Policies And Guidelines Vision, Mission And Core Values

Significant Changes

Policy

All major changes in operations, involving work processes, manning norms and other productivity linked issues are implemented after discussions with the employees and the recognised unions at each location.

Implementation

Business plans are shared with employees at all units through a series of communication meetings, and through the intranet portals. Unionised employees at the concerned units are informed of all major changes well in advance through their representatives.

The responsibility for the implementation of the policy rests with the Unit’s Human Resources Department in the case of unionised employees and with the concerned Divisional Management Committees for other employees.

The employees are given enough time to consider the implications of change and an opportunity to discuss their apprehensions, if any, with the management. The Policy is actualised through consultative meetings with representatives of employees, culminating in joint minutes/agreements.

Monitoring & Auditing

Compliance with the Policy is regularly monitored by the Unit Head.

Policy on Social Investments/Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)

Philosophy

Inspired by a vision to serve a larger national purpose and abide with the strong value of Trusteeship, ITC has crafted innovative business models to create larger societal capital while simultaneously delivering long term shareholder value. This overarching aspiration to create meaningful societal value is manifest in ITC’s strategy to enhance the competitiveness of value chains of which it is a part. It is therefore a conscious strategy to design and implement Social Investments/CSR programmes in the context of ITC’s businesses, by enriching value chains that encompass the most disadvantaged sections of society, especially those residing in rural India, through economic empowerment based on grass-roots capacity building.

Recognising that business enterprises are economic organs of society and draw on societal resources, it is ITC’s belief that a company’s performance must be measured by its Triple Bottom Line contribution to building economic, social and environmental capital. ITC is therefore committed to creating larger ‘stakeholder value’ by aligning its performance to these Triple Bottom Line objectives. As an Indian enterprise, ITC believes that this approach can unleash strong drivers of growth to make it more inclusive and equitable for even the most marginalised sections of society, through the creation of sustainable livelihoods, and to ensure long-term business sustainability and competitiveness.

Preamble

It is the Company’s intent to make a positive difference to society. It recognises that it cannot do it all; so that if there are choices to be made, bias will be towards doing fewer projects with greater impact and focusing initiatives on communities in which the Company lives and operates.

Policy

It is ITC’s policy:

To pursue a corporate strategy that enables realisation of the twin goals of shareholder value enhancement and societal value creation in a mutually reinforcing and synergistic manner.

To align and integrate Social Investments/CSR programmes with the business value chains of the Company and make them outcome oriented.  To support creation of on- and off-farm sustainable livelihood sources thereby empowering stakeholder communities to conserve and manage their resources.

To implement Social Investments/CSR programmes primarily in the economic vicinity of the Company’s operations with a view to ensuring the long term sustainability of such interventions.

To contribute to sustainable development in areas of strategic interest through initiatives designed in a manner that addresses the challenges faced by the Indian society especially in rural India.

To collaborate with communities and institutions to contribute to the national mission of eradicating poverty and hunger, especially in rural areas, through agricultural research and knowledge sharing, superior farm and agri-extension practices, soil and moisture conservation and watershed management, conservation and development of forest resources, empowering women economically, supplementing primary education and participating in rural capacity building programmes and such other initiatives.

To align the Company’s operations with the national objective of inclusive growth and employment generation by leveraging the Company’s diversified portfolio, manufacturing bases, supply chains and distribution channels, to infuse an appropriate mix of capital and technology to further social business initiatives such as e-choupal, animal husbandry, agarbatti rolling etc. and support organisations/institutions engaged in building linkages with local, regional and urban communities and markets.

To sustain and continuously improve standards of Environment, Health and Safety through the collective endeavour of the Company and its employees at all levels towards attaining world class standards and support other programmes and initiatives, internal or external, for the prevention of illness and combating of diseases as may be considered appropriate from time to time.

To encourage the development of human capital of the Nation by expanding human capabilities through skills development, vocational training etc. and promote excellence in identified cultural fields.

Implementation

The plans will be formulated in line with the strategic direction provided by the Board Committee on Sustainability.

The programmes will, where appropriate, be developed in consultation with direct stakeholders in order to ensure a bottom-up planning approach. ITC will also endeavour to create multi-stakeholder partnerships with NGOs, governments etc. for a larger development impact.

The Corporate Management Committee (CMC) and Divisional Chief Executives may, from time to time, suggest additional areas of social intervention in line with the overall objectives of the Company and its Divisions.

The programmes may be implemented directly by the Company under the supervision of the Management Committee for Social Investments/Divisional Management Committees (DMCs), or through Trusts, Foundations etc. The Strategy of Organisation for addressing the various dimensions of CSR will be reviewed from time to time and cleared with the CMC.

Monitoring & Auditing

The Board, through its Committee on Sustainability and the CMC, is the primary custodian of ITC’s Social Investments/CSR programme. The CMC is responsible for its overall implementation, monitoring and review. Regular performance reviews are undertaken by the Management Committee for Social Investments/DMCs together with the Social Investments team of Corporate Human Resources (CHR) and other stakeholder functions.

Measures to monitor and assess progress include the following:

To pursue a corporate strategy that enables realisation of the twin goals of shareholder value enhancement and societal value creation in a mutually reinforcing and synergistic manner.

Monthly report-backs of expenditure against budgets and review thereof (including where applicable progress review against milestones) in accordance with applicable processes under Corporate Governance, in instances of one time expenditure and in respect of activities executed by the Company and its Divisions.

Quarterly and annual reports on impact indicators provided by the project implementing partners supplemented by:

Quarterly and annual audits by accounting firms appointed by the Company  to monitor financial performance and a systems audit to ensure that laid down procedures are followed. Financial and systems audits of selected projects by ITC's Internal Audit.

Impact analysis of mature projects (more than 3 years old) by third parties.