The Danske Bank Group wants to conduct business on the basis of customers’ needs in a profitable and sustainable manner.
The Group’s Corporate Responsibility (CR) policy is based on a number of internationally recognised principles in the areas of human rights, employee rights, the environment and anti-corruption as formulated in the UN Global Compact (1999). In accordance with these principles of responsibility, we want to ensure that we treat our stakeholders properly, minimise any negative impact on the environment and contribute to mutually beneficial financial results. The Danske Bank Group has endorsed the UN Global Compact since 2007.
Responsibility
The CR policy constitutes a set of general principles described in our CR strategy and implemented across the Group. A Group CR Board, with members at the executive level, makes the overall CR decisions for the Danske Bank Group.
We have appointed executive sponsors for CR activities at the individual country units to ensure a local foundation for the CR principles. The executive sponsors set objectives and initiatives for the individual units within the scope of the Group CR strategy, follow up on local implementation and report to the CR department. The CR department coordinates the CR work and ensures that it is carried out systematically.
Focus areas
The Danske Bank Group’s largest and most important resource is staff knowledge. To an increasing extent, we thrive by producing knowledge and distributing it to the communities we are part of. As the main focus of our employees’ interaction with customers has shifted from transactions to advisory services, their knowledge and expertise have become increasingly important. From a CR perspective, this means that we commit ourselves to applying our knowledge in ways that benefit society at large.
The Group has defined four main focus areas for our CR initiatives, with knowledge as the key element:
- Business -We want to communicate knowledge about financial matters to our customers and to set up and comply with ethical guidelines for our products and services.
- Employees - We want to ensure the employability, commitment and performance of our employees with a balanced focus on results and staff well-being.
- Environment - We want to minimise the Group’s own direct impact on the environment and to help create a financial infrastructure that supports a low-carbon economy.
- Society -We want to promote financial literacy and education among children and young people and to contribute to sound economic growth in society.
Ways and means
The CR policy is put into practice through other Group policies, such as the environmental policy, the socially responsible investment (SRI) policy, the HR policy and the customer policy.
We strive to achieve our objectives through
- product development and customer events
- various employee programmes
- implementation of the Group’s environmental management system and climate strategy
- the Financial Literacy and Education Investment Programme
This is a translation of an original document in the Danish language. In case of discrepancies, the Danish text prevails.
Last updated on 6 October 2011