CSR Team as a driving force for sustainability

All sustainability activities and measures are coordinated in an interdisciplinary team, which consists of employees from a variety of company divisions. Sustainability is not something that's detached and isolated in its own department; rather it is embedded in all relevant departments throughout VAUDE in the day-to-day workings of the company. The Head of the CSR Team is the executive manager of Sales and Sustainability.

The members of the VAUDE CSR Team are a point of contact for all employees and business partners for sustainability issues. The CSR team sets priorities and coordinates projects. The team members are well connected with professional associations and working groups within and outside of the Outdoor Industry, as well as having close contact with experts and academia.

Are you interested in who wrote this sustainability report? You'll find the answer here

Each team member acts as a sustainability ambassador in his or her division. Frequent and regular team meetings guarantee close coordination and timely implementation within the company, both “upward” and “downward”. 

The members of the VAUDE CSR Team come from following teams and departments:

• Management
• Environmental Management 
• Quality Management
• Corporate Development
• Material Development
• Product Sourcing
• Sales
• Marketing and Communications

In order to implement our CSR objectives relating to social standards and the management of harmful materials, it's extremely important that we have specialists on site. They understand the local conditions, speak the language and can arrive quickly when needed. Our CSR employees in Asia visit our producers regularly. They not only monitor the conditions in a facility, but are also on-hand to provide assistance with their knowledge and experience.

All VAUDE employees are integrated in the continuous sustainability improvement process as follows:

• Integration of the VAUDE Ecosystem with annual goals into the Corporate Goals: all objectives for the next three to five years are included in our Corporate Goals. 11 out of 17 goals are directly related to sustainability. The Corporate Goals were developed in a top-down / bottom-up process and communicated to employees. A majority of employees work directly toward sustainability goals over the divisional, departmental, team and employee goals. More - "Our goals in detail"
  
• VAUDE employees can contact the members of the CSR Team directly at any time, draw attention and initiate discussions on topics that may be included in the process as a corporate goal.
  
• Our new idea management system, Steps, gives all employees a chance to become actively involved in suggesting new ideas and improvements. More - "Satisfied employees are committed and motivated"
  
• In all departments, we value the fact that knowledge of sustainability isn't just subject for the "experts". In our continuing education program we train all employees specifically on the complex subject of sustainability. See "Training and Professional Development".