bg

Yell acclaimed as a UK leader for sustainable development with second Queen’s Award for Enterprise - 21 April 2007

The UK arm of Yell, the international directories business, has won a second Queen’s Award for Enterprise, officially acknowledging it as an outstanding benchmark for sustainable development.

It is recognised as continuing to excel in pursuing sustainability – an approach to business that entails the fostering of strong economic growth whilst also benefiting society, encouraging protection of the environment and demonstrating prudent use of resources.

The company, part of the FTSE 100 Yell Group, has won the award for its development of an innovative management and leadership system to implement and promote sustainable development. It won its previous Queen’s Award for Enterprise in the sustainable development category in 2002 – an honour that is held for five years.

In winning a second award, Yell showed that a sustainable approach lies at the heart of every aspect of its business, from its management principles and structure, through to measures to minimise its impact on the environment and initiatives to benefit the wider communities in which it operates.

The official award summary states: “The outstanding sustainability performance of the company is reflected by the wealth of external recognition it has received, recognising its successful embedding of sustainability within all aspects of its business. “Yell Limited provides an exemplary benchmark for others within and beyond its sector.”

Yell is praised for “its impressive array of innovative initiatives embracing all aspects of sustainability”. Particular mention is made of the Yellow Woods Challenge, Yell’s flagship environmental campaign for schools run in partnership with the Woodland Trust and local authorities across the UK.

The Challenge entails youngsters taking old Yellow Pages directories into school for recycling, with every participating school getting a free environmental education pack to help teach pupils about paper, recycling and woodland conservation. A Challenge mascot, Kirk, helps bring the issues of recycling and the environment to life and make it fun. More than one million children have taken part since it was launched in 2002 and more than one million old directories have been recycled.

John Condron, chief executive of Yell Group, said: “We are very proud that our efforts and energies in developing a highly responsible, sustainable and very successful business operation have been recognised with a second Queen’s Award for Enterprise.

“Sustainability is engrained in everything we do, it’s an essential part of our way of life and we never lose sight of our responsibilities both directly to our business and those in the wider context in which we operate.

“It’s a remarkable plaudit for our 3,750 people in the UK that we are now seen as a beacon of excellence for sustainable development and one by which others can be judged.”

Amongst other highlights demonstrating Yell’s continuous achievement in its approach to sustainable development are:

Integrated management approach incorporating sustainable development

  • Fully integrated leadership and management approach based on the Principles of Excellence, which underpin the European Foundation for Quality Management’s Excellence Model - Europe’s most widely used management framework
  • Principles incorporated into Yell’s own Guiding Principles, Values and Competences against which Yell selects, recruits, appraises, develops, rewards and recognises
  • An all-encompassing approach that addresses all aspects of the business’s impact and performance, including impact on environment, society and the wider community

Leadership and Management dimension
  • Guiding Principles of excellence, reliability, respect and integrity introduced in 2005 to ensure stakeholders have confidence Yell is a well-managed and responsible company
  • Code of Ethics introduced in 2006 giving guidance to employees on expected standards of behaviour and commitment to integrity in dealings with stakeholders
  • Members of UK executive team are champions of specific elements of Yell’s approach
  • Governance and Responsibility steering group set up to guide and manage overall approach to sustainability, governance and corporate responsibility; reports directly to the CEO and supported by a Corporate Responsibility steering group

Environmental dimension
  • Yell works with its people and business partners to ensure its impact on the environment is minimised; registered to the ISO 14001 environmental management standard for more than six years
  • Promotion of the re-use of paper through the Yellow Pages Directory Recycling Scheme in partnership with local authorities, 97 per cent of whom offer Yellow Pages directory recycling. Millions of Yellow Pages directories are recycled each year into, for instance, cardboard, animal bedding, insulation, packaging materials and paper for newsprint.
  • Effective paper use with world class level of low paper wastage at printers; paper containing virgin fibre sourced from well-managed, sustainable forests; reduction in directory paper weight to 34 grams per square metre(gsm)
  • Reduced consumption of resources in offices through a three “Rs” philosophy of Reduce, Re-use, Recycle
  • Policy of reducing the impact of vehicle emissions through transport and car usage; commitment to effective management of CO2

Social dimension
  • Recruitment and retaining the best people; involvement of employees through setting of annual targets for each part of the business using a scorecard based on four key areas – customer, process, organisation and finance; personal objectives are linked to company objectives; an annual employee survey
  • Yell supports equal opportunities and welcomes diversity and is accredited with the UK’s “Two Ticks” symbol for its positive approach to the disabled
  • Working with national charities – Yell’s support and involvement focuses on two national charities. These are Marie Curie Cancer Care, which provides high quality cancer care to terminally ill people in their homes, and The Woodland Trust, the UK’s leading woodland conservation charity, through the Yellow Woods Challenge
  • Employees throughout the UK support local charities or regional branches of national charities, co-ordinated by a network of “Community Champions”; Yell also works with school pupils to help them prepare for work

Economic dimension
  • Supporting economic growth. In the financial year 05/06, Yell’s UK printed products attracted 462,000 advertisers, the majority being small or medium-sized businesses employing fewer than ten people. Its product range was used more than a billion times a year by 84 per cent of the population, with the leads generated providing a very important source for many businesses
  • Supporting of local communities around Yell UK business locations

Yell’s Relevant Achievements and Awards
(Since Winning the Queens Award for Enterprise – Sustainable Development, in 2002)
September 2006Yell Group plc selected for the Dow Jones World Index (DJSI World - top 10% of companies around the world) and the Dow Jones European Sustainability Index (DJSI STOXX top 20% of companies in Europe) on sustainability - third year in a row.
July 2006Winner of the 'Corporate Social Responsibility' category at the Chartered Institute of Public Relations Excellence Awards 2006 for the 'Yellow Woods Challenge'. Yell was applauded for developing a colourful, creative campaign that achieved excellent results, wide press coverage and strong buy-in from local communities and children.
June 2006Re-awarded a ‘Big Tick’ by Business in the Community, for the Yellow Woods Challenge, for the third year running.
March 2006Yell was included in the FTSE4Good index for the first time. The globally recognised FTSE4Good index was launched in July 2001 and is used by the SRI (Socially Responsible Investment) community. Its key objective is to contribute to the development of responsible business practice. As a new entrant, Yell met demanding criteria, including environmental sustainability and developing positive relationships with stakeholders, as measured by EIRIS, a renowned investment research company.
January 2006Yell was acknowledged as one the world’s most sustainable businesses through inclusion in the “Global 100”, a list compiled by Innovest and Morgan Stanley research and announced at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
October 2005Yell was awarded Investors in People Champion status - one of only 24 organisations in the UK who hold the title. Champion status is awarded for three years to organisations that demonstrate outstanding promotion of the values and principles of Investors in People.

Yell is included in the Ethibel Investment Register and Pioneer Index, an elite list of companies suitable for Socially Responsible Investment (SRI) based on social, economic and environmental management.

Achieved company-wide ISO 14001:2004 standard - first achieved company-wide ISO 14001 accreditation in 1999.
July 2005Winner in the 'Most Effective Corporate Relationship' category at the Institute of Fundraising/Professional Fundraising Magazine Awards, in recognition of 'Words Worth Reading', a schools’ fundraising campaign which formed part of the 2004 Marie Curie Cancer Care/Yellow Pages Daffodil Campaign.
June 2005Awarded the International Safety Award, 2004 by the British Safety Council in recognition of our lower-than-average accident rates, good safety policies and safety plans, alongside a strong commitment to Health & Safety.
April 2005Recognised as meeting the Investors in People standard for Leadership and Management.
March 2005Recognised as a Sunday Times Top 100 Employer for the second year running – achieving position 22.
November 2004Winner of the European Quality Award - large business division - the only company ever to win the Award twice. At the same time, we were awarded EQA Special Prizes for Leadership and Constancy of Purpose, and for People Development and Involvement.
October 2004Yell was the winner in the 'Best Not for Profit' category at the PR Week Awards in recognition of 'Words Worth Reading'.
April 2004Awarded a National Safety Award by the British Safety Council in recognition of lower-than-average accident rates.
November 2003Awarded a Green Apple Environment Award for the second time.
June 2003Business in the Community (BITC) Award for Excellence, for Community Impact through Collaborative Action.
February 2003Achieved company-wide ISO 9001:2000 standard (first achieved ISO 9001 in 1993).
April 2002Awarded a Queen's Award for Enterprise for the continuous achievement of our managed approach to Sustainable Development our first, and most prestigious, award in relation to sustainable development, and a catalyst for our continued development and success in this area. The Queen’s Award flag is proudly flown at our global Head Office in Reading.



^ Volver al inicio | Imprimir la página