dealerships

·         Business conferences

·         Dialogue via the central coordinating units of importers
Local stakeholders ·         One-on-one dialogue

·         Plant visits

·         Neighbourhood dialogue

·         Press events
Civil society and NGOs ·         Face-to-face meetings/dialogue

·         Responding to enquiries
Employees ·         Dialogue with employees and managers

·         Employee survey

·         Idea management

·         Internal media
Customers ·         Customer survey

·         Social media

·         Trade fairs

·         Media

How stakeholder engagement was made to identify material issues

To identify and prioritize material topics the BMW Group carried out a survey among internal experts and, also, telephone interviews with 13 representative stakeholders. Interviewees included customers, suppliers, investors, authorities, NGOs and scientists from different regions of the world.

What actions were taken by the BMW Group to promote occupational health and safety?

In its 2016 Sustainable Value Report the BMW Group reports that it took the following actions for promoting occupational health and safety:

  • Protecting employees’ health through the BMW Group Health Initiative
  • The BMW Group Health Initiative is intended to increase awareness of the importance of health through general medical check-ups, targeted physiotherapy, nutritional advice, relaxation exercises, dialogue-based events. An extensive prevention and rehabilitation programme is also offered, which includes fitness courses and other sports activities, nutrition seminars and work safety, ergonomics and stress management courses.
  • Promoting the long-term health of employees through the Health Management 2020 programme
  • The Health Management 2020 programme follows a four-step cycle:
    • building knowledge around health through training courses, information talks, seminars
    • identifying health issues through a questionnaire and a thorough medical check-up
    • developing needs-based measures, individually and at a departmental level
    • a repeat check-up to assess improvements in health thanks to the programme
  • Every participant receives a personal health report. Since the programme was introduced in 2014, more than 47,000 BMW Group employees have taken part.
  • Implementing health and safety management systems
  • Currently, 28 of the BMW Group’s 31 production locations have occupational health and safety management systems. These systems are certified according to the OHRIS (Occupational Health and Risk Management System) or OHSAS (Occupational Health and Safety Assessment Series). Additionally, at almost all BMW Group locations both employers and employees participate in active occupational health and safety committees, to improve workplace health and safety.

Which GRI indicators/Standards have been addressed?

The GRI indicators/Standards addressed in this case are:

1) G4-LA5: Percentage of total workforce represented in formal joint management–worker health and safety committees that help monitor and advise on occupational health and safety programs – the updated GRI Standard is: Disclosure 403-1 Workers representation in formal joint management–worker health and safety committees

2) G4-LA6: Type of injury and rates of injury, occupational diseases, lost days, and absenteeism, and total number of work-related fatalities, by region and by gender – the updated GRI Standard is: Disclosure 403-2 Types of injury and rates of injury, occupational diseases, lost days, and absenteeism, and number of work-related fatalities

3) G4-LA7: Workers with high incidence or high risk of diseases related to their occupation – the updated GRI Standard is: Disclosure 403-3 Workers with high incidence or high risk of diseases related to their occupation

4) G4-LA8: Health and safety topics covered in formal agreements with trade unions – the updated GRI Standard is: Disclosure 403-4 Health and safety topics covered in formal agreements with trade unions

 

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References:

1) This case study is based on published information by the BMW Group, 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) http://www.fbrh.co.uk/en/global-reporting-initiative-gri-g4-guidelines-download-page

3) https://g4.globalreporting.org/Pages/default.aspx

4) https://www.globalreporting.org/standards/gri-standards-download-center/

Note to the BMW Group: With each case study we send out an email requesting a comment on this case study. If you have not received such an email please contact us.

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