At Sanoma, sustainability is owned by the Board of Directors, the President and CEO, and the Executive Management Team (EMT). The CEO has the ultimate responsibility for the successful implementation of the Group’s Sustainability Strategy. Sanoma’s Board of Directors approves strategic sustainability guidelines and monitors sustainability development and performance. Sustainability-related issues are reviewed, for example, when approving the Group’s Financial Statements and the report of the Board of Directors including the NFRD nonfinancial information, annual short-term incentives for the executive management and the Sustainability Strategy and targets. The Board of Directors’ Audit Committee acts as Sanoma’s Sustainability Committee and supports the Board, for example, in overseeing Sanoma’s Sustainability Strategy and ethics, compliance, privacy and security programmes. The Audit Committee reviews Sanoma’s sustainability reporting and progress as well as monitors the implementation of the strategy at least twice a year.
Together with the President and CEO, the EMT is responsible for outlining Sanoma’s strategic approach to sustainability, managing sustainability development, and monitoring how sustainability is reflected in the business units. Sanoma’s Sustainability Strategy and performance are regularly discussed with the President and CEO and the EMT prior to discussions with the Board of Directors and communication to stakeholders. Together with the business units, the EMT develops strategic sustainability guidelines and targets as well as approves major sustainability projects.
Sanoma monitors sustainability progress both on the Group and Strategic Business Unit (SBU) level. The Head of Investor Relations and Sustainability, reporting to the CFO, and the Sustainability Managers support the Group and SBUs in target achievement, project implementation and communications. In addition, sustainability development on the SBU-level is supported by dedicated roles in Learning and Media Finland. Sanoma’s Sustainability and Ethics Working Group, consisting of selected representatives across the Group, follows the implementation of the Sustainability Strategy, coordinates related development and actions, and evaluates risks and opportunities regarding sustainability, ethics and compliance, convening 3-4 times a year. Local business units and employees implement Sanoma’s Sustainability Strategy in cooperation with the Sustainability and Ethics Working Group, Sustainability Team and other support functions.
In regard to remuneration, Sanoma has embedded sustainability into the short-term incentives of the executive management. In 2023, alongside financial metrics, sustainability targets made up 20% of Sanoma’s annual short-term executive management incentives on the target level. 10% of these targets were linked to the Employee Engagement Survey (EES) and the other half to internal data and privacy targets. Further information can be found in the Remuneration report . In addition, the Sustainability Team and employees in Sanoma’s own printing houses and facilities’ management, for example, are incentivised on environment and climate-related targets.