SABMiller, one of the world’s biggest brewers, has created a unique programme for evaluating the effects of responsible business. The system’s name is SAM Hyperion; it measures and compares results of breweries in over 60 countries, including Kompania Piwowarska, winner of the Polish Responsible Business Ranking List 2009.
The title of the most socially responsible company in Poland* is a moral obligation. This is why for years, Kompania Piwowarska has measured progress in its business responsibility with utmost care and fastidiousness. The task is easier with SAM Hyperion, a special evaluation matrix for specified areas which allows KP to effectively measure and monitor performance in the realm of sustainable development and benchmark the results of the company’s operations against breweries all over the world. SAM is a “tailor-made” management system with an embedded in-depth performance analysis.
Małgorzata Walędzińska, CSR manager for Kompaania Piwowarska, commented: “At Kompania Piwowarska, responsible business operations are key to ensure sustainable development of the company and its business partners. Responsible business practice is a cohesive management concept accepted by all the company’s employees. Making business decisions, they follow ethical and environmental guidelines with the assumption of limited resources and optimum use thereof”.
Monitoring responsible business performance
The results of activities related to sustainable development are definitely measurable. Any company may identify several areas like management, relations with customers, business partners, employees, environmental responsibility or social investment. At Kompania Piwowarska, the evaluation is made on a semi-annual basis, as part of the Sustainability Assessment Matrix – SAM Hyperion, a special programme aimed at social management and reporting. The programme monitors performance of Kompania Piwowarska and other SABMiller breweries. In particular, it looks at progress up the so-called ‘stairway’ under each priority.
“Each stairway consists of four increasing levels of performance based on internal and external benchmarks, independent of any legal requirements. Level 1 represents the minimum standard with best practice at level 4”, explained Małgorzata Walędzińska
The evaluation matrix makes it possible, among other things, to match the priorities and introduce updates with respect to the local requirements. The guidelines as parts of specific reporting areas, SAM Hyperion is practically equivalent to the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI); on top of that, they are tailored to the nature of activities.
The results are published as parts of local CSR reports on KP’s report on Corporate Social Responsibility as well as global reports on SABMiller’s sustainable development.
The areas of sustainable development, subject to regular evaluation and monitoring, are the same for all 30 breweries located in different parts of the world. Owing to investments and performance
monitoring, it is possible to keep a close eye on the progress in specific countries or even follow continental trends.
“Monitoring areas of sustainable development enables development and benchmarking as well as exchange of good practice or effective methods of problem solving, e.g. production-related, social and environmental on a supranational level”, commented Małgorzata Walędzińska.
SAM Hyperion, a system for managing and monitoring areas of sustainable development, was granted an accolade at stage one of Globe Award Poland 2009 in the sustainable development innovation category.
Responsible business pays off
Investors value companies deeply involved in corporate social responsibility; indexes of responsible companies developed specially by global stock exchanges, like FTSE KLD 400 Social Index, Dow Jones Sustainability Index or the recently introduced Polish RESPECT Index, are gaining importance. The CSR indexes represent specific values calculated with reference to the rating of shares of companies enjoying high CSR standards. Unlike the traditional indexes like S&P500, CAC40 or WIG20, the CSR indexes include also carefully selected companies with the best results in the realm of social relations, environmental protection and/or corporate governance.
“The concept of Socially Responsible Investing (SRI) is gaining importance in the world; it consists in investing individual or institutional assets in e.g. shares of companies with high CSR standards or in units/certificates of ethical or environmental investment trusts. The traditional analytical methods based upon financial ratios are complemented by responsible investors with indicators related to ESG - Environment, Society, Governance. This type of integrated analysis is perceived as a more effective mode of risk management. It allows for early identification of new, attractive investment areas as well as boosts the social and ethical value of pension plans or investment trusts, making them more attractive, especially to individual participants. Therefore it is important that companies communicate their CSR achievements in a reliable way, primarily by reporting the results of their efforts in a measurable, comprehensive and transparent way”, said Izabela Kwiatkowska, chief editor of odpowiedzialne-inwestowanie.pl (responsible investment) portal.
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Notes to editors:
Kompania Piwowarska - leader of the Polish beer industry
Kompania Piwowarska is the largest brewer in Poland. Hundreds of years of experience in brewing, state-of-the-art technology and rigorous adherence to the ‘world class manufacturing’ principles guarantee the highest quality beer. The company's brand portfolio includes best selling Polish beers, such as Tyskie, Żubr, Lech, Dębowe Mocne, Redd's as well as international premium brands: Pilsner Urquell, Grolsch and Peroni Nastro Azzurro. Kompania Piwowarska, established in 1999, operates three breweries (in Tychy, Poznań and Białystok) and fourteen depots across the country. Kompania Piwowarska is engaged in a number of social programs, addressing poverty based social exclusion as well as eduactional programs promoting responsibility and moderation in alcohol consumption. In the fiscal year F09, ended on 31 March 2009, KP sales volume amounted to 15.1 mill hectoliters.
SABMiller – one of the largest brewers in the world
Kompania Piwowarska is part of SABMiller plc. SABMiller plc is one of the world's largest brewers with brewing interests or distribution agreements across six continents. The group's wide portfolio of brands includes premium international beers such as Grolsch, Miller Genuine Draft, Peroni Nastro Azzurro and Pilsner Urquell, as well as market-leading local brands such as Aquila, Castle, Miller Lite, Snow and Tyskie. SABMiller is also one of the largest Coca Cola bottlers outside the US. In the year ended on 31 March 2009 the group reported US$ 3.4 billion in adjusted pre-tax profit and group revenue of US$ 25.3 billion. SABMiller plc is listed on the London and Johannesburg stock exchanges.
Further enquiries:
Małgorzata Walędzińska
CSR Manager
Kompania Piwowarska SA
Tel.: (32) 327 84 15, 601 590 618
malgorzata.waledzinska@kp.sabmiller.com
* RESPONSIBLE BUSINESS RANKING LIST 2009 was developed by the Responsible Business Forum and PricewaterhouseCoopers and published by Gazeta Prawna
