Annual report 2010 - Imperial Tobacco Group

Corporate Responsibility continued2010 PerformanceStrategy Performance Governance FinancialsConsumer CentricSatisfying consumers and aligning our portfolio to their evolvingpreferences is fundamental to our sales growth strategy.In terms of CR we are focused on product quality, ourproduct stewardship responsibilities and on reducingcomplexity in our portfolio.Our product quality management systems ensure we arefirmly focused on meeting consumer demands.We conduct scientific and research programmes to improveour knowledge of tobacco products and tobacco consumption,so we can meet the future requirements of our consumers.Improving Product QualityIn 2010, we made further progress on how we incorporateconsumers feedback into product quality improvements.The ISO 9001 management system provides our frameworkfor quality. A total of 32 of our 51 factories are ISO 9001certified, with projects underway to implement the standardin eight other sites by the end of 2011.We drive improvements using a product quality rating system(PQRS), standardised test equipment and methodology,benchmarking of final products and quality-improvementplans. PQRS is applied to all our factories and is currentlybeing implemented in our tobacco processing sites.Reducing Complexity in our PortfolioThis year we have implemented a new approach to howwe evaluate and reduce complexity and reduction in ourportfolio to achieve the right balance between meetingconsumer and regulatory demands and our productstewardship requirements.As a result, we have reviewed and agreed complexityreduction criteria and, following an initial assessment, anumber of our stock keeping units have been standardisedand discontinued.Complementing this, we have successfully reduced ourblends by eight per cent.Ingredients Reporting and AssessmentConsumers are able to access the ingredients for a numberof products via our website www.imperial-tobacco.com.We continued to provide regular submissions to individualgovernment authorities on the ingredients used in our tobaccoproducts and made 45 submissions in 2010. This includes thetoxicological information which we have available on thoseingredients. We monitor alleged incidents of non-compliancewith technical product regulations and voluntary codes. Thisyear there were two alleged incidents of non-compliance,however further testing of the product confirmed compliance.We comply with government regulations on tobacco productingredients and in countries where no regulations exist weconform to international standards.Execution ExcellenceWe are a fast flexible business with a strong reputation fordelivering results through execution excellence.In terms of CR, we are focused on responsible salesand marketing, developing our people and employeeengagement, occupational health and safety and ourenvironmental performance.Our ability to deliver results depends on the commitmentand capabilities of our employees.We work hard to ensure they have the right skills to supportout sustainable sales growth strategy, are competitivelyrewarded and have a safe working environment as wecontinue to develop our occupational health and safety (OHS)processes and management.We are committed to minimising our environmental impact.Effective environmental management presents us with businessopportunities supporting our value driver of cost optimisation.Responsible Sales and MarketingSelling our products in a responsible way is simply part ofhow we do business. All Imperial Tobacco Group companiesand employees must apply our International MarketingStandards (IMS) as a minimum, regardless of geographicallocation. The IMS applies to all advertising, promotion andresearch agencies employed by us and is available on ourwebsite www.imperial-tobacco.com/cr.Performance Highlights: CRWe achieved a gold awardrating in Business in theCommunity’s 2009 CorporateResponsibility Index.44