Our approach

Philosophy

As an international business operating in 14 countries with over 700 employees world-wide, 3i aims to conduct its business in a socially responsible manner. It is committed to being a responsible member of the communities in which it operates and recognises the mutual benefits of engaging and building relationships with those communities. 3i believes that respect for human rights is central to good corporate citizenship.

In everything 3i does, it aims to be commercial and fair, to maintain its integrity and professionalism and to respect the needs of shareholders, staff, suppliers, the local community and the businesses in which it invests.

3i endeavours to comply with the laws, regulations and rules applicable to its business and to conduct its business in accordance with established best practice in each of the countries in which it operates. Environmental, ethical and social responsibility issues and standards are also taken into consideration in every aspect of the business.

3i aims to be a responsible employer and has adopted corporate values and standards designed to help guide its employees in their conduct and business relationships. These values and standards are an integral part of 3i's culture.

Responsibilities and accountabilities

The Board as a whole is responsible for ethical standards. The executive Directors are responsible for ensuring compliance with 3i's corporate values and standards.

The Corporate Responsibility Committee ("the Committee") considers and reviews environmental, ethical and social issues relevant to 3i's business. It promotes awareness of these issues across the business through training and communication. It promotes the development of corporate responsibility policies, procedures and initiatives and monitors and reviews their operation.

The Committee, on behalf of the Board, identifies and assesses the significant risks and opportunities for 3i arising from social, ethical and environmental issues. A risk matrix methodology is used to identify new risks, monitor developing trends and best practice, and consider changes in 3i's business and culture. This risk matrix and a log of identified risks is reviewed and updated at meetings of the Committee and significant risks are reported to 3i's Risk Committee. The Committee reports regularly to the Board.

As Chairman of the Committee, Tony Brierley, has specific responsibility for 3i's environmental policies, leading the development of new initiatives and targets and reporting to the Board.

All employees have a responsibility to be aware of, and to abide by, 3i's policies and procedures which have been developed to guide staff and regulate the conduct of the day to day operations of the business. These policies and procedures include 3i's environmental, ethical and social policies, and are available to all employees through 3i's portal, a web-based knowledge system. Employees are encouraged to make suggestions to improve these policies and procedures.