Management approach to sustainable development
The main aspects of management of sustainable development issues in Bank Millennium were included in the growth strategy for 2015-2017 and are implemented in individual areas of the Bank’s operations.
Sustainable development elements in the Bank Millennium Strategy for years 2015-2017
The Bank’s adherence to sustainable development principles has been confirmed by external assessments. Since 2011 the Bank has been in the RESPECT Index consisting of socially responsible companies listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. The Bank also received POLITYKA’s 2016 CSR Silver Leaf – a distinction awarded to companies implementing sustainable development measures and it earned a distinction in the “I Respond to Poland – the Ranking of Socially Responsible Companies” conducted by Gazeta Bankowa daily and wGospodarce.pl site. Six CSR activities carried out in the Bank were also published in the report entitled “Responsible Business in Poland in 2015” issued by the Responsible Business Forum.
Oversight, identification and management of economic, environmental and social issues
Bank Millennium achieves its economic, environmental and social objectives on the basis of the plans prepared by the Bank’s Management Board and approved by the Bank’s Supervisory Board with a one-year time horizon and in the medium term (usually three years). Achievement of these plans is subject to regular reviews and assessments. They are made by the Bank’s Management Board, based on information prepared by the entities responsible for their implementation and by the Bank’s Supervisory Board, based on information presented by the Management Board. Based on the current assessment of critical points and the possible unexpected events that may affect the achievement of the assumed objectives, the objectives or the policies used to implement them are adjusted.
These decisions are noted in minutes prepared during the meetings of the Bank’s Management Board and Supervisory Board. They may also be subject to an independent review conducted by the internal audit function. Global assessment of the Bank’s activities, including the management of economic, environmental and social matters, is performed by the Supervisory Board based on the Bank’s published statements. They are analyzed and presented to the Shareholders at the Shareholder Meeting and form the basis for granting a discharge to the Bank’s Management Board on the performance of its duties in the financial year. [GRI 102-31] [GRI 102-26]
Management of risks associated with the impact of environmental and social factors
The following categories of social and economic factors are taken into account in the operational risk management process:
- Human risk – arising from conscious actions or omissions by an employee or a risk arising from relations between the Bank and its employees;
- Litigation risk – associated with the execution of transactions and different aspects of business activity, including products and services;
- External risk – arising from damage to physical property or loss of assets due to natural or unnatural reasons, including risk arising from actions by third parties, such as fraud or, in the case of regulators, implementation of a change that could change the organization’s capacity to continue its business activity on certain markets;
- Organizational risk – risk arising from issues such as project management, non-compliance with regulatory requirements, corporate culture and risk arising from communication and improper market practices.
When analyzing the risks associated with the financing of companies, the Bank additionally identified high risk industries. One of the criteria for a branch to be classified in this category is a negative outlook related, among others, with environmental threats. The Bank has default exposure limits for Clients in respective industry categories, where the limit levels are the most restrictive for high risk industries.
The Bank has in place a process-based approach to operational risk management. Individual risk management levels, scopes of their duties and responsibilities from the basic position up to the Supervisory Board have been identified for this risk type.
The Bank’s Management Board designs and introduces a risk management system and monitors its operation. The Bank’s Supervisory Board oversees the implemented system and assesses its adequacy and effectiveness at least once a year.
[GRI 102-11] [GRI 102-30] [GRI 103-2] [GRI 103-3]
Impact of the Bank’s activity on sustainable development and Stakeholder rights
The Bank has identified the key areas of its impact on sustainable economic, social and environmental development and the related risks, challenges and opportunities. The key aspects of the Bank’s impact have been classified by their significance for Stakeholders and the scope of impact.
Clients +
- Impact on:
ensuring security of deposited funds, ethical marketing and selling practices, offering high quality products and services, access for people threatened with exclusion - Challenges:
continuous monitoring of client opinions and correctness of processes in the Bank and introduction of improvements in response to clients’ needs
- Benefits:
gaining competitive advantage as a Bank with a good reputation, offering high service quality and accessible to a wide group of clients - Actions taken:
introducing regulations to ensure product safety and protection of client’s funds; continuous dialogue with clients to respond to their expectations; obligating employees to observe the ethical marketing and selling practices; ensuring access for excluded individuals
Employees +
- Impact on:
Employee rights to fair remuneration, rewards, employment stability and development and opportunity to express opinions - Challenges:
developing solutions that take into account both: expectations of employees but also the economic capacity of the company
- Benefits:
gaining dedicated and loyal employees and reputation of a good employer - Actions taken:
preferring employment for an indefinite term, profiled training, communication with employees, well-being programs (focusing on the balance between professional and private life, healthy lifestyle)
Inwestors and market analysts +
- Impact on:
transparent information policy enabling investors to make investment decisions - Challenges:
creating modern platforms enabling rapid exchange of information between the company and investors
- Benefits:
increasing confidence in the company and consequently growth of brand value - Actions taken:
observing corporate governance principles, transparent reporting and reporting policy
Suppliers +
- Impact on:
monitoring the supply chain and obligating the suppliers to observe ethical and environmental standards - Challenges:
monitoring the observance of ethical and environmental standards throughout the supply chain
- Benefits:
reducing the risk of cooperation with suppliers who fail to observe the ethical or environmental principles - Actions taken:
applying ethical and environmental clauses in selected contracts with suppliers, obligating suppliers to observe the Bank Millennium Code of Ethics
Society +
- Impact on:
preventing social exclusion through the implementation of social and educational programs and providing access to products and services for the disabled persons. - Challenges:
boosting the Bank’s impact on resolution of social problems
- Benefits:
impact on resolution of social problems (e.g. exclusion of the disabled or elderly, low financial literacy in society) - Actions taken:
introducing facilities for disabled persons, educational programs to prevent the problem of financial exclusion
Environment +
- Impact on:
monitoring the environmental impact and managing resources in a sustainable manner; environmentally friendly products, environmental education of clients and employees - Challenges:
implementing an environmental policy and a comprehensive tool for reporting and monitoring environmental data
- Benefits:
optimizing processes in the company and the associated savings of e.g. energy, fuel and water; reducing fees for pollution - Actions taken:
monitoring the use of resources and implementation of reduction measures, introducing environmentally friendly products, environmental education among clients and employees
[GRI 102-15]