Our stakeholders
Our stakeholders include a wide range of groups and individuals who may be affected by our activities, products and services, and whose actions can be reasonably expected to affect our ability to successfully implement our strategic objectives.
The board encourages proactive engagement with stakeholders, and management pursues appropriate engagements with key stakeholders to align their legitimate and reasonable needs, interests and expectations with those of the Group. Our stakeholder groups have varying levels of involvement in the business and diverse, and sometimes conflicting, interests and concerns that need to be balanced over time.
The trust that our stakeholders place in us is an outcome of our reliability, and high standards of accountability and transparency. ESG is becoming a factor of competitiveness from investor, customer and talent perspectives. Investors are demanding that ESG data becomes more comparable between companies, and are increasingly looking to invest in, and be associated with, companies that have compelling ESG strategies. We regularly communicate with our stakeholders on our ESG performance and to demonstrate the stakeholder and business value associated with our ESG and sustainability initiatives. We are committed to transparent reporting and to improving our reporting to meet investor and stakeholder needs.
Business relationships
Customers, OEMs, suppliers (including small and medium enterprises (SME)), and business partners (including finance, B-BBEE and joint venture partners) and industry bodies
- Regular executive engagements with OEMs and suppliers.
- Regular executive engagements with shareholders and investment analysts.
- Customer surveys.
- Operational meetings.
- Membership in business forums and industry associations
(
see Transformation
report overview). - SENS announcements.
- Media releases.
- Digital communication channels, including social media and online platforms.
- The new energy vehicles1 (NEVs) in OEM product ranges available for sale in our markets of operation.
- The transition to NEVs and policies that encourage better quality fuel in South Africa that supports modern fuel-efficient technology.
- Industry level renewable energy pooling.
- Safety in customer-facing environments.
- Effective customer communication and responding to customers using their preferred method of engagement (omni-channel approach).
- Meeting OEM quality and customer satisfaction targets.
- Supporting our partners and protecting key strategic relationships.
- Ensuring customer data is protected, secure and that access to this information is appropriately governed.
| 1 | New energy vehicles (NEVs) collectively refers to battery-powered electric vehicles (BEVs), plug-in hybrids (PHEV) and mild hybrid electric vehicles (MHEVs). |
Human capital relationships
Employees and organised labour
- Employee surveys.
- Regular employee interactions and communications.
- Employee evaluations, appraisals and processes for setting performance criteria and performance management.
- Whistle-blowing hotline.
- Training initiatives and programmes.
- Innovation platform and events.
- Digital communication channels, including social media and online platforms.
- How we are addressing climate change and the impact it may have on our operations.
- A safe and supportive working environment.
- Access to COVID-19 vaccinations.
- A diverse and inclusive work culture and performance against employment equity targets.
- Access to training initiatives and programmes.
- Enhanced communication and teambuilding between operations.
- Leveraging performance reviews to enhance individual engagement and career planning.
- Non-monetary reward and recognition.
- Compliance with labour laws and reporting to government on our employment equity commitments.
Financial capital relationships
Owners, investment community and debt providers
- Transparent interim and year-end reporting.
- The annual general meeting.
- Regular investor communication and engagement (SENS announcements, interviews with stakeholders and conferences).
- Investor days.
- Regular meetings with funders.
- Involvement in industry specific panel discussions.
- Digital communication channels, including social media and online platforms.
- Our response to climate risk.
- Sourcing and introducing low emissions vehicles and NEVs, and the timeframes for these plans.
- Initiatives relating to water management and electricity and fuel consumption.
- Clarification on the structure of the Ukhamba transaction.
- ESG governance.
- ESG targets and strategies.
- How the Group manages the impact of legislative changes on its businesses.
Regulatory relationships
Regulators and government departments
- Membership in business forums and industry associations.
- Ongoing interactions with regulators and governmental authorities.
- The transition to NEVs and policies that encourage better quality fuel in South Africa that supports modern fuel-efficient technology.
- Carbon tax.
- Quality of customer outcomes and oversight controls on regulated products and services.
- Transformation of the South African automotive industry to improve diversity and inclusion.
- Legal and regulatory compliance and the impact of legislative changes.
- Response to cybersecurity, data privacy and IT security risks.
Social relationships
Civil society, communities and media.
- Our road safety awareness programmes.
- Our long-standing relationships with CSI partners and programmes, our work with NGOs and business associations.
- Participation in South Africa’s Youth Employment Service (YES4Youth) Programme.
- Media outreach and response, including CEO and CFO radio, print media and online interviews.
- Digital communication channels, including social media and online platforms.
- How climate change risk is being addressed.
- Managing environmental concerns.
- Enabling new entrants to compete in the automotive industry.
- Inclusive procurement strategies
- Unemployment and meaningful work opportunities for skilled or semi-skilled workers.
- Skills, enterprise, supplier and community development.
- Funding to assist vulnerable communities.
- Managing legislative concerns.
Engaging with stakeholders: Leveraging a diverse and change resilient culture.