58 | Just Group PLC | Annual Report and Accounts 2023
SECTION 172 STATEMENT – EXAMPLES OF DECISIONS TAKEN DURING THE YEAR
This report assesses how the Directors have taken into consideration the Company’s business relationships with various key stakeholders. It also explores how the Directors have engaged with colleagues across the Group and how the principal decisions taken by the Board may impact them.
AREA OF DECISION
MATTER CONSIDERED
S172 FACTOR/ KEY STAKEHOLDERS
WHAT WE DID
Long term, high standards of business conduct, colleagues, customers, environment
The Board considered various initiatives to support its strategic priority to transform how we work.
The Board considered and agreed the Group’s strategy execution plan for 2023 which had been updated to include a measurable and deliverable goal for each business area. The Board took into consideration the needs and expectations of customers and colleagues in the decision making process in addition to its long-term goals and sustainability initiatives. The key growth dependencies included enabling scalability of the Defined Benefit (“DB”) business to achieve our growth ambitions, modernising business processes and technology to future proof our business, further embedding the sustainability strategy, and enhancing the value and suitability of what we can offer to our customers. The Board has committed to invest in transformation and operational improvements across all business areas to enable the Group to create a business that can scale without adding significant cost. The positive impact on our trustees and customers experience, and enhancements to the quality of our service have been key focus areas for this programme of activity. The Directors have provided oversight on these initiatives and regular status updates were received at Board and Board Committee meetings. The Finance transformation project has been one of the key focus areas during the year, with a number of initiatives implemented including a new General Ledger and Treasury system. The Group Audit Committee has been responsible for oversight of the progress with a number of discussions held during the year to specifically focus on this project. A key strategic focus area previously agreed by the Board was to embed Just’s culture and establish a framework for measuring culture, which includes active management of performance and promoting individual accountability. Following the introduction of key risk indicators (“KRIs”) in 2022, the Group Risk and Compliance Committee now receives bi-annual reports on KRIs of the risk culture. Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (“DEIB”) is a key focus area for the Directors both at Board level and the wider workforce, and is aligned to the DEIB Policy which is approved annually by the Board. The Board considered and supported a number of key initiatives for 2023 and beyond. Further information on such initiatives can be found in the colleagues and culture report on pages 50 to 53. During the year, colleagues were invited to attend a series of engagement sessions with Non-Executive Directors branded as “Take on Board”. At all sessions, colleagues had the opportunity to provide feedback and ask questions on any matters of interest to give the Directors visibility of any topics which required the attention of the Board. In addition to taking part in the engagement sessions, Michelle Cracknell, the designated lead Non-Executive Director on employee engagement, regularly engaged with the Group Chief People Officer on colleagues, culture and wellbeing matters, and fed back to the Board outcomes from those discussions.
TRANSFORM HOW WE WORK
Colleagues
Based on the strategic priority be proud to work at Just, the Board considered a programme of activity to ensure it was engaged on key developments impacting colleagues and culture, and that it had opportunities to engage with colleagues through meaningful, regular dialogue.
COLLEAGUES AND CULTURE
Powered by FlippingBook