● S-OIL wins ‘ESG grand award’ - best sustainability management record among listed companies
● CEO Al-Ghamdi envisions “good company growing in harmony with society”
As S-OIL has received top-ranking awards in business sustainability assessment at home and abroad, CEO Othman Al-Ghamdi’s leadership is drawing attention.
On November 16, S-OIL won the grand prize at the ‘2017 ESG Award Ceremony’ organized by Korea Corporate Governance Service. The ESG Award Program evaluates all the listed companies on their sustainability management performance in three categories of environmental, social and governance (ESG). Previously on November 1, S-OIL was also named as one of DJSI (Dow Johns Sustainability Index) World Companies for eight years in a row, which is the first time among refiners in Asia.
Such accomplishments are attributed to CEO Al-Ghamdi’s visionary leadership whereby companywide efforts are put forward to promoting business sustainability under the Vision 2025. Since his inauguration, CEO Othman Al-Ghamdi has emphasized the importance of sustainability management under the philosophies that S-OIL should be a “Good Company” fulfilling ethical management and social responsibility based on global competitiveness.
In his new year speech this year, CEO Al-Ghamdi emphasized “Sustainability management compares to roots connecting a company, as an organism, with the soil of society, thereby helping the company continue long-term growth in the ever-changing business environment. In August, he declared the Vision 2025 based on such business philosophies, setting forth to make S-OIL the ‘most competitive and admired energy & chemical company in Asia Pacific.’
In the ESG assessment, S-OIL received high scores on its efforts to set a foundation of sustainable growth by creating values across economic, environmental and social fronts. While making successful investments to reinforce existing businesses and secure new growth engines, S-OIL has undertaken continuous activities to minimize its environmental footprints and create values for society.
At the ESG award ceremony, CEO Al-Ghamdi said “S-OIL will make its best efforts not only to supply ‘good oil’ but also to be a ‘good company’ growing in harmony with the social eco-system.” He also added “We will double up efforts to maximize shareholder returns and create greater values to all stakeholders such as employees, customers, suppliers and partners by promoting business transparency, social responsibility and environmental stewardship.
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◆ ESG Award Ceremony by KCGS
Since 2004, Korea Corporate Governance Service has evaluated the corporate governance of all listed companies for the purpose of encouraging their voluntary efforts to improve governance structure. Companies’ environmental and social performances are also evaluated in consideration of the growing demand for corporate social responsibility and sustainability management. This year, 740 companies listed with KOSPI and 119 blue ship KOSDAQ companies were evaluated under the ESG Award Program.
S-OIL was evaluated to reach global standards across all evaluation categories, and particularly received high scores on the fact that it established a sound and transparent governance structure under the check & balance system of the Board and decision making process to enhance shareholder values and maximize stakeholders’ interests.
◆ Sustainability management, why important?
Today, companies are facing growing demand for social responsibility and their performance of sustainability management has increasingly been used as criteria of corporate valuation and competitiveness. Earlier this year, a research team at Harvard Business School surveyed approx. 400 executives at investment firms and almost half of them reported considering ESG factors in investment decisions.
Harvard Business Review announces Top 100 CEOs of the World every year and it adopted ESG factors as 20% of evaluation criteria since 2015. According to its 2017 list, CEO Pablo Isla of Inditex ranked first. It came 18th on financial performance but scored the highest on total evaluation. By contrast, CEO Jeff Bezos of Amazon who ranked first on financial performance fell to 71st on total assessment result.
