Sustainability assurance
Our sustainability and risk assurance processes provide the Board and management with assurance that our Business Principles, policies and standards are being met and that material risks are being identified and managed effectively.
Audits, incident investigations and routine reporting provide management with the information and data they need to monitor the sustainable development (SD) systems in place.
Our SD assurance programme is characterised by:
- external third party audits against the SD Framework at all managed operations and projects, supplemented by more frequent internal management and risk/hazard focused audits
- audits that focus on performance as well as systems, including interviews with site personnel at all levels
- detailed SD improvement plans identifying potential improvements and summarising the actions site management can take to improve SD performance, regardless of the audit score and in line with our commitment to continuous improvement
- specialist SD risk audits to assess specific SD risks at sites or regions identified in each business’s annual risk reviews
Auditing in our commodity businesses
Each commodity business supplements the Group-wide SD Standards and risk audits with a range of additional, regular SD audits that include:
- major hazard audits
- legislative compliance audits
- specialist audits in areas such as electrical, lifting and loading, and tailings dam integrity
The commodity businesses review their SD improvement plans and monitor progress. A consolidated progress report is submitted annually to each commodity business Audit Committee, and the Board Audit and HSEC Committees.
External assurance
We audit all of our operations and projects against our 17 Sustainable Development (SD) Standards. The focus of the SD assurance programme is to achieve continuous improvement and a more detailed focus on specific SD risks.
Each managed operation must undergo a third-party SD standards audit every three years. The findings are captured in a comprehensive SD Improvement Plan that sets out the actions required to implement and maintain the SD Framework. Each commodity business monitors progress for their operations and independently reviews the SD Improvement Plans annually. Each year, a consolidated progress report is submitted to the commodity businesses’ Audit Committee as well as the Board Audit and HSEC Committees.
SD risk audits involve a detailed examination of commodity business risks. To help embed sustainable development into our operational and business decision making, we have incorporated the SD risk audit process into our annual internal audits.
Risk management
Each commodity business and corporate function is required to undertake a comprehensive annual risk review. The review’s conclusions are included in annual business strategies and plans. Progress against plans, significant changes in the business risk profile and actions taken to address controls and mitigate risks are reported quarterly to the business and Group Audit Committees, the Executive Committee and the Board.
We regularly review and publicly report the principal risks and uncertainties that may affect our ability to deliver our business strategy effectively, the potential impact on our business, and the controls in place to mitigate these risks. Material SD risks are addressed as an integral part of this process.
Each commodity business monitors and reports progress on tasks related to treatment of key risks. Regular risk reviews are carried out for insurance purposes. We conduct annual workshops with commodity business risk champions to share learning and best practice.
Crisis management
Our Group-wide crisis management plan is supported by crisis management plans in each commodity business. All sites and commodity businesses must develop emergency response, business continuity and crisis management plans in consultation with external emergency agencies. The plans include clear protocols for when and how to escalate a crisis to Group level. They also cover training for employees and other stakeholders, annual reviews and how to incorporate lessons learnt from actual emergencies and simulations into plans.
