Scope 1 Emissions
2022 Communication on Progress
Exasol AG
Published date
August 24, 2022
No. of questions
61
CEO Statement
Governance
Policies and Responsibilities
1. Does the Board / highest governance body or most senior executive of the company:
Optional commentA Sustainability Project has been started end of 2021. The Board is planning to issue an annual sustainability report in the business year 2022 (which will include the relevance of sustainable development to the company and addresses impacts on both people and the environment).2. Does the company have a publicly stated commitment regarding the following sustainability topics?
Optional commentExasol has both a Code of Conduct for employees and a Code of Conduct for suppliers and business partners, available at https://ir.exasol.com/governance-esg/.3. Does the company have in place a code of conduct regarding each of the following sustainability topics?
Optional commentExasol has both a Code of Conduct for employees and a Code of Conduct for suppliers and business partners, available at https://ir.exasol.com/governance-esg/.4. Has the company appointed an individual or group responsible for each of the following sustainability topics?
Optional commentHuman Rights and Labour Rights fall both under the responsibility of HR and of the Compliance and Risk Manager (who is for example also responsible for Anti-Corruption).5. Does the company have a formal structure(s) (such as a cross-functional committee) to address each of the following sustainability topics?
Optional commentHuman Rights and Labour Rights fall both under the responsibility of HR and of the Compliance and Risk Manager (who is for example also responsible for Anti-Corruption).Prevention
6. Does the company have a process or processes to assess risk?
6.1. During the assessment of risk, which business relationships are reviewed?
Optional commentExasol as a Software and Service Provider does assessments to its main suppliers. For our hardware for example, we only choose suppliers which undergo a risk assessment.7. Does the company have a due diligence process through which it identifies, prevents, mitigates, and accounts for actual and potential negative impacts on sustainability topics?
Concerns and grievance mechanisms
8. Are there any processes through which members of the company’s workforce can raise concerns about the company’s conduct related to human rights, labour rights, environment, or anti-corruption?
Optional commentThere is a clearly defined and communicated whistleblowing process that allows employees and externals to report compliance incidents (also) anonymously and with ensured non-retaliation.8.1. Please provide additional detail regarding the process(es) the company has through which members of the company’s workforce can raise concerns about the company’s conduct.
9. Does the company provide or enable access to effective remedy to right holders / stakeholders where it has caused or contributed to the adverse impact?
Optional commentNot relevant for Exasol as Exasol does not operate in countries where effective legal remedies are not guaranteed.Lessons
10. How does the company capture lessons regarding each of the following sustainability topics?
Executive Pay
11. Is executive pay linked to performance on one or more of the following sustainability topics?
Board Composition
12. Percentage of individuals within the company’s Board / highest governance body by:
13. Do you produce sustainability reporting according to:
Optional commentWe published reportingsData Assurance
14. Is the information disclosed in this questionnaire assured by a third-party?
Optional commenthttps://www.exasol.com/ESGdocs/Footprint_Report_Exasol_2020.pdfHuman Rights
Materiality / Saliency
1. Which of the following has the company identified as material human rights issues connected with its operations and/or value chain, whether based on their salience (i.e., the most severe potential negative impacts on people) or another basis?
Optional commentExasol AG only operates in countries with a high legal standard of working conditions (minimum wages, working hours etc. ) and human rights (Germany, USA, UK). In addition, Exasol does not "produce" goods. As an IT company (software development) we only engage highly skilled workers with high incomes where there is no risk of exploitation of humans and nature. Thus, most of the mentioned issues in the list are no material issues for Exasol.Commitment
2. Does the company have a policy commitment in relation to the following human rights issues?
2.1. For each human rights policy, is it:
Prevention
3. In the course of the reporting period, has the company engaged with affected stakeholders or their legitimate representatives in relation to the following human rights issues?
Optional commentTo ensure a high level of digital security and privacy, Exasol has agreements in place with different stakeholders (suppliers, customersetc).4. What type of action has the company taken in the reporting period with the aim of preventing/mitigating the risks/impacts associated with this human rights issue?
5. Who receives training for the following human rights issues?
Optional commentContractors with access to our IT systems receive training in digital security. All employees receive data protection and IT security training.6. How does the company assess progress in preventing/mitigating the risks/impacts associated with the following human rights issues?
Optional commentExasol is ISO 27001 certified (IT security) and as such is regularly audited by an external auditor. With regard to privacy Exasol is audited once per year.Response
7. During the reporting period, has the company been involved in providing or enabling remedy where it has caused or contributed to adverse impact associated with the following human rights issue(s)?
8. Briefly describe practical actions the company has taken during the reporting period and/or plans to take to implement the human rights principles, including any challenges faced and actions taken towards prevention and/or remediation.
Digital security/Privacy: In the last years Exasol prepared its business operations to receive a digital security certification and received and maintained such certification (ISO 27001) since 2020. Re Privacy, Exasol has an external Data Protection Officer and three internal Data Protection Managers. Since 2021 Exasol gets audited by an external auditor re Data Protection. Occupational Safety: Exasol has an external Occupational Safety Manager and regularly evaluates and monitors health and safety risks. Mandatory Occupational Safety trainings are implemented at least once per year for all employees. Diversity & Inclusion – Freedom from discrimination: Diversity & Inclusions trainings for employees are provided and regular talks. A special committee consisting of the so-called Diversity Champions drives forward initiatives that contribute to making the company inclusive and representative of every member of society. This committee together with the Compliance and Risk Officer takes care of the human rights principle of “Freedom from discrimination”.Labour
Commitment
1. Does the company have a policy commitment in relation to the following labour rights principles?
Optional commentExasol has a Code of Conduct with a statement of committment of the Executive Board. The following documents are integrated in this Code of Conduct: UN Global Compact, UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights, European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, International Labour Organization (ILO), Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work.1.1. For each labour rights policy, is it:
Optional commentExasol has a Code of Conduct for Employees with a statement of committment of the Executive Board and a Code of Conduct for Suppliers and Business Partners . The following documents are integrated in this Code of Conduct: UN Global Compact, UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights, European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, International Labour Organization (ILO), Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work.Prevention
2. In the course of the reporting period, has the company engaged with affected stakeholders or their legitimate representatives in relation to the following labour rights issues?
Optional commentExasol AG is a German company. Freedom of association and the effective recognition of the right to collective bargaining is legally guaranteed. Thus no action has been taken in this regard. Exasol AG is a company with highly skilled employees, forced labour and child labour is no relevant topic for Exasol. In addition, also with regard to suppliers there is with regard to the products and supplier choosen (not textile industry, about IT services) no risk for forced labour or child labour.3. What type of action has the company taken in the reporting period with the aim of preventing/mitigating the risks/impacts associated with this labour rights issue?
Optional commentExasol AG is a German company. Freedom of association and the effective recognition of the right to collective bargaining is legally guaranteed. Thus no action has been taken in this regard. Exasol AG is a company with highly skilled employees, forced labour and child labour is no relevant topic for Exasol. In addition, also with regard to suppliers there is with regard to the products and supplier choosen (not textile industry, about IT services) no risk for forced labour or child labour.4. Who receives training for the following labour rights issues?
5. How does the company assess progress in preventing/mitigating the risks/impacts associated with the following labour rights issues?
Performance
6. What is the percentage of employees covered under collective bargaining agreements?
Optional commentExasol AG does not operate in an industry with collective bargaining agreements.7. What is the percentage of employees in a trade union or other workers' organization?
8. In the course of the reporting period, what was the percentage of women in:
9. What was the average ratio of the basic salary and remuneration of women to men (comparing jobs of equal value) during the reporting period?
10. In the course of the reporting period, how frequently were workers injured (injuries per hour worked)?
11. In the course of the reporting period, what was the company’s incident rate?
Response and Reporting
12. In the course of the reporting period, has the company been involved in providing or enabling remedy where it has caused or contributed to the adverse impact associated with the following labour rights issues?
13. Briefly describe practical actions the company has taken during the reporting period and/or plans to take to implement the labour rights principles, including any challenges faced and actions taken towards prevention and/or remediation.
As mentioned before, Exasol is an IT Software Company, with highly skilled employees with high salaries. We only operate and employ employees (besides some exemptions) in the following countries/regions: Europa, USA. In this group of employees there is a very low risk of any violations of labour right principles. Anyhow, Exasol has a whistleblowing policy in place in case of any violations and the HR departments monitors the compliance with labour rights principles.Environment
Commitment
1. Does the company have a formal policy on the following environmental topics?
1.1. For each environmental policy, is it:
Prevention
2. In the course of the reporting period, has the company engaged with affected stakeholders or their legitimate representatives in relation to the following environmental issues?
3. What type of action has the company taken in the reporting period with the aim of preventing/mitigating the risks/impacts associated with these environmental topics?
Optional commentProvided training for internals and created an action plan for climate action and energy use4. How does the company assess progress in preventing/mitigating the risks/impacts associated with the following environmental topics?
5. In the course of the reporting period, has the company been involved in providing or enabling remedy for any actual impacts associated with the following environmental issue(s)?
Climate Action
6. What were the company’s gross global greenhouse gas emissions for the reporting period?
Scope 2 Emissions
Scope 3 Emissions
7. What percentage of the company's revenue was invested in R&D of low-carbon products/services during this reporting period?
8. Has the organization acted to support climate change adaptation and resilience?
Energy / Resource Use
9. Please report the company's renewable energy consumption as a percentage of total energy consumption in the reporting period.
Technology
10. What percent of the company's revenue came from environmentally friendly products / services during this reporting period?
Sector-specific Questions
11. Which sector(s) does the company operate in? If diversified, choose top 3 by revenue.
Overall Environment
21. Briefly describe practical actions the company has taken during the reporting period and/or plans to take to implement the environment principles, including any challenges faced and actions taken towards prevention and/or remediation.
Carbon-neutral servers, Create reports and visibility to our customers and partners, Tap water instead of bottled waterAnti-corruption
Commitment
1. Does the company have an anti-corruption compliance programme?
2. Does your company have policies and recommendations for employees on how to act in case of doubt and/or in situations that may represent a conflict of interest, e.g. with regard to gifts and hospitality, donations, sponsorship, or interactions with public officials?
Prevention
3. Who receives training on anti-corruption and integrity?
3.1. How often is such training provided?
4. Does the company monitor its anti-corruption compliance programme?
Response and Reporting
5. Please report the company's total number and nature of incidents of corruption during the reporting year.
6. Within the reporting period, what measures has the company taken to address suspected incidents of corruption independently or in response to a dispute or investigation by a government regulator?
Optional commentNo investigation by governmental bodies has taken place.7. Does your company engage in Collective Action against corruption?
8. Briefly describe practical actions the company has taken during the reporting period and/or plans to take to implement the anti-corruption principle, including any challenges faced and actions taken towards prevention and/or remediation.
We have implemented several measures, before and during the reporting period. For example, an Anti-Corruption Policy is in place as well as a respective Standard which contains information and guidance for dealing with gifts, benefits etc. A Whistleblowing process is in place and every employee is entitled to anonymously report any suspicious behaviour, also with regards to corruption.