It is my pleasure to introduce our Sustainability Report, which discloses VOCENTO’s financial, social and environmental performance in 2014.
This document has been prepared in accordance with the most commonly accepted guidelines for sustainability reports, the Global Reporting Initiative (G3 version) and it incorporates indicators from the sector supplement for media, so that we can report the most relevant data for our sector. The report also incorporates the commitment we signed in 2009 with the Global Compact and its ten principles in defence of human rights, labour standards, the environment and anti-corruption.
This is VOCENTO’s fourth sustainability report. It reflects our wish to disclose our management of corporate responsibility and our relations with our shareholders, audiences and advertisers and with the communities where we operate. To avoid any overlaps or repetitions, this document contains references to other reports, including the Corporate Governance report and the Annual Accounts, which contain relevant information about responsibility and sustainability.
The focus of our approach to responsibility is based on identifying first what are the relevant issues for a media company and on assessing the importance of each of these issues internally and externally. Each year, we update this analysis and review our work on each material topic. Last year, we undertook five initiatives in the area of responsibility and good governance which I would like highlight.
Three of these initiatives concern the regulatory and ethical framework at VOCENTO. On 21 January 2014, the Board of Directors approved the Internal Rules of Conduct in Securities Markets, replacing the Internal Code of Conduct in Securities Market that was in force until then.
On 13 November, the Board of Directors approved VOCENTO’s Code of Ethics, which establishes standards of behaviour and includes the principles, values and behaviour that are expected from the company’s managers and employees when fulfilling their responsibilities, as well as establishing an ethics channel for reporting. This Code explains the Mission, Vision and Values that steer our company and which form the foundations of our corporate responsibility and sustainability. The Board of Directors also approved a Crime Prevention Policy.
In addition, in 2014 we identified a risks map which identifies the expectations of our stakeholders and reputational risks and brand as a key area of interest, and where we are carrying out various initiatives.
Fifthly, reflecting our commitment with the London Benchmarking Group, which measures social action at the international level, and in which VOCENTO is the only media company, we also carried out our first valuation of our social actions, including the social contribution that ABC makes with free or discounted advertising space and the specific donations from Vocento. Although this first measurement initiative has not yet been applied across the company, over the course of 2015 it will be extended to other titles where social actions have been identified.
Our commitment to the Global Compact is reflected in our informational and editorial content about Human Rights, especially about sustainable development, and in particular about women, poverty, unequal opportunities, education and healthcare, all of which are all recurring issues in our publications and other media.
VOCENTO is committed to plurality and the freedom of expression, which we defend in our Code, and to other human rights that are traditionally linked to the media in a democratic, competitive environment. We work with various professional associations nationally and internationally, as disclosed in this document.
As a company, we comply with the labour standards and legislation that are in force and our human resources policies are highly focused on diversity, developing the workforce and capturing the best talent. We have significant links to educational institutions, journalism universities and to associations of journalists and the press. We are involved in two leading Master’s courses in journalism, and we have established the Vocento Media Lab, a training initiative for our teams to build capacities in digital journalism. Finally, each year we reward the work of our best journalists with the VOCENTO Journalism prizes, which pay close attention to the social impact of our publications and other media properties.
