Aware of the value of our activities in Italy and abroad, we promote growth that focuses on sustainable results in the long term and creates a virtuous cycle based on the trust that stems from customer and shareholder satisfaction, from our employees’ sense of belonging and from listening to the needs of communities and local areas.
Our growth strategy aims at creating solid and sustainable values from economic and financial, social and environmental standpoints, built on the trust of all our stakeholders and based on our values.

(from the Code of Ethics @)

Integrity, excellence, transparency, respect for specific qualities, equality, values of the individual and responsibility in the use of resources: these are the values, stated in the Code of Ethics, on which the Intesa Sanpaolo Group bases its banking methods and its relations with stakeholders. These values are also set out in its Code of Conduct. At the end of 2016, the Board of Directors approved an update to the Code of Ethics, which takes into account the new corporate governance model, redefines implementation procedures and clarifies some principles on which bank/stakeholder relations are based.

The Group is also committed to complying with sustainable development principles and participates in important international initiatives that promote dialogue between companies, international organisations and society and pursue respect for the environment and human rights.

Governance of Corporate Social Responsibility

In its implementation methods, the Code of Ethics sets out the management model which is centred around the concept of direct responsibility: every company function is called upon to guarantee its commitment to ensuring that business activities remain consistent with the values stated and that the improvement objectives expressed in the Sustainability Report are gradually achieved.

The Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Sub-Department assists top management in defining sustainability strategies and policies designed to generate value for stakeholders. It reports through the Chief Governance Officer to the Managing Director and CEO and to the Board of Directors.

The CSR Delegates network is made up of more than 60 employees working in various entities in Italy and abroad, who cooperate with the CSR Sub-Department to manage relations with reference stakeholders, implement projects and define improvement objectives, manage non-compliance with the Code of Ethics, and monitor and report on activities.

The Bank’s governance bodies are periodically informed by the CSR Sub-Department about significant issues and their integration with business activities. Updates to the Code of Ethics and Sustainability Report are shared with the Risks Committee and approved by the Board of Directors. The Unit also reports annually to the Management Control Committee and Supervisory Body pursuant to Legislative Decree No. 231/2001 (see the section “Certification of social responsibility governance” @).

Stakeholder engagement

Stakeholder engagement is key for the Intesa Sanpaolo Group in order to understand the level of satisfaction of activities carried out by the Bank. Structured dialogue is arranged every year, using different engagement approaches: multi-stakeholder forums, focus groups and online questionnaires for employees and trade unions, interviews with shareholders, customers and non-government organisations, customer satisfaction surveys and surveys with suppliers. Stakeholder expectations, within corporate business strategies, allow Intesa Sanpaolo to identify improvement objectives.

Activity monitoring

The effectiveness of the Bank’s social responsibility commitment is monitored through two integrated processes: one process, originating from engagement with the Group's most significant stakeholders, defines improvement objectives, which is followed up with the KPI monitoring of the implementation status of commitments and, lastly, with reporting in the Sustainability Report; the other process, using ISO 26000 Guidelines as a basis, assesses the level of integration of Code of Ethics values with business activities, through self-assessment performed by entities, followed by an independent audit if the self-assessment identifies potential aspects of reputational risk.