This year marks the 20th anniversary of Generali Group’s first corporate social responsibility department. Two decades later, Generali demonstrates its social responsibility through four distinct roles:
- responsible employer,
- responsible corporate citizen,
- responsible insurer, and
- responsible investor.
– As a responsible investor, we invest in the economic sectors that positively impact the environment and society. As a responsible insurer, we offer products with ESG components. As a responsible corporate citizen, we contribute to our community via Generali Group’s global initiative The Human Safety Net. As a responsible employer, we promote workplace diversity, equity, and inclusion and support our employees’ professional and personal growth. All this makes us a sought-after employer – says Vesna Brkić Bošković, Head of the Logistics and Procurement Department at Generali Osiguranje Srbija.
We discussed the company’s plans in terms of CO2 emissions reduction targets, how the employees engage in this process, and what they consider to be an important message when it comes to their views on sustainability.
Q: One of the Generali’s goals is CO2 emission reduction. What are the company’s specific targets?
A: Generali Group aims to cut CO2 emissions in its operations by 35 per cent by 2025 and by 40 per cent by 2026 from the 2019 baseline. The 2023 results indicate that we are on the right track with a 33.4 per cent reduction compared to 2019. This achievement required management and employee support and a dedicated energy and environment management team. Our company has long held ISO 14001 and ISO 50001 certifications for environmental and energy management systems, respectively.
Generali Group’s goal is to cut CO2 emissions in its operations by 35 per cent by 2025 and 40 per cent by 2026, compared to the 2019 baseline.
Generali Group’s sustainability activities include purchasing renewable electricity, enhancing office energy efficiency, and optimizing the use of business premises. We are also committed to reducing business travel, transitioning to electric company cars, and minimizing paper use through digitizing and optimizing our processes.
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Q: The employees themselves play an important role in reaching these targets. How are they involved in this process?
A: Our employees are integral to reaching sustainability targets. They will soon relocate to our new headquarters, which will also hold energy efficiency certification and have the option to use renewable electricity. Last year, our local ESG team developed an action plan focusing on environmental and energy efficiency initiatives. Our employees – our sustainability ambassadors – collaborated with managers on this plan. Their suggestions have sparked initiatives to reduce paper usage by further digitizing processes, minimizing physical mail, reducing the quantity of printed documents, and keeping track of the quantity of printed material.
Training employees and raising awareness about the importance of reducing carbon footprint is vital. In addition to Group-level training, we have initiated local workshops and numerous activities to educate our colleagues on how they can contribute to environmental protection. We have participated in tree planting in Novi Sad and Niš and various clean-up campaigns. Goals can only be achieved if the employees are motivated, engaged, and willing to extend our activities into their communities.
Q: What do you consider to be an important message when it comes to the environment?
A: Once all activities are completed, it is time to evaluate their impact and draw comparisons. Companies must have a system and clear methodology in place. Since 2019, we have recorded data on fuel, electricity, and paper consumption, waste recycling rates, and business travel mileage in the Sphera app. All this data is documented for external audit and verification. It not only serves as a reliable indicator of our correct decisions but also demonstrates their tangible and significant impact on environmental preservation.
Generali Osiguranje Srbija
Read the whole interview in the new issue of the Energy portal Magazine AGROSOLAR ENERGY AND RES.
