IGT’s framework for corporate social responsibility is grounded in the company’s values and is focused on nine of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. These goals are integrated into the company’s four strategic priorities: Valuing and Protecting Our People, Advancing Responsibility, Supporting Our Communities, and Fostering Sustainable Operations.
The pandemic amplified a host of challenges for people everywhere as health concerns collided with financial and social ones. It also spurred a period of reassessment for businesses, individuals, and communities. Unsurprisingly, the broader relationship between business and society is receiving greater attention as well.
This trend was building in the decade prior to the pandemic, when
more organizations – from Silicon Valley tech firms to some of the
world’s lotteries – began reporting publicly on their efforts to operate
sustainable, profitable, and purpose-driven businesses. IGT has been at
the forefront, now entering its 14th year of publishing a sustainability report.
The momentum is expected to continue and accelerate toward greater inclusion and accountability, as CSR efforts have always by definition reflected an organization’s relationship with a gamut of stakeholders, including customers, employees, local communities, governments, suppliers, and the environment.
Post-Pandemic Issues
Global consumer trends agency Foresight Factory, IGT’s longtime partner, projects that “with COVID-19 contained, climate change will become the dominant global threat” and, importantly, it will increasingly be viewed as a social issue.” Tackling climate change is increasingly a goal for governments as well as consumers.
Foresight Factory sees a further trend toward rethinking how human work is valued across the supply chain. “Consumers are recognizing that it’s not just the environmental cost of products that matters,” says Foresight Factory’s Dominic Harrison, noting that companies would do well to “offer transparency across the entire supply chain.”
Writing in Forbes recently, a CSR specialist observed that after the protests over racial and social injustice in the U.S. and elsewhere, “government officials, investors, employees and customers [will also] demand more inclusion and equity from the companies they associate with.”
IGT has been cited as a leader within and beyond the industry for its longstanding commitment to these and other important aspects of social responsibility – from the company’s adherence to the world’s most demanding Responsible Gaming frameworks to IGT’s selection as one of only 325 companies across 50 industries included in the 2020 Bloomberg Gender Equality Index, which recognizes companies that are committed to advancing women’s equality. The gaming industry’s All-In Diversity Project also celebrated IGT as one of the sector’s leaders in making progress toward inclusion in the workplace.
Like other firms on the leading edge of CSR practices, IGT looks at a broad spectrum of sustainability concerns, from the company’s energy use to wider environmental and human rights issues. Last year, IGT qualified as an Outperformer with Sustainalytics and in 2021 was ranked second in the industry by this leading independent global provider of environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) ratings to investors. IGT is ranked by several other ratings providers, among them Morgan Stanley Capital Investment (MSCI). MSCI ratings aim to measure a company's resilience to long-term ESG risks. Companies are scored on an industry-relative AAA-CCC scale across the most relevant Key Issues based on a company's business model. IGT’s rating is at AA, and with regard to the Casino & Gaming sector it has been ranked among the group of the best performers.
Sustainable Procurement
Participating in the EL/WLA Responsible Worldwide Webinar Week in September, IGT’s CSR Senior Manager, Stefania Colombo, described the steps that IGT is carrying out to protect human rights in its business and specifically throughout its supply chain.
Along with examples of the policies and procedures in place at IGT, Colombo described the regulatory environment for human rights and supply chain issues, the levels of impact an organization can make, and the many reasons why human rights are an essential issue for businesses today.
Stefania Colombo, CSR Senior Manager at IGT, participated in the recent EL/WLA Responsible Worldwide Webinar with a presentation on ensuring respect for human rights throughout the supply chain.
“Enterprises can affect the human rights of their employees and contract workers, their customers, workers in their supply chains, communities around their operations, and end users of their products or services,” Colombo notes.
To this end, IGT created a Sustainable Procurement Working Group in 2018 focused on the protection of human rights and the environment along the organization’s entire supply chain. In 2019, this working group established the IGT Supplier Code of Conduct, to which the company’s suppliers are required to adhere. The group is now defining an Action Plan aimed at integrating sustainability criteria in the supplier evaluation at a global scale.
“This work requires an in-depth analysis of the supply chain, aimed at identifying potential risk factors,” explains Colombo. But that’s just the initial step. The working group is also tasked with defining the tools for assessing the risks and sustainability performance of suppliers, implementing the responsible supply chain management procedure based on the level of risk, and conducting periodic reviews to fuel continuous improvement.
A Comprehensive Review
IGT’s annual sustainability report provides a detailed account of
these sustainable procurement initiatives and all other aspects of the
company’s CSR approach.
The most recent report, released in July, demonstrates that while the world changed in 2020, IGT’s positive momentum and commitment to sustainable growth did not. Like lotteries worldwide, the company thrived through its ability to embrace change and demonstrate immense flexibility to support employees and customers.
During this time, IGT continued to develop specific targets and initiatives that contribute to the achievement of the nine out of 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that the company has identified as areas of focus within the 2030 United Nations Agenda for Sustainable Development.
The company is participating in this global effort by pursuing SDGs within the company’s scope of operations based on IGT’s four strategic priorities: Valuing and Protecting Our People, Advancing Responsibly, Supporting Our Communities, and Fostering Sustainable Operations. The approach involves seven working groups comprised of different IGT departments.
IGT has also aligned its sustainability initiatives with the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC), the largest corporate responsibility initiative in the world for the development, implementation, and disclosure of responsible corporate policies and practices.
And IGT continues to develop Responsible Gaming solutions that meet and exceed the requirements of various jurisdictions, achieving recertifications and recognition from organizations such as the World Lotteries Association and the Global Gambling Guidance Group.
“Our customers and employees care a lot about sustainability – it’s not an academic exercise,” says Jay Gendron, Chief Operating Officer Lottery.
“Customers come to us and ask us to demonstrate our leadership and
commitment. And with about 11,000 employees operating in more than 100
countries, our sustainability practices are also supported by those
strong relationships with our people, customers, and suppliers around
the world. Customers – and players – can be confident in our values and
our approach as we continue to deliver outstanding customer service,
goods and services.”
“We promote a sustainable, balanced, and long-term approach to Responsible Gaming, where player protection is continuously considered in our work. In addition to complying with strict procedures, for many years we have focused on continuous innovation to ensure that our Responsible Gaming program represents our ongoing commitment to players.”
– Fabio Cairoli, CEO Global Lottery, IGT
