Sustainability at Comet
Governance and organization
Sustainability must be part of strategic management and corporate planning. This is because the company can take a holistic view only when sustainability is integrated in the ways the company is managed. Through forward-looking governance practices, Comet can positively influence environmental, social, and economic development. Accordingly, we strive to incorporate sustainability into each of our many business processes. To do so, the measurement and management of sustainability performance must be integrated into corporate strategy and governance. Thus, taking sustainability into account in the entire process of corporate management is a prerequisite for effective sustainability management.
Following approval by the Board of Directors in 2022, Comet established a dedicated organizational structure to develop, manage, monitor, and implement the sustainability strategy at Group level. Before the establishment of this organization, the individual sustainability topics were handled by the Group functions and the divisions.
The Board of Directors oversees and approves the sustainability strategy. The Board is also responsible for the review and approval of the annual sustainability reporting as part of the reporting process. It is informed quarterly about the status of strategy implementation and thus monitors the achievement of sustainability targets. The Board of Directors’ committees deal with the topics that fall within their area of responsibility, such as eco-design for the Technology Committee or non-financial elements of executive compensation for the Nomination & Compensation Committee (NCC). The Board of Directors has delegated the implementation of the sustainability strategy to the Executive Committee.
The Executive Committee is responsible for implementing the sustainability strategy and for preparing the annual sustainability reporting. The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) acts as sponsor of the sustainability program and is therefore accountable for sustainability at Comet. In executing the strategy, the Executive Committee is supported by a Sustainability Board. The chair of the Sustainability Board updates the Executive Committee in regular quarterly meetings on the progress in the strategy’s implementation.
The Sustainability Board also meets quarterly to discuss ongoing sustainability initiatives, launch new initiatives, and prepare sustainability goals for approval by the Executive Committee. As members of this board, high-level representatives of the company meet to drive and execute the sustainability strategy or develop actions and measures that address key issues. The Sustainability Board ensures the cohesion of the Group’s sustainability efforts.
The detailed elaboration and operational implementation of the sustainability initiatives is carried out in various working groups that map the main issues. These are made up of representatives of the business areas and corporate functions who are responsible for the topic in their area of activity.