Business Principles

Integrity is at the heart of SGS. The trust that we inspire in our customers and stakeholders is the key to our success. As leaders in our industry we hold ourselves to the highest standards of professional behavior as embedded in our Code of Integrity.

Our aim:

• Earn the trust of our customers
• Be accountable for our actions
• Be honest and transparent in everything we do
• Create a culture of integrity within SGS

It is therefore our commitment to:

• Uphold the independence and impartiality of SGS and resist undue influences
• Conduct our business honestly and transparently
• Never partake in bribery, insider trading or any form of corruption
• Comply with international, national and local laws and regulations
• Let principles guide our decision making, not personal choice or preference
• Be willing to speak up: we are confident enough to raise concerns and smart enough to consider any that are brought to us

Acting with integrity is an individual responsibility for all of us, at every level within our organization. These commitments apply to all SGS employees and contractors. Management is responsible for ensuring full compliance with SGS policies.

Our long term success and sustainable business depend on our ability to remain a recognized leader and a reference for all Health, Safety and Environmental (HSE) matters.

Our aim:

• Long-term success and sustainability built on innovation and recognition as a leader in all Health, Safety and Environmental (HSE) matters
• Provide and ensure safe and healthy working conditions for all our employees (permanent and temporary), visitors, contractors and other stakeholders by the prevention of all work-related injuries and ill health
• Promote sustainable development by respecting and protecting the environment while performing and managing our services and operations using state-of-the-art HSE technologies and employing best practices
• Integrate Health, Safety and Environmental items into the top management decision-making process and goals definition

It is therefore our commitment to:

• Ensure the health and safety of our employees, contractors, customers and third parties with an accident prevention philosophy which identifies and eliminates hazards and reduces occupational health & safety risks
• Provide an environmental-friendly workplace by preserving the environment and our communities through pollution prevention, rational use of energy, natural resources and minimizing our environmental impact
• Comply with all applicable national, regional and local HSE regulations, laws and any compliance obligation directly related to our operations, as well as aligning with customer requirements and all SGS Group standards that exceed national, regional or local regulations and laws
• Continuously improve HSE performance, management systems, programs and tools across all our operations, through internal and external audit assessments, ensuring reliability
• Include HSE principles in our global, regional, country and business HSE objectives as well as in all activities and communicate them via the SGS Operations Council and OI committees to all levels of the organization
• Innovate to improve working and environmental conditions in the workplace and move even further towards achieving our “Zero Incident” and “Zero Environmental Impact” targets
• Increase HSE awareness by providing all necessary equipment, resources and training and promoting safer behaviors
• Emphasize the use of the Stop-Work-Authority for SGS employees and contractors when faced with any HSE risk
• Manage HSE risk and opportunities related to the workplace, operations and management systems
• Foster continuous improvement on HSE aspects through the creation of efficient communication channels that actively involve the consultation and participation of employees, and where they exist, workers’ representatives
• Protect any employee from reprisals when reporting incidents, hazards, risk and opportunities
• Apply the SGS HSE statement to all activities, operations, constructions, systems, M&A and investments

Respecting Health, Safety and Environmental rules is an individual responsibility for all of us, at every level within our organization. These commitments apply to all SGS employees, contractors and visitors. Management is responsible for ensuring full compliance with SGS policies.

Quality and Professionalism are integral parts of our Business Principles and the cornerstones for ensuring high levels of customer satisfaction. Through mutually beneficial partnerships and continued operational excellence we ensure the long-term sustainability of our business.

Our aim:

• Deliver world-class services that meet our customers’ needs
• Build strong customer relationships based on trust, mutual respect and the prioritization of the needs of the customer
• Be known and recognized for our superior knowledge, reliability, accuracy and consistency
• Nurture and encourage a culture of quality within SGS with the full support of management and engagement of all employees

It is therefore our commitment to:

• Place customers at the heart of everything we do, engaging proactively with their needs
• Maintain flexibility, listening to industry and customer needs and expectations and actively evolving our quality statement to meet them
• Continuously challenge ourselves to improve our quality management system by setting and reviewing our objectives, risks, KPIs, results and customer satisfaction levels
• Develop and maintain the processes we need to deliver high quality, optimized and coherent services
• Continuously measure, maintain and increase our knowledge base through sustainable processes of talent recruitment and training
• Respect client confidentiality and individual privacy while remaining transparent in all other aspects of our work
• Protect our intellectual property and know-how
• Embody the SGS brand and its independence in all that we do

Delivering quality and professionalism is an individual responsibility for all of us, at every level within our organization. These commitments apply to all SGS employees and contractors. Management is responsible for ensuring full compliance with SGS policies.

We provide an environment where our employees can thrive. As a fundamental part of this we ensure that we treat all people with dignity, consideration and respect.

Our aim:

• Respect for Human Rights
• Promote a workplace that provides equal opportunity and an environment in which all members of the workplace treat all individuals at all times with dignity, consideration and respect
• Create a diverse and inclusive work environment, with zero tolerance for discrimination of any kind

It is therefore our commitment to:

• Ensure that all employment related decisions, such as hiring, training and development, compensation, benefits, recognition, promotion, disciplinary action and termination will be solely made on the basis of an individual’s qualifications, performance and behavior or other legitimate business considerations
• Prohibit any discriminatory practices, harassment or bullying, in particular based on age, civil partnership, disability, ethnicity, family status, gender, gender identity, ideological views, marital status, nationality, political affiliation, pregnancy, religion, sexual orientation, social origin or any other status that is protected by law
• Never to engage in bonded labor, child labor or forced labor
• Respect the right of our employees to join trade unions or employee associations and to engage in collective bargaining
• Ensure compliance with all employment related laws and regulations of the countries in which we operate

Respecting the rights and dignity of all people is an individual responsibility for all of us, at every level within our organization. These commitments apply to all SGS employees and stakeholders. Management is responsible for ensuring full compliance with SGS policies.

We are committed to enabling a better, safer and more interconnected world. We are a purpose-driven company and use our scale and global reach to enable a more sustainable future. All dimensions of sustainability (environmental, social and governance) guide our activity within our organization, how we interact with our customers, with other stakeholders and with the communities where we operate across our global network.

Our aim:

Deliver value to society across our value chain:

• Supporting our customers in adopting and developing more sustainable and trustworthy business practices which, in turn, allows them to create products, technologies and services that deliver added value to society
• Performing our operations with the highest standards of efficiency, excellence and sustainability
• Engaging with our suppliers to ensure high standards of quality, integrity and sustainability, and building partnerships to drive innovation

It is therefore our commitment to:

• Maintain the highest standards of integrity and excellence in our operations
• Ensure the health, safety and development of our people, while promoting wellbeing, diversity and equal opportunities
• Support the transition to a low carbon and climate resilient world through innovation, energy efficiency, carbon offsetting and the promotion of renewable energy
• Use natural resources responsibly and effectively manage our waste
• Procure products and services in a responsible way
• Evaluate and only acquire companies that align with our sustainability values
• Invest in the communities in which we live and work
• Deliver sustainable value through secure, fair, transparent and responsible business practices
• Manage a long-term profitable business by delivering measurable value to society
• Integrate financial and non-financial risks and opportunities in our business and consider all the positive and negative environmental, social and economic impacts we have on society

Championing sustainability is an individual responsibility for all of us, at every level within our organization. This policy statement applies to all SGS employees, contractors, suppliers and other key business partners. Management is responsible for ensuring full compliance with SGS policies.

We are passionate and innovative people with a relentless desire for continual improvement.

Our aim:

• Create an open culture, where smart work is recognized and rewarded, and which fosters teamwork and commitment
• Offer cutting-edge value-added solutions that support our customers
• Develop and demonstrate positive and innovative leadership
• Drive forward innovation in the TIC sector

It is therefore our commitment to:

• Inspire employees to achieve their career goals within SGS by providing learning and development opportunities, including job shadowing, networking, formal education and training
• Instill the core values and behaviors of SGS in our people
• Create an innovative culture by challenging, developing and supporting our employees’ ideas
• Encourage an honest and transparent two-way relationship with our people to promote sharing, collaboration and engagement
• Recognize the value and contribution of every employee
• Reinforce a culture of accountability where agile decision making enables innovation and speed to market
• Base our approach to employee compensation, benefits and recognition on our global principles and guidelines

Demonstrating leadership is an individual responsibility for all of us, at every level within our organization. These commitments apply to all SGS employees. Management is responsible for ensuring full compliance with SGS policies.