Our stakeholders
Listening to and learning from others helps us build a successful business. We regularly seek dialogues with organisations, groups and individuals to increase our understanding and help inform our decisions and actions. Wherever we sensibly can, we help establish positive partnerships for change.
Investors and shareowners
Engaging investors and shareowners.
We engage with investors and shareowners in regular meetings. This includes meetings specifically on CSR and socially responsible investment issues. Our shareowners are not only interested in what we are doing to develop the business, but also increasingly in how we are conducting business.
Consumers
Understanding the needs of consumers and how products can fit into a balanced lifestyle. Working with organisations to serve consumers better.
Understanding and anticipating consumer needs and preferences underpins our new product development and the growth of our brands, and is fundamental to our success. We engage with individuals and consumer organisations on a range of issues, including nutrition and lifestyle, advertising and product sourcing in order to continue improving what we do and serve consumers better.
- Some of the organisations we work with are:
- American Diabetes Association
- British Nutrition Foundation
- International Life Sciences Institute, including in US and Brazil
- Nutrition and Health Foundation, Ireland
- Sports Science Institute of South Africa
Government
Talking to government on health, food and agriculture policies. Helping to deliver healthy and educated communities.
We work with government at local and national levels. In Europe, we engage with the European Commission and European Parliament on matters including the direction of health, food and agriculture policy. We maintain a small government affairs team in Washington. Locally, we are in frequent contact with the politicians who represent our communities. We also engage with international agencies like the World Health Organisation.
Employees
Making sure that Cadbury Schweppes is ‘The Place to Be’, and has a diverse and inclusive workplace.
We listen carefully to our employees’ views through our regular, structured meeting and employee consultation processes, through our annual Employee Climate Survey, and through our recognition of trades unions. We use our employees’ broad and diverse insights to develop and improve what we do.
Suppliers
Improving standards, and the economic, social and environmental sustainability of our supplier base.
We work with our supply chain partners on a regular, individual or group basis to achieve this. This includes partnering with non-governmental organisations (NGOs), industry, government, and trade associations.
Customers and other business partners
Finding ways to work together more effectively in delivering brands people love and having a positive impact on society.
We work with our many thousands of large and small, direct and indirect customers and business partners around the world to bring our products to market. Our relationship with them is based on mutual respect and support.
Non-government organisations (NGOs)and charities
Sharing understanding and building on our dialogue with voluntary and civil society groups on all aspects of our business.
We work with NGOs and charities at local, national and international level. One of our partners is the International Business Leaders’ Forum where we are members of the Healthy Eating and Active Living Global Partnership (HEAL) – a multi-sector initiative aimed at increasing nutrition literacy and physical activity.
Communities
Working with the communities in which we operate to help build a prosperous, educated, inclusive and healthy society.
We recruit many of our colleagues from our local communities. We also buy our ingredients from and sell our finished products in a great many places world-wide. It is in our own interest to help build prosperous, healthy societies, as well as in the local and national interests of the communities where we operate.
Multi-stakeholder initiatives
Working better together with government, civil society organisations and industry to solve major issues and challenges related to our business.
We are members of a number of multi-stakeholder groups involving government, industry and NGOs. The International Cocoa Initiative, the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil and Better Management in Agricultural Commodities are examples of this positive form of working.