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Environmental | Social | Governance

We connect people and technology for a smarter tomorrow

Sanjay Brahmawar

CEO ¦ Vision

“Our vision is for Software AG to take a leading role in the global search for technological solutions to the most pressing social and environmental challenges, and to support our customers and partners in their sustainability efforts. Renewing our commitment to creating ecological and social value will contribute to Software AG’s economic success.”

- Sanjay Brahmawar, CEO Software AG -

                Key International Conventions 
that we adhere to
            

  • UN Global Compact (see below)
  • Universal Declaration of Human Rights of the United Nations, 1948
  • European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, 1950
  • Tripartite Declaration of Principles of the ILO (International Labor Organization) on Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy, 1977
  • ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work, 1998 (especially regarding the following topics: elimination of child labor, abolition of forced labor, prohibition of discrimination, freedom of association and right to collective bargaining)
  • Convention of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) on Combating Bribery of Foreign Officials in International Business Transactions, 1997
  • OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, 2000 

The majority (84%) of organizations will prioritize commercial objectives over sustainability in the face of economic challenges. This is despite the fact that almost all (95%) leaders agree sustainability is either a top or high priority and a similar number (97%) agree that other firms’ sustainability credentials are either essential or important in their own buying decisions. The annual Reality Check reports seeks to investigate how technology initiatives can benefit both sustainability and commercial objectives.
Prof. Dr. Thomas Beschorner is the Director of the Institute for Business Ethics at the  University of St.Gallen. Defining sustainability, he says, is no easy task, let alone in combination with digitalization. Corporate Digital Responsibility (CDR) is about harmonizing these two fundamental aspects. In the following interview, he explains why it is long overdue to give CDR the attention it deserves.
It might take a village to raise a child, but it takes an ecosystem to protect the earth. At Software AG, we have such an ecosystem and are working hard to make a difference on earth. We have established a worldwide collaborative network with renowned universities and research institutes, enterprises, government institutions, and customers to explore new technologies – some of which can benefit the planet. Our research team is engaged in some ground-breaking projects funded by the European Commission and the German government. During this process, we are repeatedly confronted with the social challenges of our time.
Solar, wind and water power can supply enough energy to allow us to live comfortably on a sustainable basis.But how can we ensure they can supply us on a consistent basis? Sometimes the wind stops blowing, or the sun stops shining. Rivers ebb and flow depending upon the weather.It is important to find ways to deal with the natural fluctuations in these kinds of energy. One answer is SynErgie - a research project sponsored by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research. SynErgie addresses demand flexibility in industry, one of the world’s largest energy consumers. Factories need huge quantities of electricity and heat to produce glass, paper or aluminum.
With the advent of renewable energy, industrial companies must be able to deliver energy-efficient production while contributing to energy grid stability. So, how does using a high percentage of renewable energy sources impact this goal? The PHI Factory project was designed to provide the answer. In December 2016, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy launched the project. The central idea was to design a digitalized and energy-flexible factory of the future, and to demonstrate that a factory can actively self-regulate its energy usage/costs, while also providing system services for the public power grid.

                    Software AG scores C in CDP
                

Founded in 2000 as Carbon Disclosure Project, CDP has evolved into the world’s largest, most comprehensive dataset on emissions. This data fuels and tracks global progress towards building a truly sustainable economy for people and planet.

In 2022, we participated for the first time in the CDP. With the data we submitted, we achieved a C score (gamut F-A) . The report was published via the CDP website in December.

                Our contribution to sustainable IT solutions
            

                    ARIS for sustainability
                

Long before sustainability and ESG became front and center, ARIS was helping organizations achieve greater end-to-end visibility and the transparency needed to make better business decisions. ARIS can serve as a company’s single source of truth—so that anyone, anywhere, anytime can contribute to business transformation. Business Process Management makes sustainability goals become reality. It anchors ESG to the core of operations. It bases company goals on real data, makes them transparent and holds owners more accountable. This is how processes are making our world a better place. 

                    Driving sustainability with Alfabet
                

Recognition of enterprise IT as a significant contributor to the world’s carbon footprint continues to grow. By rethinking IT in the light of a company's sustainability strategy and goals, it is possible to reduce these environmental costs—and drive greener operations across the organization. The first step is acknowledging one central challenge: the need to view sustainability as a holistic endeavor between IT and business. As an industry leader in enterprise architecture and strategic portfolio management, Alfabet provides the capabilities required to leverage IT as the backbone of a corporation's green transformation. 

                Research projects in sync with the UN SDGs
            

                    Slimming down our IT waste
                

Nothing lasts forever - that’s especially true when it comes to technology. These days, laptops, notebooks, smartphones, tablets, PCs, TFT monitors, and printers are being used for a few years only before they get replaced. As a consequence,
the number of obsolete devices is constantly growing. In the interest of reducing waste and saving raw materials, European standards and national regulations require used technology products to be channeled into IT remarketing. Eco-friendly and sustainable methods to process old IT equipment have become the norm. This is why in German-speaking countries (DACH region), we at Software AG have been collaborating with certified IT waste-disposal specialists for many years. 

                    Employee Health & Wellbeing
                

At Software AG we care

We are dedicated to motivating employees to adopt a healthy lifestyle and supporting their mental and physical health. A successful corporate health management program helps improve the health of employees, reduces physical and mental strain from work, prevents disease, and increases employee satisfaction and commitment.

                    Codetermination in employee representation
                

Codetermination is the highest good in employee representation. Personnel measures, for example, must be submitted to the works council, who can object to them in case of important reasons. Such a reason may be, for example, that an employee is threatened with dismissal and at the same time a vacancy is to be assigned to an external person. At Software AG, there is a company agreement that applies in such cases. Company agreements are the “laws” of companies and an employee must never be placed in a worse position than was settled in a company agreement. There is codetermination in matters relating to working hours and place of work (also regarding hybrid working), distribution of salary increases, and many other matters.

                    Harnessing the power of our diversity
                

We are progressing in our efforts to increase diversity, equity and inclusion across the organization.  This has included a variety of initiatives in response to employee feedback gathered via regular employee surveys and targeted DE&I listening sessions. Among the actions taken to date is the establishment of a new senior global role focused on DE&I together with the formation of a global team of DE&I Ambassadors to champion diversity across the organization.

                    Human Rights – at the heart of our corporate culture
                

The world currently faces many challenges, including those associated with the environment, the global economy, health, social issues as well as the political macro. In these times it is more important than ever that we at Software AG reaffirm our strong commitment to Human Rights across all parts of our operational ecosystem – with, and for, our employees, customers, partners, and suppliers as well as the communities around us. 
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