On the Executive Committee, the Chief Corporate Responsibility Officer ensures that the measures the Group takes to integrate sustainability across its entire value chain are strategically consistent with its charitable contributions. Using the action plans that have been introduced, she formulates and implements the sustainability strategy, and assesses and manages risks and opportunities related to environmental and societal challenges at Group level. In April 2023, the Chief Corporate Responsibility Officer presented L'Oréal's Sustainability strategy, including climate change, to the Annual General Meeting.
Under her direction, different internal Committees related to sustainability define the roadmaps for each of the entities represented (Operations, Research & Innovation, Divisions, Zones). The experts responsible for administering the programme are on these Committees, each of which defines annual objectives and oversees how they are rolled out across the value chain.
Twice a year, the Chief Corporate Responsibility Officer invites some Executive Committee members to a meeting of the L’Oréal for the Future Executive Committee to make strategic decisions about the programme.
Created in 2020, the mission of the Sustainable Finance Department is to integrate the environmental challenges from a financial standpoint. It reports to the Chief Financial Officer and to the Chief Corporate Responsibility Officer. It aims to develop and then manage Sustainable Finance actions by coordinating actions within the finance teams and further incorporating sustainability into investment and acquisition decisions.
Launched in 2021, the Sustainable Tech Department was expanded in 2023 to incorporate a digital component. The mission of the Sustainable Digital & Tech Department is to measure the environmental footprint of our Digital and Tech activities, while developing and implementing decarbonisation pathways towards reducing carbon intensity with concrete roadmaps and reduction targets. This Department reports to the Beauty Tech Department and CMO.
Sustainability must be driven by all teams. All L’Oréal employees are encouraged to complete learning programmes on the challenges of sustainability. They have access to a comprehensive range of online learning courses as part of the L’Oréal for the Future programme. These learning courses are available in 15 languages.
Remuneration structures have been revised at the highest level. The variable portion of the Chief Executive Officer’s annual remuneration incorporates quantitative and qualitative non-financial targets, including objectives associated with the L’Oréal for the Future programme (and previously the Sharing Beauty with All programme). In order to ensure strong correlation with L’Oréal’s strategy for which economic and social performance go hand-in-hand, the long-term remuneration of the Chief Executive Officer, and that of more than 2,000 other recipients of performance shares, includes criteria for non-financial performance in addition to financial performance (see sections 2.4 and 7.4.). Moreover, non‑financial targets in line with the Group’s sustainability goals have since 2016 been included in the variable remuneration of the top management, including international brand managers and country managers.
Within the framework of ongoing dialogue and in the spirit of continual progress, L’Oréal considers its stakeholders’ expectations. With a worldwide representative panel of outside experts, the Group has defined and developed a method of ad-hoc interaction deemed the most efficient and appropriate. It has also set up bodies to consider important issues. These bodies aim to ensure that civil society’s expectations are sufficiently met with regard to these issues. The main stakeholder interactions are set out in subsection 4.1.5.
The Group is convinced that acting ethically is the only way to achieve sustainable success. In order to ensure that strong Ethical Principles – Integrity, Respect, Courage and Transparency – continue to guide the development of L’Oréal and contribute to establishing its reputation, the Chief Executive Officer can also rely on the Chief Ethics, Risk and Compliance Officer, who reports directly to him.
In 2022, true to its commitment to the Ten Principles of the UN Global Compact, L’Oréal participated in the Early Adopter programme. This involvement highlights its contribution to the UN Sustainable Development Goals, which are at the centre of its growth strategy.
In 2023, L’Oréal was awarded the Living Wage Employer accreditation by Fair Wage Network, an international NGO, in recognition of its worldwide status as a committed Living Wage Employer.
