White wheel showcasing environmental sustainability

As a part of Techtronic Industries (TTI), Hoover has embedded sustainability as a core value in all aspects of our business. Our TTI group operates on Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance (ESG) principles as outlined by their material topics below and expressed through our four strategic drivers:

 

  • We support Powerful Brands with a long legacy of inventing and producing reliable, high-quality products. From platform consistency to power output and from waste reduction to customer service, these complementary strengths serve as the focus for all our operations
  • We maintain laser-focus on developing Innovative Products with superior cordless technology to meet the changing needs of our customers and end-users across our product categories
  • We hire Exceptional People and pair them with a management team that brings decades of industry knowledge and experience to our global operations, cultivating a high-performance culture across all levels of our organization
  • From our new product development program and advanced logistics distribution networks to our customer servicing teams, TTI maintains a relentless focus on execution and Operational Excellence, ensuring our continued leadership in a dynamic market

These concepts, and the synergies between them, are the organizing principles that have led to our ongoing sustainability and growth. Our drivers guide the bold strategic direction that has enabled Hoover to consistently deliver on our financial goals of outgrowing the market, gross margin improvement, and profit that grows faster than sales.

Read Our 2021 ESG Report

Environment

Protecting our planet is critical for the long-term environmental sustainability of our communities and business. Our approach to environmental sustainability is closely tied to our quest for innovation. Since our early days, we have aimed to embed disruptive technologies into our products, delivering cordless, battery powered alternatives and energy-efficient options. HOOVER is not only committed to managing our impacts across our product range but also our global operations and value chain. We accomplish this by conserving resources, maximizing efficiencies, and prioritizing innovation. By setting clear targets that keep us accountable and encouraging everyone — employees, suppliers, customers, and communities — to do things differently, we strive to lead and effect positive change.

Oversight of Sustainability

The Board is collectively responsible for overseeing the purpose, values, and sustainability strategy of the Group to achieve long-term success for the Company. It is helped in this area by the ESG Executive Committee and the ESG Working Committee.

The ESG Executive Committee

Comprised of Board members and executives from various functional and geographic areas of the business, the ESG Executive Committee is led by the CEO and the Vice Chairman. The Committee helps drive the sustainability agenda of the Group and reports to the Board every quarter. In 2021, the ESG Executive Committee finalized the Group’s GHG emission Scope 1 and 2 reduction target which was then approved by the Board.

The ESG Working Committee and Business Units

The ESG Working Committee is tasked with implementing the strategy set by the Board and Executive Committee. This Committee includes executives from different functions — finance and operations, human resources, environment, health and safety, product safety, corporate communications, legal, compliance and sustainability. The Committee is responsible for refining policies, tracking performance, providing communication, collecting, and reporting data and setting targets to meet objectives.

Ethics and Integrity

High ethical standards are core to Hoover’s culture and serve as the foundation for embedding sustainability in all aspects of our business. These standards are articulated in our Code of Ethics and Business Conduct (CoC) . The CoC serves as a guide for conducting business with openness in accordance with all legal requirements while stipulating how to manage conflicts of interest and insider information. This Code also provides guidelines on the protection of human rights, and is communicated to all employees at all our subsidiaries in 22 languages.

Apart from the CoC, our operations are guided by several other policies that outline governance practices and expectations. These are included in our Employee Handbook and shared with employees globally, either through our e-learning platform or face to face. We ensure that information about our policies and details on how to report violations are also available in local languages at all work sites for those without computer access.

Supply Chain Accountability

We place great emphasis on the ethical, environmental, and social impact of our products and services throughout the value chain and, in our supply chain. From sourcing raw materials, to production, storage, delivery, and transportation, we ensure our operations will be sustainable in the long-term. Addressing these impacts with our partners, helps us to manage risk and enhance performance, while also maintaining stakeholder trust.

By continuously improving accountability, transparency, and sustainability performance in our supply chain, we aim to mitigate risk and secure business continuity. This begins with carefully assessing risk from ethical, environmental, and social standpoints, and selecting suppliers that uphold our standards and values. In accordance with our values, codes and policies, HOOVER supports the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.

Governance

The Company is committed to a high standard of corporate governance to enhance shareholders’ interests and promote sustainable development.A quality board of directors (the “Board”) with balanced skills, experience and diversity of perspectives is vital to the Company for effective risk management, internal controls, and leadership, as well as transparency and accountability to all shareholders. The Board reviewed codes of conduct, policies and practices and our corporate governance framework from time to time, to improve the Company’s corporate governance practices in respect of the latest developments on all applicable laws, rules, and regulations.