Carlson Wagonlit Travel (CWT), the global digital travel management company, today published its latest Annual Responsible Business Report, showing significant progress towards its 2020 objectives. This latest report has reached the UN Global Compact Advanced Level, recognizing the success of CWT’s Corporate Social Responsibility program.
“I am very proud the UN Global Compact has honored our commitment to ethical business behavior in this way,” said Kurt Ekert, CWT’s President and CEO. “Responsible Business is deeply embedded in our culture, and this recognition – on top of being rated Gold by EcoVadis for a second year running – shows that we are on the right path.”
Demonstrating CWT’s commitment to think, act, and live with integrity, the Annual Responsible Business Report covers CWT’s main achievements in its seven Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) areas: Responsible Business Strategy and Governance, Ethics & Business Behavior, Human Resources, Human Rights, Environment, Community Involvement and Responsible Products and Services.
Some key accomplishments in 2017:
- CWT launched two taskforces with a focus on diversity and inclusion and on anti-human trafficking, sponsored by members of CWT’s Executive Leadership team.
- CWT carried out a detailed review of its Code of Business Ethics and Conduct to reflect the latest industry best practices and legislative trends. It also continued to run mandatory training on the Code of Business Ethics and Conduct for new recruits and current staff, and achieved a 99% completion rate.
- CWT offset 515 tons of CO2 equivalents to make two global events carbon neutral by supporting Carbon for Water™, a carbon offsetting project which helps rural communities in Kenya avoid the need to cut down trees to boil water, while ensuring that it is clean and safe. Thanks to its carbon offsetting efforts in 2017, 1,155 water filters were distributed to around 10,945 beneficiaries.
- CWT launched its social intranet to over 18,000 CWT users across nearly 50 countries. In just three months, the company achieved a 75% adoption rate. Christened ‘Buzz’ by the users, the tool helps employees stay informed, connect and collaborate and has quickly become CWT’s global digital community.
- CWT stepped up its fight against human trafficking through reinforced policies, increased awareness and education, and closer collaboration with stakeholders and public leadership. The company launched the ‘Walk The World Together’ global challenge for all employees to support ECPAT International. This campaign to collectively walk 24,901 miles (the circumference of the Earth) increased awareness and financial support to tackle human trafficking.
- CWT’s community involvement strategy focuses on targeting the 3E’s of: Education, Emergencies, and Essential needs. Through the hard work of its people, CWT organized more than 100 3E initiatives in 2017 alone, partnering with 79 charities around the world.
“These results show that we are on track to achieve our 2020 Responsible Business ambitions, and demonstrate why this new Annual Responsible Business Report meets the UN Global Compact Advanced Level,” said Françoise Grumberg, CWT’s Vice President, Global Responsible Business. “I am proud of the commitment and passion of our people.”
Carlson Wagonlit Travel
Companies and governments rely on us to keep their people connected. We provide their travelers with a consumer-grade travel experience, combining innovative technology with our vast experience. Every day, we look after enough travelers to fill more than 260 Boeing 787s and 100,000 hotel rooms - and handle 105 events. We operate in around 150 countries, and in 2017 posted a total transaction volume of more than US$ 23 billion.
