In 2018, Clariant successfully expanded its relationship capital. It increased the number of interactions along the customer journey and received positive feedback through its biennial global customer satisfaction survey, deepening its understanding of value chains and unmet customer needs. It also maintained strong contacts with chemical industry trade associations and policy makers.

2.2. Ethics and compliance

In 2018, Clariant continued implementing the measures outlined in its Strategic Integrity Roadmap. Structured around the company’s five pillars of leadership engagement, communication and training, risk assessment, standards and controls, and monitoring, this roadmap anchors an ethical mindset and behavior in the workforce and continues the ongoing process of transforming Clariant from a rules- and principles-based organization to a value-based organization.

Clariant uses a comprehensive set of key performance indicators to measure effective progress toward the objectives of the roadmap.

2.2.1. Excellence through Integrity

In 2018, Clariant continued the rollout of its »Excellence through Integrity« campaign, which was launched in 2017. As part of the campaign, members of the Executive Committee and regional heads articulated what ethics and integrity mean to them personally in order to further raise awareness for ethical behavior. These statements were printed on posters and displayed at all sites to increase the visibility of the campaign.

2.2.2. Improving compliance through leadership and training

To underscore its commitment to ethical business practice, Clariant launched »Leader-led Compliance Sessions«, which were held by roughly 1 000 leaders with their direct reports in 2018. These sessions provided a forum to discuss ethical dilemmas that emerge in daily business practices and share lessons learned and best practices. The dilemmas were all build around the commitments of the Code of Conduct related to the Anti-Bribery, Antitrust, Data Privacy, Conflict of Interest and absence of discrimination and harassment. With this effort, roughly 5 000 employees received Code of Conduct training. The »Leader-led Compliance Sessions« resulted in more request for guidance from the Ethics & Integrity functions and an increase of reports through the Integrity Line by 30%.

Clariant continued to conduct its mandatory compliance trainings for all employees, via e-learning and in-person, to prevent violations of the Code of Conduct. 50% of the Board members and 30% of employees received training on anti-corruption, while approximately 5 000 employees successfully completed the relaunched e-learning on antitrust law. Furthermore, an anti-bribery e-learning program was rolled out in 2018 that specifically targeted sales, marketing, and procurement professionals. In 2019, the anti-bribery e-learning will be rolled out to the remaining units of the organization.

2.2.3. Internal communication increases sensitivity for compliance issues

Clariant also strengthened communication regarding ethics and compliance by publishing regularly articles around business ethics and shared results from internal investigations in its ethics journal. Each example illustrated a real case from Clariant’s businesses and discussed how it was resolved. The articles caught considerable attention from employees, as indicated by above-average click rates.

2.2.4. Reducing risk exposure across regions

As Clariant’s businesses operate in a large number of countries with diverging risk profiles, an ongoing risk assessment is conducted to identify gaps in the ethics and compliance framework in different markets. In 2018, a compliance risk assessment was initiated for the most exposed Business Units. This process revealed gaps, which were closed by taking steps to reduce the risk exposure.

2.2.5. Launch of the Data Privacy Program

In response to the new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) of the European Union, Clariant started a Data Privacy Program in 2018. The program consists of a policy framework, consisting of a Data Privacy Policy, a general Directive on how to process personal data and SOPs on the subject of Data Breach and execution of privacy rights and a basic Data Privacy e-learning course, to familiarize all employees with the principles of the data privacy policy as well as dedicated deep dive sessions for the more exposed functions like Human Resources, Marketing, Sales. In addition, a Data Privacy Organization was set up and internally certified after extensive training, covering the main topics for a certified Privacy Professionals from the International Association of Privacy Professionals (iapp.org). The members of the Data Privacy Organization are responsible for creating awareness and build up the relevant knowledge throughout the organization with the »train the trainer« approach.

2.2.6. Providing clear grievance mechanisms

A key instrument to track Clariant’s performance on ethics and compliance is the Integrity Line, which is used to report workplace-related issues. To strengthen this channel, Clariant rolled out the »Speak-up« campaign. As part of this campaign the Integrity Line was promoted on Clariant’s website and made accessible to external stakeholders to anonymously report any alleged violations of the Code of Conduct. In 2018, 104 questions and allegations were issued via the Integrity Line (2017: 80), of which 29 were fully or partially substantiated (2017: 16). The substantiation rate is low, and we will focus in the coming year on more transparency related to the process and what should be reported.

2.3. Policy and stakeholder relations

Clariant believes that maintaining an open and trustworthy dialogue with all stakeholders and participating in relevant public policy developments are important aspects of its corporate responsibility. As a responsible corporate actor that values transparency, Clariant publicly discloses its contributions to trade and business associations. clariant.com/en/Company/Corporate-Governance/Public-Policy-Dialog

The engagement of Clariant representatives in trade associations and other platforms supports strategic alignment across the industry, provides an opportunity for exchange on industry perspectives and best practices, and brings forward Clariant’s views and positions on various policy areas.

Clariant is a member of numerous interest groups and trade associations. At the international and regional level, these include, among others, the International Council of Chemical Associations (ICCA) and the European Chemical Industry Council (Cefic). At the local level, Clariant is part of national business federations and chemical industry associations, such as ABIQUIM in Brazil, CPCIF in China, the Verband der Chemischen Industrie (VCI) in Germany, and the American Chemistry Council (ACC) in the United States.

Clariant is also active in sectorial associations, for example in the bio-economy field, and supports scientific and research associations, such as SusChem, the European Technology Platform for Sustainable Chemistry.

The top three contributions in 2018 were all made to Europe-based associations. Together, they represented more than 50% of Clariant’s total membership costs:

1. Verband der Chemischen Industrie e.V. – VCI, the German national association of chemical producers;
2. Handelskammer beider Basel, the Basel Chamber of Commerce; and
3. Scienceindustries, the Swiss business association for the chemical, pharmaceutical, and biotech industries.

In 2018, Clariant decided to step up its support of the transition to a circular economy in the European Union. It joined associations such as the »Plastics Recyclers Europe« and »Petcore«, the association representing the complete Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) value chain in Europe.

Active engagement in these bodies helps Clariant maintain a continuous stakeholder dialogue in strategically important fields. In 2018, dossiers related to sustainable chemistry, circular economy, bio-economy, and innovation policy frameworks were a particular focus.

2.5. Human rights

Clariant is firmly committed to protecting human rights during all phases of value creation within all business units. This obligation applies not only to Clariant’s own business operations, but also to its entire supply chain and contracted workers. As a prerequisite for sound business governance and license-to-operate, Clariant expects its business partners to uphold the same high standards regarding human rights.

Clariant crafted a comprehensive framework of policies, guidelines, and processes to ensure the implementation of its human rights commitments. Over the last two years, deep-dive investigations were performed in areas that were identified as high-risk during our 2016 human rights due diligence review. A specific focus was on contracted labor in order to assess that all corporate policies were well implemented and that the same requirements were applied to Clariant’s own employees as to temporary workers and contractors. These efforts concentrated particularly in high-risk geographies, such as India.

In order to reinforce its commitment to workplace rights and globally ensure the same high standards regarding working conditions, Clariant developed a new employment policy in 2018. The policy fosters sustainable employee relations and addresses fair working conditions, discrimination, freedom of association, occupational health and safety, as well as child and forced labor. The policy applies equally to permanent and temporary employees and workers, and is applicable to all employment agencies and contractors that collaborate with or engage on behalf of Clariant. The new policy was communicated to all employees across all countries.

Finally, via the Together for Sustainability (TfS) platform and in cooperation with other companies, Clariant assesses its suppliers in relation to child and forced labor, among other social, governance, and environmental topics. Read more