Materiality and stakeholder management

Materiality analysis 2019

Part of GNFK StartSpecifically, the following steps were taken:

• Reassessment of the sustainability context: Research of potentially relevant topics based on a competitive analysis and current sustainability frameworks
• Consolidation: Consolidation of the findings and compilation of a list of 14 topics
• Stakeholder involvement: Evaluation of the topics with regard to their relevance for stakeholders and Schaeffler’s impact on the environment, employees, and society by carrying out an online survey
• Materiality workshops: Discussion of the results of the online survey with relevant departments taking into account the business perspective and preliminary determination of the material topics
• Validation: Validation of the identified material issues by the Executive Board

Material non-financial topics in 2019

Compliance

• Corporate compliance
• Information security

Social matters

• Customer satisfaction
• Product quality and safety

Employee matters

• Employee advancement and development
• Occupational health and safety
• Diversity and equal opportunity

Human rights

• Social and ecological standards in the value chain

Environmental matters

• Innovative mobility solutions
• Innovative solutions for the industry and energy sector
• Environment and climate protection

As a result, eleven material issues were identified for the Schaeffler Group. These are relevant both for understanding the core business, business results, and the company situation as well as understanding the impact on non-financial aspects. Schaeffler reports on further topics in the context of the extended sustainability reporting.

As a result of the materiality analysis, the topics “compensation and retirement benefits” and “work-life balance” are no longer part of the non-financial report as compared to the previous year. Other topics were partly reorganized or renamed.Part of GNFK End

Schaeffler regularly maintains a close dialogue with its stakeholders. Key stakeholders include customers, employees, and suppliers, as well as non-governmental organizations, policy-makers and government agencies, residents, associations, trade unions, investors and analysts, universities, research institutes, and the media. As an example, the following opportunities for exchanging ideas were offered in 2019:

• Stakeholder online survey as part of the materiality analysis
• Customer workshops in the automotive sector
• Dialogue with industry associations, for example with the German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA)
• Exchange of professional expertise with universities

Ratings and indices

For analysts and investors, the sustainability performance of a company is an important guide for assessing the sustainability of a business model. Therefore, they rely on the results of sustainability ratings assessing the activities of the evaluated companies in the environmental, social, or corporate governance fields. Schaeffler achieved the following results: