Committees

Sustainability is integrated into Roche’s corporate vision, values, operating standards and guidelines. As a minimum, Roche runs its business in compliance with all applicable national and international laws, as well as many guidelines set by non-governmental organisations. Roche’s own corporate standards often go far beyond these.

The integrated approach means that no single department is responsible for managing sustainability. Instead, all group operations must integrate sustainability into their work. The Corporate Sustainability Committee coordinates this management approach.

The Corporate Sustainability Committee (CSC) develops and coordinates the Group’s sustainability strategy and reports on related activities and progress. The CSC is a networked organisation with representatives from across the Group, and consists of a Core Team, a Working Group and ad hoc expert groups. The CSC develops and revises corporate guidelines on sustainability issues and appoints cross-divisional, cross-functional expert groups to develop or review our position and rules on specific issues.

The CSC submits regular reports to the Corporate Executive Committee and the Board of Directors’ Corporate Governance and Sustainability Committee. Its networked structure and approach of involving line and functional managers ensure its work is supported by senior management and becomes firmly embedded in the organisation.

The CSC’s mission, structure, procedures and relationships to other parts of the organisation are described in the CSC Charter.

The CSC Core Team is a cross-functional and cross-divisional network comprising representatives from each Corporate Function as well as senior managers delegated by the Heads of the Divisions. The team meets at least twice a year.

The CSC Working Group comprises specialists from areas relevant to Roche’s sustainability activities, and provides advice and assistance for specific projects. Membership is by invitation by the CSC chairman or by delegation from Group Management or the CSC Core Team. The team meets at least twice a year. Defined sub-groups established to handle specific projects or issues can meet more often.

The CSC appoints ad-hoc expert groups to explore topics of current or future importance to the Roche Group. Expert groups are made up of specialists from the divisions, corporate departments and Roche affiliates. People are generally only part of an expert group for the period of time needed to complete a specific task. There are currently expert groups for:

• Healthcare Access, Pricing and Affordability
• Animal Welfare Taskforce
• New Technologies
• Evaluation of Social, Ethical and Environmental Risks (SEE risks)
• Sustainability Business Case
• Patient Relations.