Global Compact International Yearbook 2016

Stakeholder Relations –
Invest in Them Before You
Need to Rely on Them
By Nadine-Lan Hönighaus and
Thorsten Pinkepank, BASF SE
Why engage your stakeholders?
As the world’s leading chemical company,
BASF has products in all kinds of
industries. It employs approximately
112,000 people globally, services numerous
suppliers and customers, and has
relationships with shareholders and a
large number of societal stakeholders.
Having a clear picture of a company’s
relevant stakeholders in business, government,
and civil society is essential
for effective stakeholder engagement.
However, a company’s set of relevant
stakeholders will change with time. In
order to ensure an ongoing stakeholder
engagement, it is appropriate to have
skilled people and organizational structures
in place.
BASF has always interacted with its stakeholders,
but in addition to rather “classical”
forms of stakeholder interaction,
which are still essential, new approaches
have been developed. Engagement with
stakeholders can improve a company’s
decision-making and performance, since
it helps in acquiring a broader view of
the market than what economic figures
alone can provide. Stakeholders can offer
a company insight into their perspectives
on current and emerging issues, into how
they perceive the company, and what
they consider to be the company’s impact.
This does not mean delegating decisionmaking
to external people; it is still a
company’s management that decides
on its business strategy. However, this
strategy has a higher likelihood of meeting
the market’s needs if it is based on a
participatory approach that also includes
stakeholders’ views.
BASF has given a clear answer as to the
“why”: We have identified “responsible
relations” as being one of the material
aspects of our organization.
Different forms of stakeholder
engagement at BASF
BASF has various forms of stakeholder
engagement in place. Our stakeholder
engagement comprises of onsite and local
community-related forums, such as
our community advisory panels at sites
worldwide. On the business side, BASF is
A fixed component of our sustainability
management is the continuous exchange
with our stakeholders.
a founding member of Together for Sustainability,
an initiative in which leading
chemical companies have joined forces
to support sustainability in the supply
chain and standardize supplier assessment
methods. On an international level,
BASF takes an active part in the United
Nations Global Compact: BASF’s Chairman
of the Board of Executive Directors
is a member of the UN Global Compact
Board, and BASF is an active member in
many local networks. Different formats
of stakeholder engagement serve different
purposes: With local initiatives, you are
110
Global Compact International Yearbook 2016