Sustainable strategy
Governance
Cross-company and participatory approach to sustainability
To build, steer and drive its Sustainability strategy, Ethias relies on cross-functional, participative governance.
The central Sustainability team steers the strategy and ensures its integration into all the company's activities and at group level.
Based on the sustainability impacts identified in the various departments, internal workstreams have been set up. These workstreams work with the central Sustainability team to draw up activation plans for the strategy in line with their business or department, and are responsible for its implementation. These workstreams meet once every six weeks in Stream Lead Meetings to discuss progress on the roadmaps and current issues relating to the Sustainability strategy.
In addition, ad hoc working groups are set up if needed in order to deal with cross-functional issues, for better coordinating the company's ongoing Sustainability Strategy projects.
Finally, good governance requires both top-down and bottom-up involvement. For the strategy to spread throughout the company, it needs the support of both Top and Senior Management, as well as employees. Sustainability strategy, action plans and progress are regularly discussed at various levels within the company:
- The Board of Directors validates the company's strategy, with sustainability at its core, and regularly reviews its progress. In this respect, it is specified that the members of the Board of Directors must collectively be in a position to understand the activities of Ethias SA, including the principal risks to which it is exposed. They must have a collective knowledge and experience of environmental and climatic risks in particular. The collective expertise criteria are detailed in the competency matrices created and updated by the Appointments and Remuneration Committee. There are 16 directors, including 4 executive directors, 4 independent directors and 6 women (pursuant to Article 7:86 of the Belgian Code on Companies and Associations). The composition of the Board of Directors also respects linguistic parity.
- The Sustainability strategy is also discussed on a quarterly and ad hoc basis at Management Committee meetings. In addition, each member of the Management Committee also receives an individual Sustainability target, on which a percentage of his or her variable compensation depends. Since December 2021, the Management Committee has comprised 8 individuals (6 men - 2 women), including four directors. The composition of the Management Committee also respects linguistic parity.
- A Sustainability Steering Committee meets quarterly with management to review the various workstreams and redirect them where necessary. It meets under the supervision of the Chief Strategy & Data Officer.
- An Ethics Committee was set up in 2003, as an offshoot of the Works Council. It deals with corporate ethics and social responsibility issues, and operates on the basis of shared responsibility between unions and management. The council assesses the progress of the sustainability strategy and can also give opinions or recommendations related to sustainability;
- Employees meet within the ReGeneration Movement, an internal community of people committed to and passionate about sustainability. They take on a wide range of initiatives and provide input for internal workgroups.
