There’s much to savour in the beer giant’s innovative reporting
SABMiller bills its 2012 sustainable development report as a change of direction for the international brewing company. This year, the bulk of its sustainability reporting has been shifted online, alongside 23-page pdfs summarising activities across three areas of focus.
It’s clear that SABMiller’s strategy is well thought out and closely aligned to its business and challenges. There is no single supply chain section for example. Instead, supply chain impacts are tackled by subject within the priority areas such as human rights, water use and enterprise development.
After introductions from the board and chief executive, the online report moves to SABMiller’s global focus areas. These attempt to tie together the many sustainability challenges facing the company under three broad headings: economic contribution, the “water-food-energy nexus” and beer in society. The website then covers each of the 10 priority areas in more detail.
These sections are well structured. Each opens as a mini homepage with different modules pulling out information from a series of six tabs across the top of each page: overview, background, our response, performance, priority in action (case studies) and stakeholder views.
Commendably, SABMiller has targets across all 10 priority areas, though the majority are qualitative. A table in each section highlights progress against 2012 targets and future targets for 2013. The tables could be improved with simple visual tools to show whether a target has been achieved, is on track, or has been missed.
Steady performance
Performance looks steady and the company seems on track to achieve its quantitative environmental targets, including water and carbon emissions. SABMiller aims to be 25% more water efficient by 2015 and 50% more carbon efficient by 2020 compared with 2008 (both measured per hectolitre of lager produced). By the end of March 2012, SABMiller’s water efficiency had improved by 13% and its carbon efficiency by 17%. It would be interesting to know more about the challenges the company is facing in these areas, given its global scope.
It would also be interesting to know more about the company’s broader diversity impacts. Its emphasis is on improving gender equality, but as an international business operating throughout Africa, Asia and Latin America, SABMiller should provide more information about its efforts to promote local talent and ensure a high proportion of local employees in senior management.
In all, there is much to like about the online report and there are only a few improvements the company should add for next year. The downloadable GRI table is fairly rudimentary. It includes URLs signposting readers to relevant sections of the website but they are not hyperlinked. Data charts such as water use only appear on the landing page for each priority area.
Once you click on the performance tabs, you have to open the “Sustainability Assessment Matrix” as a new window to access performance data and trends going back to 2008. The matrix reports aggregated company performance against each of the 10 priority areas, as well as progress made by individual operating companies against a five-point maturity scale, from meeting minimum standards (level 1) to adopting a leading edge approach (level 5).
The matrix might be better integrated into the online report so that some of the key trends and challenges can be pulled out and discussed. For example, it says all local operations must achieve level 1 across each priority area, or have a plan to do so. Looking through the matrix, Zimbabwe only scores 0.6 for energy and carbon. What is Zimbabwe’s plan to address this?
There is a clear contrast between the website and summary pdf. The latter focuses almost entirely on the three sustainability challenges highlighted on the website. While it does a good job of aligning these challenges with the 10 priority areas, it could be clearer about the company’s long-term vision to give it more strategic intent. Including all of SABMiller’s targets, so readers can see what the company is working towards, would also be a welcome addition.
Tom Branczik is a senior consultant at Context.
Snapshot
Follows GRI? Yes, meets application level B+.
Assured? Yes, AA1000.
Materiality analysis? No
Targets? Yes, for all 10 priority areas.
Stakeholder input? Yes, stakeholder views included throughout.
Seeks feedback? Yes
Key strengths? Goals and targets.
Chief weakness? Needs to better integrate performance data with analysis.
Pleasant surprise? Structured around sustainability strategy.