Radisson Hotel Group has released its 2015 responsible business report, highlighting the company’s progress to date and signposting their future priorities.
The highlights of the company’s achievements include Radisson’s recognition for the sixth year in a row as one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies, the hotel group donating €1.3m to charity, Radisson employees completing 5,000+ days of volunteering and Blu Planet, the innovative towel re-use programme at Radisson Blu, providing safe drinking water to 4,700 children.
In addition the group has achieved energy savings of 22%, a reduction of Radisson’s water consumption by 29% and the Meetings Minus Carbon programme has offset 32,000 tonnes of carbon and planted 32,000 trees. 77% hotels in the group are now eco-labelled, the majority with Green Key as a result of the cooperation between Green Key and Radisson.
But alongside their Think Together and Think Planet pillars, Radisson Hotels’ third responsible business aspect is Think People. Their work on this has seen 65 Radisson hotels certified by the Safehotels alliance, employee satisfaction scores at 87.5 and the launch of new courses to develop the company’s female talent.
In October, Radisson Blu hotels supported the worldwide breast cancer awareness month with the Pink Breakfast. On the Pink Breakfast buffet, food and drink items which can help reduce cancer were added to the Radisson Blu Super Breakfast. As part of the campaign, donations were collected for Europa Donna, the international breast cancer awareness organisation.
In 2014 Radisson launched its Women in Leadership initiative. Supported by the CEO Wolfgang M. Neumann and top management, the initiative aims to:
Challenge existing thinking and increase the representation of women in senior positions across the entire company
Breakdown the barriers that prevent women across Radisson from having open conversations about their careers and encourage them to consider flexible approaches towards their working conditions
Harness the individual strengths of their female leaders and actively encourage their collective participation at every level of the business
Develop and retain female leaders through sustainable and lasting changes which focus on long-term career planning for all.
In return, those women working in senior positions are asked to lead by example and become positive role models for the future.
CEO Wolfgang M. Neumann presented Radisson’s commitment to talent, development, and Women in Leadership to students during the SEG talent day. Wolfgang explained that Radisson embraces diversity and inclusion, and that talent always come first, independent of gender, visible differences, beliefs, or sexuality.
In the report Neumann says, “Responsible business has a long tradition at Radisson. Our first environmental policy dates back to 1989, and we were one of the first international hotel companies to introduce a group-wide Responsible Business programme. We are proud that our continued efforts are acknowledged beyond the industry: since 2010, we were named one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies by the think-tank “Ethisphere”.
“The COP21 agreement and the launch of the Sustainable Development Goals in 2015 have confirmed the role that international businesses can and must play in curbing climate change and in contributing to sustainable development around the globe. The tourism industry provides income through employment and job creation and fosters sustainable development by focusing on employability and education. Collaboration within our sector is essential in these important missions so I am driving alignment between all major global hotel groups in my role as Chairman of the International Tourism Partnership.”
The Full Responsible Business Report 2015 – The Radisson Hotel Group