Sainsbury’s: 20x20 Factsheet
Our management
approach to Corporate
Responsibility and
Sustainability
Our five values, and the 20 commitments within
them, underpin our business strategy with clear
governance in place to ensure their delivery.
Our 20x20
Sustainability
Plan
In October 2011, we published our new
20x20 Sustainability Plan with
ambitious commitments across our
five values which are part of our
business strategy. We want to
transform the marketplace for
greener, fairer and healthier
products. We want to help shift our
customers’ everyday behaviour in
favour of sustainability but still
provide the value and quality they
have come to expect. In many ways
the commitments encapsulated in our
20x20 Sustainability Plan are not
new to Sainsbury’s. We have sought
throughout our 143-year history to
lead in matters of responsible and
ethical business. With our 20x20
Sustainability Plan, we formalised our
work in support of our values, as well
as recognising the new and changing
issues facing today’s world. Our
20x20 Sustainability Plan sets out to
be an innovative and integral
cornerstone of our overall business
strategy, building upon our existing
work while extending our ambitions
as a responsible retailer. We created
the plan by working closely with over
40 specialists, ranging from the
National Farmers’ Union to the World
Wildlife Fund. The clarity of purpose
the 20x20 Sustainability Plan brings,
means that while we are fully focused
on it, we also continue to look beyond
2020.
www.j-sainsbury.co.uk
Our approach to sustainability
For Sainsbury’s, corporate responsibility
means many things. It is about providing
our customers with the widest choice of
good-quality, healthy food, at fair prices.
But also about paying our suppliers a fair
price and providing the reassurance of
knowing that they have a buyer for their
products on reasonable terms. It means
enriching our communities through
employment and career development
opportunities, while growing our business
profitably for our shareholders. And it
means making the most effective use of
our valuable resources like water and
electricity, and respecting the local
environment. We believe that you can
deliver both value and values to
customers, whilst being responsible to all
parts of the supply chain.
Business principles – Our values make
us different
We have a strong culture firmly rooted in
our values, and focus on ensuring these
make us different. This focus underpins
our business, and is interwoven into our
strategy. Our values are critical to
achieving our vision to be the most trusted
retailer, where people love to work and
shop. Our customers trust Sainsbury’s to
do the right thing and expect us to
maintain high social, ethical and
environmental standards across all aspects
of our business. Our values are part of
what make us different from other
supermarkets, and we see this as a
strength, as well as a responsibility. In
October 2011, we published our 20x20
Sustainability Plan to ensure we remain at
the forefront of sustainability between
now and 2020 and derive long-term
advantage from it.
5 values:
– Best for food and health
– Sourcing with integrity
– Respect for our environment
– Making a positive difference to
community
– A great place to work
our
Our management approach to Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability
01
Sainsbury’s: 20x20 Factsheet
“I believe
passionately that
businesses that
are values-driven
will be more
successful in the
long run. They
will make better
decisions;
decisions that are
more relevant to
their colleagues
and customers,
who are the core
of the business.
We strive for
higher standards
of corporate
citizenship right
across our
business as a
source of
competitive
advantage”.
Sainsbury’s is committed to high standards
of corporate governance, and applies the
principles and supporting principles of the
Combined Code. The Code emphasises the
need for well-balanced, effective boards,
strong overseeing of risk management,
alignment of remuneration policies with
shareholder interests, and sound
shareholder relations. Further information
is available in the Annual Report, which
provides the corporate governance
statement and the Remuneration Report
[http://www.j-sainsbury.co.uk/investorcentre/reports/2012/annual-report-andfinancial-statements-2012/].
Managing and instilling Corporate
Responsibility and Sustainability in our
organisation
To ensure a high level of accountability, we
were also one of the first FTSE 100
businesses to establish a corporate
responsibility governance structure. Our
five values and our 20x20 commitments
provide a practical basis for both major
business decisions and day-to-day
activities. As such, colleagues manage
corporate responsibility and sustainability
at every level of our business, from our
Board, to our management team, to our
colleagues in stores.
– Our
five values are part of our business
strategy.
– Our values are critical to achieving our
vision to be the most trusted retailer,
where people love to work and shop. Our
20 commitments mean we’re focused
and clear on what we must do to promote
our values.
– Leadership is established at Board and
Executive Team Level.
– Over 80 colleagues are accountable for
one or more of our 20x20 commitments.
– We measure and test CR performance
through external indices – FTSE4Food,
Dow Jones Sustainability Index, Business
in the Community, plus specifics such as
the Carbon Disclosure Project.
Justin King, Chief Executive
www.j-sainsbury.co.uk
Our management approach to Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability
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Sainsbury’s: 20x20 Factsheet
Corporate Responsibility and
Sustainability governance
Over the last year we’ve
incorporated the 20x20
framework into the existing
committee and steering
group structure. A member of
our Operating Board is
responsible for each of our
five values and also sits on
our Corporate Responsibility
Steering Group, which is
chaired by our CEO. This
group is also responsible for
ensuring we make progress
and achieve our 20x20
commitments.
Commitments
Best for food and health:
– Healthiest baskets
– Alcohol
Sourcing with integrity:
– Raw materials
– Deforestation
– Sustainable fish
– Fairly traded
– British
– Animal welfare
– Supplier standards
Respect for our environment:
– Positive waste
– Packaging
– Operational carbon
– Supplier carbon
– Water
Making a difference to our community:
– Active youth
– Community investment
A great place to work:
– Jobs and skills
– Commitment and engagement
– Sharing in success
– Disadvantaged groups
www.j-sainsbury.co.uk
Our management approach to Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability
03
Sainsbury’s: 20x20 Factsheet
Corporate Responsibility and
Sustainability governance
CR Committee
The CR Committee is chaired by
Non-Executive Director Jean Tomlin
(appointed January 2013), who reports
to the J Sainsbury plc Board twice a year
on our plans and on the progress we have
made on each of these values. Justin King
is also on this committee, along with
another Non-Executive Director Mary
Harris. David Tyler, our Chairman, also
attends each meeting. Its terms of
reference include approval of the
Corporate Responsibility Report, and
consideration of the broad CR and
Sustainability policy, taking into account
the Company’s desired CR positioning and
objectives and related costs and benefits,
the overall strategic plan, and relevant
external and other factors. It is given the
same importance as all other plc Board
committees, and we were the first FTSE
company to do this. These formal
Committee meetings are supported by CR
strategic meetings hosted by Jean Tomlin
(appointed January 2013) and Justin King.
Each meeting is based on one of our five
CR values, and we invite relevant external
parties to attend.
Value Steering Groups
The five Value Steering Groups – covering
Best for food and health, Sourcing with
integrity, Respect for our environment,
Making a positive difference to our
community and A great place to work –
correspond to the five guiding values
which underpin the Company’s CR
strategy. Each value steering group is
accountable for achieving the relevant
commitments and key delivery goals within
our 20x20 Sustainability Plan. The groups
meet monthly with each chaired by a
member of the Company’s Operating
Board. Each group comprises the key
operational people responsible for that
value and individual 20x20 commitments.
Directors’ personal objectives
Directors’ personal objectives include
performance against our Corporate
Responsibility goals, as part of the
Deferred Share Award. (More details in our
Annual Report & Accounts: pages 57-58)
[http://www.j-sainsbury.co.uk/investorcentre/reports/2012/annual-report-andfinancial-statements-2012/].
CR Steering Group
The CR Steering Group reports to the CR
Committee and it meets every quarter and
is chaired by Justin King, Sainsbury’s Chief
Executive. The five heads of the Value
Steering Groups also sit on the Steering
Group.
www.j-sainsbury.co.uk
Our management approach to Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability
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Sainsbury’s: 20x20 Factsheet
Corporate Responsibility and
Sustainability governance
Tell Justin
suggestions from
colleagues.
Our Tell Justin scheme encourages
all colleagues in our business to
suggest new ideas on how we can
improve our business and better
serve our customers. These are
reviewed by Justin King, our CEO and
successful ideas are implemented.
In 2012 we have already received
over 250 ideas from colleagues
relating to sustainability issues and
we engaged our colleagues across a
broad range of sustainability subjects
such as British sourcing, our work in
the local community, our work with
FareShare and the London 2012
Paralympic Games.
To track our performance against the
20 commitments laid out in the 20x20
Sustainability Plan, we have developed
trackers for each commitment, owned by
the respective Value Steering Groups,
which reviews our progress against the
commitments and the respective Key
Delivery Goals, identifying the key KPIs.
Internal audit
See factsheet on reporting
External benchmarking
In sustainability, as in all areas of our
business, we look to learn from the world
around us and understand it better. We
share what we learn across our business
and use it to inform our collective thinking
and decision-making. We also compare
ourselves to our competitors, and listen to
people’s concerns, to give ourselves an
external perspective on our performance.
We continue to use what we learn in our
plans, activities, business systems and
processes.
We hold Gold class status in the globallyrecognised Dow Jones Sustainability
Index, which we first joined in 2003, and
are recognised as a sector leader in this
index. We have also retained our high
rating in the FTSE4Good Index, which we
have belonged to since its inception in
2001. Within FTSE4Good we were rated
the highest performer relative to our
sector across all three pillars of
environmental, social and governance
practices. These are the two most
respected indices that enable financial
institutions to compare companies’
performance in corporate responsibility
and sustainability.
We’re delighted to be the only food retailer
to have been awarded a Gold accreditation
from Investors in People, since 2010, for
our commitment to improving our business
through investment in our colleagues. We
also retained our Platinum Plus status in
the Business in the Community Corporate
Responsibility index, as well as being
recognised for our performance on a
range of specific issues including energy,
marine stewardship and animal welfare.
Canvassing opinions externally
We talk regularly to customers, colleagues,
NGOs, key opinion formers and the
Government and its agencies, so we can
understand issues more fully, and make
better decisions. We created our 20x20
plan by working closely with over 40
specialist organisations, ranging from the
National Farmers’ Union to the World
Wildlife Fund. We want to ensure that as
our 20x20 plans evolve over the next eight
years, we remain at the forefront of
sustainability and continue to satisfy our
customers’ needs, as well as those of a
changing world.
Green Mondays (www.greenmondays.com/region/diaryDetail.php?eve
nt_ID=99&newregion=1) held their very
first ‘crowd sourcing’ event on 1 October
2012, during which we presented our
business model for environmental and
social issues, for assessment, comment
and suggestion from around 200 CSR
professionals. Crowdsourcing is about
solving challenges by bringing together
the collective insights, thoughts and ideas
of a group.
We also met 35 leading specialists at five
corporate responsibility strategic
meetings. Each meeting is focused on one
of our five values, looking at topics such as
youth engagement, water stewardship,
community activities, sustainable living
and how we can break down the barriers to
healthy eating. In addition we have met
with a number of investors with an interest
in sustainability or social responsibility
issues.
You can also download our
Annual Report 2012 at
http://www.j-sainsbury.co.uk/
investor-centre/reports/2012/annualreport-and-financial-statements-2012/.
Contact details:
Corporate Responsibility & Sustainability
J Sainsbury Plc
33 Holborn
LondonEC1N 2HT
Perhaps most importantly, our customers
voted Sainsbury’s joint first among our
peers for taking social and environmental
responsibilities seriously.
December 2012
www.j-sainsbury.co.uk
Our management approach to Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability
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