Sonae Sierra » CR Working Groups

CR Working Groups

The Heads of each Working Group are represented on our CR Steering Committee. The CR Working Groups are responsible for preparing proposals for the consideration of the CR Steering Committee and to coordinate the implementation and delivery of the Committee’s decisions. These Working Groups are made up of more individuals from across Sierra who will take responsibility for driving performance against Sierra’s most ‘material’ environmental, social and economic impact areas:

		Environment (Climate Change; Water; Waste; Land Use)
		Safety & Health
		Communities and Visitors
		Employees
		Business Chain (Tenants and Suppliers)

One additional Working Group, Risk Management, is cross-cutting, addressing all impact areas.

Risk Management

To demonstrate that effective risk management underpins our CR strategy we established a Risk Management Working Group which ensures that the risks associated with each of our nine impact areas are tightly managed and controlled. Throughout the business, and across different functions and divisions, individuals continue to have responsibility for implementing specific aspects of CR in their daily activities. Environment, safety and health objectives now form part of performance appraisals and are linked to remuneration and bonus schemes.
The main objective of the Risk Management Working Group is to facilitate and promote the use of best risk management practices across the company. In this context the Risk Management Working Group also reports, via the CFO, to the Audit & Compliance Committee of the Company.

The responsibilities of the CR Working Groups include:

		To propose appropriate objectives and targets to the CR Steering Committee, to ensure achievement and delivery against these throughout the year and to provide quarterly updates on progress;
		To develop relevant key performance indicators for the measurement and monitoring of the company’s performance in terms of Corporate Responsibility, and to ensure that management systems are implemented to collect and analyse performance data;
		To identify and propose relevant performance standards to the Steering Committee and to develop the actions required for their implementation;
		To gather and record the information/data concerning every program and initiative held in the entire organization (every business and country) concerning respective CR areas;
		To ensure that the Policy, objectives and results are effectively disseminated both internally and externally to the stakeholders covered;
		To input into the annual Corporate Responsibility report, providing case studies of good practice, and ensuring that all the quantitative performance data is available at the relevant time.

Constitution of the CR Working Groups:

Members of the Working Groups should be proposed by the respective Working Group’s Chairperson and approved by Executive Board. All CR Working Groups are chaired by a representative member of the CR Steering Committee.

The CR Working Groups should consist of a cross-section of individuals responsible for aspects of Sierra’s business activities that impact on the particular area of CR performance covered by the Working Group. They should seek to include representatives from all countries of operation, and all distinct business activities (including development and management). They should also seek to involve staff at both management and operational level to ensure a full cross-section of the company.

Operation of the CR Working Groups:

The CR Working Groups should meet at least 3 times a year – January, May, and September, approximately one month prior to the CR Steering Committee meetings to enable outcomes to be fed into the CR Steering Committee accordingly.

The Chairs of each Working Group should take on the role of coordinating and guaranteeing the dynamics of the CR Working Groups, and they should nominate someone in the Group to take minutes and provide administrative support as necessary.